Fetish
Nix the Noise
Ever try to listen to your portable CD player on an airplane? Usually, you hear more airplane noise than music. NoiseBuster is the first consumer- priced noise-cancellation device, consisting of a little black box with a special pair of headphones for use with any audio source, in any situation with ambient rumbling noise. Special microphones in the headphones detect ambient noise and send the data to the little black box, which then generates a corresponding anti-noise wave to cancel the offending sound. US$149. Noise Cancellation Technologies: (800) 769 6647, +1 (410) 636 8700.
Musical OCR
MIDISCAN is one of the most revolutionary software products of recent years. Fulfilling the wish of every computer-using musician, MIDISCAN does for music what OCR software does for text. Scan sheet music into your computer using any scanner, click the mouse a few times, and the program creates a standard MIDI file that you can then import to virtually any MIDI software program. Wow. US$199.95. Musitek: (800) 676 8055, +1 (805) 646 8051.
Rodents in Space
Take your mouse into a new dimension with Cricket from Digital Image Design. The Cricket combines the best features of a 3-D mouse with joystick capabilities and the tactile feedback of an expensive data glove. The Cricket contains rows of tactile sensors that transfer vibration, amplitude, and frequency to your palm. The vibration can be changed to make different simulated objects actually feel different in your hand; it can also let you feel the energy levels of the bonds of modeled molecules. And hey, it's great for games, too. US$3,200. Digital Image Design: +1 (212) 222 5236.
Cool Data Curve
American hard disk manufacturers can't seem to break out of that boxy, functional, industrial look. For an artsy-looking hard disk, you'll have to turn to Paris. Electronique d2 offers a line of futuristic-looking portable SCSI hard disks by Philippe Starck, perhaps today's most futuristic and sensual designer. If only computers looked this good. US$1,200 (one- gigabyte model). Electronique d2 (Paris): +45 82 49 40.
Trash the Tape
Trying to size up a room with a tape measure is not just a two-person operation; it's also for analog dweebs. Digital-do-it-yourselfers carry the Seiko Home Contractor. Just point this little gadget at a wall, push a button, and the distance pops up on the screen, in either English or metric units, of course. Then flip it over and you'll find a special contractor's calculator that will help you calculate gallons of paint and rolls of wallpaper. US$89.95 Seiko: (800) 873 4508, +1 (310) 517 7814.
Hand Over Your Identity
"Hacker proof" - at least that's what the folks at Recognition Systems, Inc. claim about their HandKey identification system. More personal than a signature and less obtrusive than a retinal scan, the HandKey system compares the shape, structure, and other details of your hand to make a positive, forgery-proof ID. HandKey is the ultimate computer security device, and has been used for everything from allowing access to defense systems to letting students into the cafeteria at the University of Georgia. US$2,550 each. Recognition Systems: +1 (408) 364 6960.
Wrist-friendly Typing
Repetitive stress injury is quickly becoming the scourge of the digital age, but computer manufacturers are only beginning to get with the program when it comes to ergonomics. Apple made a stir with its ergonomic keyboard last year, but it was limited to Macintosh owners. Now, PC users have the Mini Ergo keyboard from Marquandt, developed in cooperation with the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Science in Stuttgart, Germany. US$179. Marquandt: +1 (315) 478 6612.
Biz Card Robot
Power schmoozers just have to brag about who came back from Comdex with the biggest stack of business cards. The only problem is what to do with all the cards once you bring them back. If you're really wired, the answer is obvious: Just feed them into the CardGrabber - a little Walkman-sized box that reads the cards and builds a Windows database of all your new-found contacts. US$395. Pacific Crest Technologies: +1 (714) 261 6444.
Sharpest Image
Finally, a low-cost high-definition television. Well, that is, if you consider Yen 67,6000 (US$6,500) affordable, and you happen to live in Japan, the only place where you can (a) buy one of these sleek, rectangular beasts and (b) receive any programming in the HDTV format. Nevertheless, Sony's 28-inch high-definition television set marks a milestone in this emerging technology. Sony Japan: +81 3 5448 2200.
Better than Crumb Trails
Where the heck am I? An ever-increasing raft of products is trying to answer this fundamental question. If your question is more geographical than metaphysical, then you're a prime candidate for the new Panasonic KX- G5700. That numbo-jumbo name refers to the smallest handheld global positioning system yet - and the first with a built-in display. By tapping into the Defense Department's system of 24 satellites, the KX-G5700 can determine your exact latitude, longitude, and altitude. Price to be announced January, 1994. Panasonic: +1 (201) 348 7000.
Bend Your Friends
You've seen them in Terminator II and in Michael Jackson's videos. No, I'm not talking about adolescent boys. I'm talking about morphs, where one person or object turns into another. In big-screen productions, it's usually done with the help of a supercomputer. Now, Mac and Windows users can perform their own shape-change operations using Morph from Gryphon Software. Together with a video camera and capture board for your computer, Morph makes a hilarious party gag. US$169 for Windows, US$239 for Mac. Gryphon Software: (800) 795 0981, +1 (619) 536 8815.
A Third Eye
It's the incredible shrinking machine. Sony's miracle of miniaturization is the Handycam Snap!, which combines an 8-mm camcorder with 3-inch color monitor in a 1.4-pound package, making it the most compact camcorder available. The monitor doubles as a viewfinder, eliminating the need to hold the camera at eye level - an important benefit because it makes the camera operator less obtrusive. You can play back your video and watch other tapes on the unit as well. US$1,200. Sony: (800) 342 5721, +1 (201) 368 9272.
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