My regular readers will recall that I reviewed six items, one for each of the categories that ShowStoppers has: 

1. Audio, video, digital entertainment
2. Auto, wireless, mobility, entertainment
3. Productivity, security & software
4. Computers, printers, cameras, digital media
5. Discoveries 
6. Startup 

For this column, I’ve again selected six products I really liked, using the information supplied by the manufacturer and adding my own comments along with a url where you can get more information. I have found some prices on items by using the web, but as always, I suggest you do your own search for the best price. I also have a couple of additional products to tell you about, following the ShowStoppers list. With that, here goes:

1. Drobo Robotics: Protects your data without your interference; can take a 3.5-inch SATA drive of any capacity and from any vendor; hot swappable; your data is available while Drobo is formatting a new drive (even if one drive fails); runs quietly; dashboard lets you track the condition of your Drobo. Drobo takes the pain and confusion out of data protectionand lets you tailor and expand the drive according to your needs. This so-called storage robot works exactly as promised and is the most innovative storage device I've seen. If you are serious about managing your data and backing it up, invest in a Drobo. Best price I found was $439. URL: http://www.drobo.com/

2. Pharos Trips & Pics: Pharos recently announced a geo-logger that lets you keep track of locations of photos and display them on a map. The bundled software works with Google Earth or MS Streets and Trips. With Trips & Pics, you can snap away to your heart’s content and the device creates a GPS log and time stamp of your photos so that with supplied software you can pinpoint each shot on Google Maps or Microsoft Streets and Trips. The package comes with both hardware and software. You get a CD with the program to install on your computer that integrates the GPS and photo data with a mapping source to plot a trip and pinpoint the location of photos snapped along the way. You also get a iPGS500 receiver, a USB cable, a battery dock, and a charger. This is one only limited by your own imagination and creativity. Best price: $83.30, URL: http://tinyurl.com/32uuqw

3. GoodSynch:  A hard drive crashes every 20 seconds. Use GoodSync and never worry about losing your emails, contacts, photos, documents, spreadsheets, MP3s, and other important files. Also use GoodSync to synchronize files between several computers via network or USB key. Real Two-way File and Folder Synchronization True folder (directory) synchronization with all file modifications tracked in a database to prevent data loss. One-way Synchronization Use one-way synchronization to easily backup and/or restore old files. Synchronize Multiple Tasks at Once You can create as many jobs as you need and can accomplish routine multiple-job synchronization with just one click. Automatic Synchronization A variety of automatic synchronization options include; when file changes are detected, a removable device is connected, a time period has elapsed, on user logon/logout, or on a set time schedule.Customizable Interface GoodSync supports virtually all file systems. Our interface is multilingual and is localized to support more than 20 languages. Flexible GoodSync can be used to synchronize data between your desktop PC and laptop, home and office computers, computer and removable devices (USB Key, Flash Drive, CDRW disc), over a local network or the Internet. If you have more than one computer, e.g. a desktop and a laptop, you need this program. Best price:$19.95 URL: http://www.siber.com/

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4. CardScan Personal: CS systems use a unique combination of hardware (business card scanners) and software to capture and convert information from business cards, emails and other electronic communications into a digital contact database. This is great for your Christmas lists and other occasion lists. I'am surprised at the number of business cards I still seem to collect, even though I’m pretty much retired.{:-) CardScan software eliminates the errors associated with the manual data-entry process and enables users to drag-and-drop from electronic files, easily “de-duplicate” lists, categorize contacts, print labels and synchronize to mobile devices. The latest software from CardScan, Version 8, offers a streamlined interface with improved navigation and more effective de-duplicating tools. Key features include: 

• Compact scanner, travel-ready
• 5 second monochrome scan
• Synchronizes with Outlook, PDAs and smart phones
• Includes travel pouch

Best price: $144.99 at Amazon with free shipping. URL: http://www.cardscan.com/

5. eAgency Mobile Solutions announces the release of RADAR Your Kids Mobile Watchdog for cell phones. Protecting your children by providing a cell phone guarantees they can easily call out for help in an emergency. Unfortunately this exposes them to the entire world. Recent stories in the news of cyberbullying and child predators have made it all too clear that our children live in a different world of chat rooms, social networks and high technology.

RADAR, a revolutionary new parental child safety service, monitors the activity on your child's cellphone and instantly makes you aware of communications or images when an unauthorized contact is made. This new technology gives concerned parents the tools they need to effectively monitor their children in these high tech environments while providing the safety of a cell phone. Another must-have for parents, or perhaps a present from grandparents. {:-)

Price: $9.95 per month; URL:http://www.mymobilewatchdog.com/

6. Big Stage is a media company whose breakthrough technology allows users to easily create and integrate a life-like 3-D avatar of themselves into everything from famous movie scenes, TV shows and video games, to music videos, short video clips, virtual worlds, still images, user-generated content, instant messages, e-mails, social networks and more - instantly.  So, what’s an avatar you ask: An avatar is computer user's representation of himself or herself, whether in the form of a three-dimensional model used in computer games, a two-dimensional icon (picture) used on Internet forums and other communities, or a text construct found on early game systems. The term "avatar" can also refer to the personality connected with the screen name, or handle, of an Internet user. With Big Stage’s 3-D capture technology, users take three simple pictures of themselves with a digital camera and upload them to the Web, where they are quickly converted into a life-like 3-D avatar.  Big Stage’s proprietary technology automatically maps the contours of a user’s face to generate an incredibly accurate replica of the user, fully equipped for animation.  In under a minute, your avatar is born and fully alive through realistic movement and gestures.  Users can then style it with a host of accessories, from hair to eyeglasses, tattoos, hats and more. After users create and style their avatars, they can drop them into the library of Big Stage-enabled (BSE) user and professionally created content.  This highly personalized content can then be shared by users across social networks, mobile phones and more. This is a really fun one to check out even if you never actually do an avatar. There is a youtube video of the demo that was presented at CES. Be sure to take a look: www.youtube.com/watch?v=hM0YIS4fmio

That’s it for the ShowStoppers list; here are two more I am having fun trying out.

The first one is a winner in the Best of Innovations Awards. The Computer Accessory chosen is the latest entry from Yoggie, the Pico, personal security with 13 applications such as anti-virus and phishing, parental web control, layer-8 eight security, and VPN client. With a dual flash memory system, the device blocks both known and unknown Internet baddies outside your computer while it boosts its performance. This is a real innovation which allows you to off-load all your anti-virus, malware, spyware and firewall software and more. Take the time to visit their homepage as this is a real winner and works for you at home or on the road with your laptop. You can pick up a Yoggie for $99.99 at Amazon, including free shipping. Or check the special on their homepage. URL: http://www.yoggie.com/

Finally, my favorite: PCTV HD Pro Stick by Pinnacle. Bring high quality Digital HD TV with full DVR functionality to your laptop. Introducing Pinnacle PCTV HD Pro Stick, your key to free high quality digital HD Programming on your laptop computer. The USB 2.0 powered Tuner and mini-remote are so small that you could actually put them in your coat pocket, but with their good looks you won’t want to hide them. No longer must you modify your schedule to enjoy your favorite TV shows. Now, you can pause, TimeShift and even automatically Record all of your favorite shows in HD and SD with no service fee. PCTV HD Pro Stick is also compatible with Windows MCE.

Features:

• Watch live high quality digital HD and SD TV without service fees from anywhere on your laptop
• Break free and PlaceShift with the sleek USB 2.0 powered portable PCTV device
• Take the ultra-compact tuner with you wherever you go
• Sit back and relax from afar with full remote control access to all your media files (e.g. videos, photos, music and more)
• The options are unlimited with full support for both analog (NTSC) and digital (ATSC) reception
• Listen to Internet radio at home or on the road
• Instantly transform your PC into a personal digital video recorder (DVR)
• Take complete control of when you watch your favorite shows with TimeShifting
• Never miss a critical part of your favorite show again with pause, rewind and replay
• Schedule recordings with the integrated Electronic Program Guide and never worry again about missing your favorite show
• Turn your Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) computer into a full featured analog and digital TV set (MCE remote sold separately)
• Eliminate the guess work by automatically recording shows in the destination file format of choice (i.e. Apple® iPod®, Sony PSP, DivX, etc.)
• Create your own DVD collection with direct-to-DVD recording
• Play and burn CDs and DVDs
• Capture from most consumer devices with analog outputs (e.g. VCRs, camcorders, DVD players, etc.)
• Create your own masterpiece by adding effects, titles, music and more with Pinnacle Studio QuickStart
• Edit out your uninteresting moments using Pinnacle Studio QuickStart
• Preserve all your analog video footage, photos and TV shows in digital format for safekeeping and sharing

Minimum System Requirements:

• Windows XP (SP2 or higher)
• Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz, Pentium M 1.3 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 processor (for HDTV reception, a Pentium D or Pentium Dual Core or equivalent AMD Athlon 64 processor is recommended)
• 256 MB RAM (512 MB recommended, 1 GB recommended for HD)
• DirectX 9 or higher compatible graphics card (64 MB real memory required for HD)
• DirectX 9 or higher compatible sound card (Creative Audigy or M-Audio recommended)
• 1 GB of disk space to install software (20 GB recommended for TV recording)
• USB 2.0 port
• DVD-ROM drive to install software

I’ve been using the desktop version which means installing a PCI card inside the box and it works great. It pretty much does all of the above, but I have it connected to my cable so I haven’t tried the HD yet. Now I have the pro stick, I’ll try that out on my laptop and see how it works here and on the road. Best online price I found was Best Buy Business (no pun intended!) for $74.27 URL: http://tinyurl.com

Have fun with all these gadgets, but remember to be safe out there. Until next time, when I'll tell you about the DXG 10 megapixel digital camera that sells for under $200 and includes Focus Illuminator ISO 1600/Antishake, AutoFocus Tracking, Automatic Contrast, & Face Detection!!

Aloha, Lou