Nokia N97 mini smartphone

$1,020 exlucding operator contract GST

A smaller version of Nokia's flagship smartphone, the N97 mini features a 3.2 inch touchscreen display, a QWERTY keyboard and a fully customizable homescreen display.

Packed with the Nokia Ovi Maps service, and users can also download from a large selection of free and paid applications, games and multimedia content from the handset maker's Ovi Store service.

The Nokia N97 mini is available in Cherry Black and Garnet.

A special edition of the Nokia N97 mini Raoul phone is also available in limited quantities. The Raoul phone comes in a rose-gold metallic finish and is accompanied by exclusive accessories made by the clothing label.

Nokia's latest smartphone is available from today (Saturday, 7 November) at authorised retailers.

» Read more about the Nokia N97 mini Raoul phone here

Sony Vaio L
$3,499, from authorised dealers

THINK of it as a Blu-ray movie theatre, with its 24-inch full HD resolution screen and built-in Blu-ray drive.

It is also a Windows 7 computer. With a depth of only 19cm - the CPU is built into the screen - this hybrid PC-in-monitor frees up space on your desk.

When they are not being used, the wireless keyboard and mouse can be stored under the display.

The best part is the multitouch display.

Run your fingers across the screen to flip through or zoom in and out of photos.

Take a family photo using the built-in camera, personalise it with handwriting on the screen and e-mail it to grandma in Canada.

How is that for a special touch?

Panasonic Toughbook CF-F8
$1,399 plus $99 a month for a 36-month SingTel contract,
available at mc2, PC-Connect and Newstead

GET ON the Internet at speeds of up to 7.2Mbps without an external modem with this tough guy.

Despite its out-of-the-box convenience, this Toughbook lasts up to six hours on a standard battery.

It can also take spills and is drop-resistant, promising to survive a 76cm fall.

The 1.67kg notebook packs a 14.1-inch WXGA for easy viewing of your complex spreadsheets on the LCD screen and a DVD drive.

Its broadband deal with SingTel gives you 50GB of free data - that is 100,000 e-mail messages and 5,000 hours of surfing according to Panasonic.

(The price without the offer is $3,699.)

Logitech Professional Presenter R800
$149, from authorised dealers from Nov 19

ORATORS who feel tied down to their PowerPoint setup can get untethered with this wireless presenter.

You can pace up to 30m away from your PC and still be able to work your slides. An LCD display shows you the reception-level signal in case you wander too far.

The same display also counts down the time you have preset for your talk - the 71g pointer discreetly warns you with silent, vibrating alerts.

Setup is easy: Detach the receiver from the presenter and plug it into a USB port of the PC.

No software installation is needed.

The R800 hides a secret weapon - a powerful green laser which is brilliant enough to be used in a bright room or on LCD and plasma displays.

Beats the dime-a-dozen red laser pointers.

Jabra Stone
$198, from authorised dealers from Nov 16

WITH no buttons or a boom arm, this diminutive Bluetooth headset will not mar your high fashion ensemble. The controls are invisible, touch-sensitive areas on the gizmo.

Coupled to the charging cradle, the headset looks like a smooth black stone - hence its name.

Using two microphones - one to capture ambient sound to be used in noise cancellation - Jabra promises that your caller will hear your voice as if he were standing next to you.

WinZip 14
US$29.95 (S$42) for the Standard edition;
US$39.95 for the Backup version, buy online from winzip.com

ONE of the pioneers of file shrinkers, WinZip has come up with its latest update: WinZip 14.

It rides on the multi-touch smarts of Windows 7 for touchscreen computers to zoom in on images in zipped files without touching your keyboard or mouse.

WinZip can also encrypt files to keep your information secure. Even the temporary file created during encryption is digitally shredded by this latest version to keep it away from prying eyes.

With the new Backup version, important data files can be automatically archived on your PC. Backups can also be burnt on CDs or DVDs.

Brother HL-3040CN and MFC-9320CW LED printers

$498 (HL-3040CN) and $948 (MFC-9320 CW)

Brother has released a new line of printers for small business and workgroups that feature its latest LED printing technology.

The lowest end HL-3040CN is a compact colour and monochrome network printer with printing speeds of up to 16 pages per minute and resolutions of 2400 X 600 dpi.

As the highest-end printer in the range, the MFC-9320CW offers wireless network printing, scanning and other features as well as a top print speed of 16 pages per minute. This printer also includes time-saving features such as enabling users to print and scan to and from a USB drive.

This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life.

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