ShowStoppers Digital Holidays

Trying to get a jump on my IT gift giving, I hit ShowStoppers Digital Holidays to see what was cool. As my wife put it, there were a lot of things to stuff in your ears (Bluetooth headsets) and stuff to play in your ears (audio things). Nestled in between were some interesting items any IT geek could use. IceRage Pocket Presenter is a cool little mouse, laser pointer, and input device that can be used to take control of your presentations. Using Bluetooth to talk to the PC, you can use it as a mouse, flip a switch, and start running a presentation. Slides are advanced through the pointy stick. You can even enter text into the slides. Pocket Presenter will be available in 2008.

D-Link Wireless USB hub (DUB-2240) priced at $219.99 MSRP is a four-port of USB 2.0 HUB over a wireless connection to your PC. Representatives from D-Link said new laptops shipping from Dell and Lenovo will have wireless USB built in. For those without wireless USB, an adapter (DUB-1210) can be had for $119.99 MSRP. Kind of pricey for both units, but far less than a comparable docking station and far more convenient. D-Link says the products will be available in the fourth quarter.

D-Link MediaLounge Media extender is a wireless media device capable of streaming HD and standard definition video, audio, and images. The DSM-750 is scheduled to be available by November with an MSRP of $349. Included are wired and wireless network connections, remote control, USB 2.0 input, and it can be driven from Windows Media Center.

Zipit Wireless Messenger 2 is a handheld IM device supporting AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and MSN over any Wi-Fi connection. This is a stripped-down device that limits activity to IM, audio, and pictures and lets kids, the target audience, IM without tying up the home computer. There is no browser, so you can sign into a Wi-Fi service, which is by design. It will be available this month at $149.99 MSRP.

The Fly Fusion Pentop Computer from LeapFrog Enterprises, MSRP $79.99 and available now, is a pen that records the written word to silicon. Using special paper containing a dot matrix, a reader in the pen tracks writing activity and stores it in memory. The text can be uploaded to a computer using USB, and can be saved, searched, and converted to text in Word. If you have poor handwriting, like I do, the product has a training program to reteach you how to write. There are other programs that can be loaded onto the pen, like a math program that helps you over difficult math problems. The downside is that you need the paper from LeapFrog, which runs $9.99 for 100 sheets. At 9.9 cents per sheet, that is some might expensive stock. No doodling!Diskeeper 2008 is an updated disk defragmenter from the eponymous corporation. New features are schedules operation, which uses idle cycles to optimize your disks. There are also several engines optimized for disk configurations so if your drive is nearly full or highly fragmented, the appropriate engine will be used to optimize the drive. Individual copies are less than $50 and corporate licenses available. It will be available in November.

BackpackShield is a bulletproof layer that can be inserted into a backpack and will stop rounds from handguns. At $249, the lightweight shield seems like an effective safety tool. From the demonstration at the show, it seems plausible, but what struck my wife, who is also a parent, is that often kids either don't carry their backpacks because they forget them or more commonly schools don't allow them in hallways. Also, the backpack hung jauntily off one shoulder won't provide much protection and if gunfire starts, it takes a cool head to remember to pull that shield up for protection. It's not a magic bullet, pun intended. If you do plan on buying one of these things, be sure to spend time practicing how to use it with your child.