All mySimon Electronics Shopping Picks

Look out Kindle; Sony's third generation digital book reader is here, and it makes you look, well, second generation. The Sony PRS-700 Reader has a 6-inch touchscreen display that understands gesture-based commands (like the iPhone). You can highlight with your finger, make notes with the virtual keyboard or a stylus pen, and even adjust the font size. And the device, which weighs all of 10 ounces, holds up to 350 books. Our backs and... more

If you're a text messaging addict on a budget - and if you wear tight pants - check out the Pantech Slate. At less than 1 centimeter thick, the Slate is the world's thinnest messaging device, so it just might fit in the back pocket of your skinny jeans. The phone's slim design, big QWERTY keyboard, and price point ($50 with a 2-year AT&T contract) are its main selling points, but it also offers... more

Getting directions from Point A to Point B does not have to cost as much as a cross-country plane ticket for the holidays. Sony now makes an affordable GPS unit that gets the job done nicely for under $200. Available in 3 colors, the Sony NV-U44 has a 3.5 touchscreen, text-to-speech functionality, and dual view mode with lane guidance. It's also got a photo viewer and what Sony calls Gesture Command, which sounds like... more

Pocket-sized camcorders have become quite popular this year, and thanks to the Kodak Zi6, they're now recording in HD. The new Flip MinoHD, a 3.3-ounce camcorder, lets you shoot up to an hour of 720p HD video on its 4GB of internal memory. Connect it to your computer using the built-in USB connection, and use its PC- and Mac-friendly software to you edit your masterpieces with your own music (and add titles and... more

PC Magazine calls the Pioneer Kuro PDP-5020FD 50 plasma TV the best HDTV you can get, in part because the 1080p TV delivers the best picture contrast of any HDTV available and a shoo-in for their Editors' Choice award. CNET agrees, saying Best-in-class black levels and excellent all-around performance places the Pioneer PDP-5020FD near the top of the picture quality heap. The TV has 4 HDMI inputs, 1 PC input, an antireflective screen, and... more

Whoever came up with this idea is a genius. Target now sells a gift card - for as little as $75 or as much as $1000 - that is also a functioning 1.2-megapixel digital camera. Or else it's a digital camera that's also a gift card. OK so that's not much resolution, but it might come in handy when trying to decide what to buy (at Target, of course). The card even comes... more

The new BlackBerry Bold smartphone (RIM changed the name from BlackBerry 9000) is getting rave reviews. PC World says it's by far the best BlackBerry yet and great for both enterprise users and regular consumers. Gizmodo says it's RIM's most powerful, polished handset ever. And CNET says the smartphone impresses with its brilliant display, enhanced productivity tools, and excellent multimedia performance. Features include 3G, Wi-Fi, BlackBerry OS 4.6, Bluetooth, full QWERTY keyboard, GPS, web... more

PC World includes the 10-megapixel Canon PowerShot SD880 IS on its list of top 10 point-and-shoot cameras, and CNET calls it a worthy successor to the PowerShot SD870 IS, saying it is capable of producing truly excellent pictures for a camera of its size. The ultracompact camera offers optical image stabilization, face detection, 4x zoom, and a 3 LCD. Choose silver or gold. More Canon cameras.

What's even better than a cell phone with EV-DO, text/video/picture messaging, MP3 player, 2-megapixel camera, microSD card slot, and good call quality? A phone that has all that and a built-in hideaway Bluetooth headset. The LG Decoy is the first phone with such a feature. When you're not using the headset, you can store it right inside the phone. We love the idea of not having to buy a separate headset. And not having... more

Before you jump from the Sprint ship, check out the new Samsung Rant. Design-wise, it's similar to the LG Rumor, with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (for fast and easy texting, IMing, and emailing), but it's also got EV-DO for high-speed data transfer and access to Sprint's music store, movie channels, and on-demand TV. Additional features include a 2-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, and memory card slot. Right now the Rant is just $50 with a... more

New from Belkin: The GoStudio, a device that lets you record high-quality audio (16-bit, 44kHz WAV files) directly onto your iPod's hard drive. Designed for musicians, journalists, podcasters, and students recording lectures, the GoStudio has 2 built-in microphones as well as professional XLR and 1/4 audio jacks (for recording from external microphones or mixing boards). When you're done recording, you can put your files into iTunes, edit them, or upload them to your blog/website/Facebook... more

Ever notice how manufacturers never show DVD players, cable boxes, and other electronic clutter next to their sleek, flat-screen TVs? Because all that stuff takes away from the minimalist look of the TVs. We're fantasizing about how much nicer our entertainment center would look with the 32 LG 32LG40 and its built-in, slot-loading DVD player on the side of the screen. The 720p TV also has an HD tuner, 3 HDMI inputs, a PC... more

Introducing the Logitech Squeezebox Boom, a high-tech boombox that CNET calls the best all-in-one tabletop Wi-Fi radio (they've) seen to date, and well worth its $300 pricetag. Connect the Boom to your home network so you can enjoy all the music on your computer (on much better speakers), or connect it to the SqueezeNetwork, which gives you access to internet radio, Pandora, Rhapsody, Last.fm, and other music services. The device also has an alarm... more

The 10-megapixel Kodak EasyShare M1033 has almost everything we want in an ultracompact, easy-to-use digital camera: Good photos. Slim design. Huge screen. Face detection. 22 scene modes. And a budget price tag. We wish it had more than 3x zoom, but that's the standard for cameras you can fit in your pocket. This one makes up for it, we guess, by letting you shoot movies in HD. Choose from 5 colors. More ultracompact... more

Big fingers (or long nails) can make typing on your iPhone or iPod Touch tricky. And even if you have small fingers and chewed-off nails, your iPhone is no match for the grease on your fingers after a bucket of KFC. Check out the Pogo, a lightweight stylus with a soft, durable tip that won't smudge or scratch your screen. It works just like your index finger, only better. The included clip keeps the... more