What to buy and what not to

What to buy...

Good deal
Peek is for those who are addicted to e-mail, feel compelled to access it every five minutes, yet balk at the price of smartphones. The gadget looks like a phone, but can only send and receive mails. It can handle three e-mail accounts simultaneously, and store 1,000 contacts and 5,000 mails.

Good deal
Movie buffs now have a classy, feature-rich product to indulge their hobby. The DZ810 is a 5.1-channel surround sound system with two wireless-ready rear speakers. The audio and video quality are excellent. The DVD player recognises all video formats, including DivX and MPEG4. The combined sound output is 1,000 W RMS, which should appease any audiophile.

Good deal
Press clutch, change gear, brake, press clutch, change gear, brake... Manoeuvring one's way through city traffic can make anyone sweat. To ease the trauma, TVS has introduced the automatic clutch bike, Jive. Its T-matic technology enables you to start the bike in any gear, ride, accelerate and brake without having to keep shifting to the neutral gear. You can even move directly from the fourth gear to the second or from the first to the fourth, a relief on traffic-heavy roads. The Jive is powered by a 110 cc engine and claims a mileage of 65 kmpl.

Good deal
The latest among 3D innovations that is likely to set the tongues wagging is by Samsung; it has upgraded its LED TV range to the 3D version. Yes, we know there isn't enough 3D content yet, but here's the ace up Samsung's sleeve— the TV can convert 2D images into 3D. The 1.1-inch thin TV has a resolution of 1920 x 1080, dynamic contrast ratio of 8,000,000:1, four HDMI inputs, USB port and Internet connectivity. You get a pair of 3D glasses with each purchase and these can be charged through a USB connector.

...And what not to

Bad deal
At times one wishes a company would make a gadget that performs a single function flawlessly, rather than one crammed with multiple features but giving an average performance. The Nuvifone M10 does a fair job when it comes to navigation (it has detailed maps of 62 Indian cities), but leaves much to be desired as far as its phone functionality is concerned. Even the design, seemingly good, poses a problem as the Nuvifone emblem at the bottom makes it difficult to use the touchscreen properly.

Bad deal
It seems that the designers at BenQ were so focused on creating the world’s slimmest monitor that they overlooked the need to include better features. The 15-mm, 21.5-inch screen has a wobbly stand, no swivel provision and falls well short of its claim of a 10,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio.

Bad deal
Just what were the whizkids at Cowon thinking when they launched this player? Admittedly, the V5 looks good and has an amazing display, but the Wi-Fi and Web browser are missing. It's a glaring oversight, given that even mobile phones at half the V5's price are equipped with these. Also, there's just one output port for HDMI and USB 2.0, which means you'll have to lug around two cables. Though the 4.8-inch screen, which displays 720p videos, is tempting, the iPod Touch at Rs 18,500 is a better bet.

Bad deal
The Netvertible—twist the screen and you can turn it into a tablet, using the touchscreen to perform all the functions— seems a great idea. But it is let down by slow speeds, a cramped touchpad and the absence of stylus. As a tablet, the S10-3t seems a bulkier and heavier version of the iPad. As a Netbook— Atom N450 processor, 2 GB RAM, 250 GB HDD—it’s more expensive than its peers. Instead, you could go for the Dell Inspiron 15R laptop, which has a much faster Intel Core i3-330 processor, 3 GB RAM, 320 GB HDD and costs Rs 31,900.