HTC Touch Cruise 
The third in the Touch series brings full connectivity to this smartphone, addressing the deficiencies of the first two. It comes with tri-band UMTS and quad-band GSM, making it good for roaming anywhere in the world. Expect the usual WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS features, and HSDPA with a maximum theoretical speed of 3.6mbps. While the heavily modifi ed Windows Mobile interface makes it more convenient to get basic tasks done, a bottleneck occurs with the mini-USB acting as both the input for the headphones and the unit charger – meaning you can’t do both at the same time. But the low price and exceptional battery life (three days on a single charge) make it a hard bargain to beat. 
$1,198. 

Axioo 
First we had homegrown MP3 players and computer speakers provided by Creative; then came Qool’s smartphones. Now local start-up Axioo presents us with laptops. All models come with fancy add-ons like WiFi connectability, integrated web camera, a DVD dual drive, an integrated stereo speaker and microphone. The entry TEN range (pictured) with an Intel Pentium Dual Core processor and a storage capacity of 80GB comes in either green, orange or pink, clearly a marketing tool aimed at the youngsters. The higher-end TEC models have extra features like a fingerprint scanner, Bluetooth connection, Intel Core 2 Duo processor and a 120GBsize hard disk. Sure, it’s not a name brand, but the prices aren’t too bad considering the complete package – plus you get a cool ‘Assembled in Singapore’ sticker on the bottom of the laptop.
$1,299 (Axioo TEN); $1,799 (Axioo TEC). 

Shure Music Phone Adapter 
Apple just likes to make life difficult for everyone: buy an iPhone and the jack isn’t compatible with that expensive, ultra-high-end set of headphones you bought. Thankfully, third-party manufacturers have come up with clever solutions. Best of the bunch is the Shure Music Phone Adapter, a 32-inch-long cable with an integrated microphone that turns any headphones into a mobilephone headset. So far, the adapter is available only for the Motorola RAZR v3i, Palm Treos and the iPhone, but there are plans to add LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Blackberry music phones to that list. The integrated mic reduces ambient noise when talking to someone and a small grey button on the back ends calls, or – if you’re listening to music – helps pause the audio. Note to Shure: a volume control would be nice, maybe in version 2.0. 
$79.