“Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat,
Please put an Ipod in the old man's hat”

Not quite the traditional song, but it serves to illustrate that IT gadgets can make for great presents, for a wide range of budgets. With the big day a little over a week away, there is time yet to find the ideal gift. Some ideas are ;

• The Apple Powerbook – a truly groovy laptop with a wealth of software (make movies, record & listen to music, browse the internet more safely than most) all wrapped up in the very stylish Apple OS X operating system. Around Vt300,000.   apple.com
• The Sony PSP (ie. PlayStation Personal) – for around Vt50,000, this is a handheld gaming console that is getting rave reviews and has a wide range of available games. It can also be used as an MP3 (music) player or even for playing video. Hours of fun and entertainment.
• An LCD screen – for about Vt40,000, get rid of the great big computer monitor and replace it with a sleek, thin, flat and lightweight screen with excellent viewing quality. Some even wall-mount.         viewsonic.com.au
• Apple Ipod Nano – around Vt30,000 for a tiny music player that really does fit in your pocket. 14 hours of battery life, and capacity for hundreds of songs. A very “cool” gadget to get someone.         apple.com
• Mini USB hub – around Vt5,000, solve the problem of having too many USB devices to connect to too few ports on the computer. A mini USB hub takes one port and makes it into 4 or more through a very small box.      computer stores
• USB memory stick – Vt4,000 and up depending on capacity. It's the size of a key, usually just plugs in to the computer and is available to use just like another hard-disk, and leaves no excuses for backing up important files. Carry one everywhere (put it round your neck to be  nerdy).         computer stores
• OpenOffice 2 – a full easy-to-use office suite, with word processing, spreadsheet, database and presentation software, yours to use, copy and pass on – legally! Oh, and compatible with Microsoft files too. How much? Free to download, so however much it costs you to download 70Mb, which is as much as Vt2,800 for TVL's excess-data rates. openoffice.org

There are all sorts of other weird and wonderful gadgets too - try a USB-powered keyboard light for the laptop-carrying traveller, a gel-filled wrist rest for keyboards, a mouse-pad that also holds a favourite photo, a USB-powered mini-fan... See what is in-store in town.