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Carolyn Ong

It's not difficult to pick out the corporate fast-tracker from the Central crowd - he's the one with the latest wireless gadget bulging in his pocket.

The bulge is meant to be conspicuous because, hard to believe as it might be, 'geek' is the height of chic today. The status-conscious corporate animal accessorises with the latest offerings from the tech giants.

It is considered deeply cool to stroll into your 3 o'clock meeting with a Bluetooth hands-free device in your ear, the latest GPRS mobile phone from Ericsson peeping from your shirt pocket and the sleek G4 Apple PowerBook tucked under your arm, its titanium cover so shiny and glamorous it dazzles all assembled.

The gadget-laden executive is more impressive because he is cultivating the 'I'm smarter and more productive because I'm tech-savvy' vibe.

So this Christmas, intrepid shoppers may want to trot down to Hong Kong's geek emporia - all of which are offering huge discounts because of massive inventory glut, and pick yourself and your loved ones some digital accessories.

Here's a wish-list of the best status gadgets destined for this year's Christmas stockings.

Sweet deals are all around. One of the best comes from Handspring, which is offering the Visor Platinum, one of its top-end personal digital assistants (PDAs), and the VisorPhone for the unbelievable package price of $2,180.

If you do not fancy the VisorPhone - basically a GSM module that turns the Visor Platinum into a phone - you can switch it for the Eyemodule, a tiny, light digital camera that fits in the expansion slot on the back of the Visor.

While the Visor and VisorPhone combination might be a little cumbersome to some, it is a nifty device. If you have always wanted the data on your mobile phone to synchronise with the data on your PDA without juggling two devices, this might be one answer to your wireless data needs. The main problem with this gadget is that it is not quite cutting-edge enough to qualify as a status symbol. It does not have GPRS, Bluetooth or wireless LAN.

Before you go out and buy the latest gorgeous device from Apple - the iPod - consider the Rampage DMC-P55 from Kenwood. Boasting playback time of 153 hours, reportedly the current best in the world, the Rampage DMC-P55 portable MiniDisc player from Kenwood ensures you will never ever run out of music even if you are on the TrailWalker.

The Rampage is even more impressive than the hard drive-based MP3 player - Archos Jukebox 6000 which holds about 100 hours of audio.

It has a 'jet search' feature that allows users to find specific tracks twice as quickly as previously possible, easing the pain of searching through the vast number of tunes using the MDLP or long-play function.

The DMC-P55, which uses rechargeable and alkaline batteries together, also has a 40-second anti-shock memory when in normal mode and over 2-1/2 minutes in LP4 mode.

The Rampage DMC P55s also have stereo speaker stands that look a little like the cradles used with PDAs for synching to the computer. The special stands are integrated with stereo speakers so you can keep it by your bedside or on your desk.

There are so many good digital cameras around it is hard to recommend just one: here are three of the best.

At its highest resolution, the Canon PowerShot G2 can give you a 2,272 by 1,704-pixel image. This 4.1 megapixel camera is an improvement over the older G1 which was last year's best value high-end camera. The G2 sports a new and improved menu system that beats the G1 hands down. The new menu is a lot more intuitive and has more features. The main highlight of the G2 is it allows continuous-shooting at speeds of 2.5 frames per second.

If you want great picture quality in a small, light package, your best bet is the Olympus C40. The 4.1 megapixel C40 Zoom has almost all the features of the Olympus C4040 in a smaller body and costs US$200 less.

While not quite pocket-size, the very petite Olympus D-40 Zoom would fit snugly in the palm of your hand. It is very small, tipping the scales at just 270 grams.

Another compact camera to consider is the CoolPix 885 from Nikon. It is a 3.1-megapixel wonder with 3x zoom and has a resolution of 2048 by 1536 pixels. The lightweight, ergonomic design lets you take pictures with just one hand.

It has a convenient 'Small Picture' function that creates a small-size copy for fast transfer. This is the best-selling digital camera at Fortress, priced at $5,700.

No true businessman or woman should be without a laptop, PDA, cell phone and top-of-the-line processor.

Unfortunately, a Palm Pilot in the nude can appear a bit, well, ordinary, especially if everyone else at the table is carrying the same one.

Tart up your Palm with the alligator-skin universal PDA case from leather experts Dooney & Bourke (www.dooney.com). While thousands of PDA owners might have a leather or fabric protective case, alligator skin has that certain je ne sais quoi that will make any PDA, even an outmoded Palm Vx, look trendy.

The purchase of one luxury computer accessory though is like starting an addiction, necessitating the purchase of another. Ritzy-looking leather cases for your laptop can be found at Coach, Kenneth Cole and MontBlanc.

The decision can be an expensive one because you will be tempted to co-ordinate your laptop case with your wallet, shoes, PDA case, travel and key pouches.

One catch with these upscale fantasies, especially fashionable digital fetishes, is obsolescence. That Ericsson T68 you forked out $5,000 to buy in December might be outdated by the new year. And that Cross Convergence pen might have a slimmer, sleeker sister in a few months.

The confluence of classic and hi-tech, unfortunately, can last only as long as the technology inside. Then again, no one ever promised that fashion is forever, either.



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