The S5 is the smallest consumer device capable of running a full version of Windows

In our holiday review of 10 Superb Travel Gifts we suggested a cool MID (Mobile Internet Device) with built in wi-fi, GPS and HD 720p video playback functionality, a 4.8-inch screen and a long battery life:

The Viliv S5.

Continue →

In tough economic times there’s a special need for gifts that come at a cheap price but that feel expensive. So here are 10 items with a low cost and high WOW factor. As with our other gift guides, friends and family of Spot Cool Stuff are advised to read no further lest you ruin the surprise of your gift this holiday season. The rest of you, carry on . . .

Continue →

Regular readers of the Spot Cool Stuff Tech blog know what huge fans we are of the Kindle. They also know that our Kindle enthusiasm comes despite harboring a few gripes about Amazon’s e-book reader.

Well, today that list of gripes grew shorter by one: The Amazon Kindle is now available in an international version.

Continue →

In a previous review we put to the test two of the most popular high-end noise reducing headphones—the Sennheiser PXC 450 and the Bose QuietComfort 3. Our verdict: the PXC 450 was the better.

Since that review Bose introduced a new member of its noise reducing headphone lineup: The QuietComfort 15. So how does it compare?
Continue →

“Elegant” and “Microsoft” are usually not words that go together. Yet somehow those adjectives managed to meet up in the cool, wireless Microsoft Arc Mouse.

Continue →

Amazon offers two “current” versions of its popular e-book reader: the Kindle 2 and the Kindle DX.

Both Kindles are among Spot Cool Stuff’s favorite gadgets, especially for traveling. But why? And what’s the difference between the two Kindle models? And which one is better?

For the answers, Dear Reader, continue on . . .

Continue →

For better and for worse, the number of situations in which one is unable to access an internet connection from a laptop is dwindling. More and more high end vacation resorts, like the Ritz-Carlton in Puerto Rico, boast that their beaches are covered by wi-fi signals. Several airlines, most notably Virgin Atlantic, offer in-flight internet. And now it is possible to get internet in your car! (Yes, even while the car is moving).

With an Autonet Mobile Automotive Wi-Fi Router your vehicle can become an internet hotspot.

Continue →

Life can be rough if you’re a digital camera. Especially if you are an ultra-compact that gets totted along to the beach and on ski trips, slung into purses, thrown into bags, stuffed into pockets and/or treated less-than-gently by young children.

We recently previewed the Canon PowerShot D10. Since then Olympus launched it’s Stylus Tough-8000. Both digital point-and-shoots are waterproof, compact and capable of taking a beating. But which of these two excellent models are best for you?

Continue →