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Kindle Not The Only Techno-Toy On The Market

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By RICHARD MULLINS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 16, 2009

The Apple iPhone and the Amazon Kindle get most of the attention these days when it comes to new technongadgets. But just under the radar, a few interesting doodads lurk. Here are a few:

The Sony "P" Series sub notebook

Sub-notebooks appeal to people who don't want to carry a full-size laptop around, yet need something more than a BlackBerry or iPhone. Hence they're sometimes called "Netbooks," since they're good for just going online quickly on the go.

The tiny Sony Vaio "P" is just 8-inches wide and weighs 1.4 pounds.

At $900, the Sony is more expensive than other netbooks, but it runs a full Windows operating system. Comes in black, white, red and green. Built in cellular broadband, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a 60gig hard drive.

Price: $900

Bamboo Mouse

Anything recyclable or "green" is hip these days in electronics. Hence the bamboo mouse. Built by Micro Innovations, this puppy has been on the market since 2007, but dropped in price by half to $20. A keyboard made of bamboo runs $40.

Price: $20

Recycled Material Phone

Made from recycled plastic jugs and other sustainable materials, the Motorola "Renew" presently works on the T-Mobile network and costs just $10 with a contract. But you can find "unlocked" versions that run on other networks for $120 or so.

Price: $10 with contract.

Optoma "Pico" mini projector

This nifty little projector is about the size of an iPod and slips into your pocket. With the same DLP light engine used on rear-projection HDTVS, the picture is remarkably clear, though it works best in a dim room. But the video is clear enough to show on the back of an airplane seat for a cross-country flight. Connects through an iPod jack or standard video link. Rechargeable battery.

Price: $399

Lexar "Shoot-n-Sync" Wi-Fi memory card

This nifty memory card has an internal Wi-Fi transmitter. So take shots on your digital camera, and it will automatically send shots to your home network or to the web. Currently, there's a 2 gig version for about $99. Though if memory chip trends hold the price will fall through the floor in coming months.

Price: $99, though I found one for $56 on Amazon.com

Reporter Richard Mullins can be reached at (813) 259-7919.

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