It’s a wonderful wired life - Off Duty, Technology - Air Force Times

COURTESY OF SONY Walmart announced this year that it’s expanding its electronics offerings to include more high-end products. It now carries top-end flat-screen televisions, such as the industry-best Sony Bravia. You can pick up the 40-inch 1080p 60Hz LCD HDTV for $767, online or at the store. It’s got excellent color and image quality; it’s also just the right size — not too big, not too small. Cost: $767 ($82 less than MSRP) www.walmart.com

Creative Labs’ second-generation Vado HD Pocket Video Cam (8GB) is the coolest new gadget on the market this year. It provides 720p high-definition quality and is the only pocket video camera with HDMI connectivity and 1080i output to an HDTV. It’s got its own 2-inch screen, so you can edit movies on on the go. You’ll get two hours of record time in a camera about the size of an iPod — making this a difficult gift to give away. Cost: $199.99 www.creative.com

COURTESY OF THINKGEEK.COM Thanks to ThinkGeek.com, the future has arrived in the form of a Bluetooth laser keyboard that connects to most computers, PDAs or cell phones. It projects a full-size QWERTY keyboard on a flat surface and lets you type for 120 hours. Cost: $149.99 www.thinkgeek.com

COURTESY OF HOBBYTRON.COM Shoot BBs out of this 1/16-scale remote-controlled German Tiger I Airsoft tank in an all-out backyard war. Packing some serious heat from the movable barrel, you’re backed up by a turret that actually moves. The tank It runs on a rechargeable 7.2-volt battery (included) and is controlled by three-frequency remote. Cost: $75 www.hobbytron.com

COURTESY OF BOSE There’s always a place for Bose on our Christmas list, and now more than ever: The Companion 5 multimedia speakers are an immersive system that drowns you in sound. Plus, for the on-the-move lifestyle of military members, it’s highly portable and versatile. Plug in any iPod, laptop or desktop via USB for crystal-clear audio; it’s perfect for music editing, video games, movies or your favorite soundtrack. Cost: $399.95 www.bose.com

In a year full of repeats, the only gadget that’s getting the hipsters’ attention is the Dingoo A320 Handheld Game Player, a Chinese sensation that just crossed the Pacific. It looks like an old Nintendo controller but without the tether. It’s got a 4-gig hard drive, a 2.8-inch true-color HD screen and plays games in eight, 16 and 32 bits. It also plays videos, MP3s, audiobooks and FM radio. They aren’t sold in most stores, so shop around online for the best price. Cost: About $80 on various Web sites www.dingoo888.com/en_index.asp

COURTESY OF MSI The MSI is a super-portable, super-affordable notebook with a 13-inch screen. It’s another attempt to sexy up the Windows side of things, and it’s the slimmest Intel dual-core laptop that isn’t a Mac. It’s got HDMI output so you can hook it up to your big-screen TV, and it’s only an inch thick. It comes with Windows Vista — but other than that, it’s a pretty solid machine. Cost: $649.99 www.msimobile.com

COURTESY OF AMAZON.COM There’s a case to be made for dropping almost 500 bones for an e-book reader: First, it has a much larger screen (9.7 diagonal inches), almost 3 inches bigger than its predecessor. It has a rotating display and it provides several days of reading time on one battery charge. But what really sells us on the Kindle DX? It holds more than twice as many full-length books on its hard drive as the previous version. You can take a small community library’s worth of books on your next deployment — and it’ll weigh only 19 ounces. Cost: $489 www.amazon.com

COURTESY OF APPLE Gift cards are almost always a bad idea — they get lost, the store goes bankrupt, they get forgotten — but with an iTunes card, that won’t be the case. If you’re unsure about what to get someone on your list, consider this: An iTunes Gift Card can be used for music, movies, TV shows and even iPhone apps. You’re giving the gift of entertainment, without making the statement, “I don’t know you that well.” Plus, Apple won’t go out of business anytime soon. Cost: $15 to $100, www.apple.com