Check list
Anthony Teasdale on this month’s must-haves
HTC LEGEND
While the iPhone is still the king of the smartphones, HTC, firstly with its Hero, and now with the Legend, is producing handsets that are getting closer to Apple’s innovation. Running Google’s Android 2.1 operating system, the Legend boasts a bright, but small-ish 3.2 inch screen, snugly encased in brushed aluminium. OK, the range of apps isn’t up to the iPhone, but with this device you can run Flash websites (unlike the iPhone), listen to tunes on the music player and take decent pictures with the 5MP camera.
£370, www.htc.com Rating 4/5
LEGO SPACE SHUTTLE
Lego’s reproduction of the Space Shuttle will appeal to almost every man between the ages of five and 85. If you’ve got kids, claim it’s for them – then build it yourself.
£79.99, www.lego.com Rating 4/5
SONY VAIO VPCL12S1E/S
The Japanese giant’s VAIO range is undoubtedly about producing PCs that are as much about style as performance. The new ‘L’ range really is a step forward, combining touchscreen HD TV, Blu-ray and Dolby surround sound in one magical package. Away from entertainment, this VAIO packs some serious muscle, with 4GB of memory, 3GHz-processor speed and a whopping 1TB of hard disk space – enough for as many photos, albums and videos as you can get your hands on. And with its 24-inch screen, it can easily function as your main TV in small space or a perfectly good second TV. A brilliant bit of kit.
£1,400, www.sony.co.uk Rating 5/5
KOSS PRO/4AA HEADPHONES
Forget the never-ending 1980s revival, if you’re looking for the golden age of audio, you’ll have to rewind back to the decade of power cuts, brown carpets and flares – the ’70s! That’s when stereo got serious. These brilliant closed-cup headphones may look more at home on the ears of Michael Jackson in his Off The Wall period, but they deliver superb, warm sound and block out outside noise so effectively you can stick them on and never be disturbed again.
A retro classic that’s perfect for the sounds of today.
£70, www.hifiheadphones.co.uk Rating 4/5
TRAVEL WARDROBE PACKING CUBES
Finding your shirts creased at the bottom of your suitcase is a problem of the past with these simple but effective packing cubes. Although originally aimed at women, the grey mesh material with leather trim makes them ideal for divvying up men’s shirts in the large one, T-shirts and briefs in the medium, and fiddly items like belts, phone plugs and cables in the smallest.
£25, www.travelwardrobecare.com Rating 4/5
