Geeks Illustrated

Many of these gadgets fall outside our typical technology coverage areas--they're more "consumer," less "professional." But that doesn't mean you're not drooling over them too. So we came up with a compromise: We decided to devote this issue's cover story to test reports on geeky gear that has some enterprise-related justification. The hard drive in iRiver's PMP-120 media player can be used to back up business documents, for example, and the speedy processor in Hewlett-Packard's IPaq PDA can boost staff productivity.

We compiled a list of 12 candidates, and divided them into two categories: "Gratifying Gadgets" and "For Geeks on the Go." Then we subjected each product to a battery of hands-on tests in our Real-World Labs®, just as we do with switches, wireless LANs, voice over IP systems, firewalls, Web performance tools and the other enterprise products we cover. Based on our findings, we scored each product on a scale of 1 to 5 for both coolness and value.We also invited you to weigh in on our Web site with your own geeky product suggestions. You'll find a sampling of reader nominations in our Reader Wish Lists in the following articles.

And, because we know you can't escape the holiday festivities without being asked to provide free tech support for your closest friends and relatives, we asked contributing editor Jonathan Feldman to supply some tips for the go-to geek. Take his Geek-O-Meter test to see where you fall.