Top 5 Gifts for the Electronics Addict

They knew about iPods back when you thought it was the name of a new vegetable, and they just wouldn't feel complete without updating their blog every day. They're always the first on the block to hear about new technological advances and products, and the first person you go to when your DVD player won't work or your desktop suffers the dreaded Blue Screen of Death. Maybe a friend or family member absolutely adores the Electronic Age, but you're stuck when it comes to choosing a gift for them. Here are a few ideas to spark your imagination and please even the most hardcore electronics addict on your list this year:

1. jWIN Portable DVD Player, $179.95 (at the time of this article)
From The Sharper Image. This lightweight DVD player fits almost in the palm of your hand. Perfect for travel (or even commuting on the bus or subway), its slimline design features a 3.6 inch wide LCD screen with progressive scan for clearer images and built-in anti-skip protection. You can use the speakers on the player or plug in the included earbuds for more privacy. It has a battery life of 2 hours, but comes with an AC adapter and a rechargeable battery.

2. Bose Wave Music System CD Player, $499.00 (at the time of this article)
Bose introduces a new and improved way of listening to your favorite music, with sound they claim to be one-half octave lower than the sound found on original Bose Wave radios. In the place of buttons, you control the system via a remote the size of a credit card. Installation is also not an issue: the CD player, AM/FM tuner, amplifiers and speakers are all built-in to the player. A slot-loaded CD player finishes off this sleek design, and for a few hundred more dollars you can purchase a multi-CD changer with added slots that don't take up much more room. With Bose's Wave system your loved one can enjoy concert-quality sound in any room of the house.

3. Bose QuietComfort 3 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones, $349.00 (at the time of this article)
Also from Bose's product line comes an item that can make plane trips more enjoyable (or just block out the pesky barking of your neighbor's dog.) The "QC3" headphones allow you to listen to your favorite songs or movies without the annoying drone of background noise. Their new earcups fit directly on the ear, so those who feel headphones are too cumbersome now have a more attractive option (though Bose still sells over-the-ear headphones as their "QC2" design.) The included rechargeable lithium-ion battery provides up to 20 hours of run time.

4. Canon PowerShot SD630 Digital Elph Camera, $349.99 (at the time of this article)
From Circuit City. For the photography-loving electronics addict, Canon's 6-megapixel Elph camera will help make every picture a Kodak moment. The 3x optical zoom UA lens is perfect for point-and-shoot photography, and the 4x digital zoom allows the user to enlarge the details of the picture before or after shooting. A high ISO sensitivity helps reduce the effects of camera shaking and automatically sharpens the subject of the picture in low-lit circumstances. You can even record movies up to one minute long with the fast frame movie mode. If you have a PictBridge-enabled printer, the Elph also features a Print and Share button for easily printing and sending copies of your pictures to others. This mid-range digital camera would make the perfect gift for any photography enthusiast.

5. HP Pavilion a1540n Minitower, $769.99 (at the time of this article)
From CompUSA. Another handy item for loved ones who love to take pictures, the Minitower features Sonic's DigitalMedia Plus, which allows you to back up your pictures, videos, and music onto DVD-R or DVD+R. HP's patented LightScribe technology burns custom labels and artwork directly onto LightScribe-enabled discs, making it easy to create professional-looking discs. The front-panel 9-in-1 memory card reader allows for easy transfer of photos from your digital camera to the PC, and the 250 GB hard drive means you can store a virtual museum full of photos. The Minitower also comes with AMD dual-core processors and Microsoft's Media Center Edition 2005 installed. It doesn't come with a monitor, so you may want to consider purchasing an LCD to go with the system.