Shopping for Back to School? Check out these picks for a gadget-enhanced education:
HP Pavilion G6— An ideal PC-based laptop for those heading off for college that won’t bust the bank. Improved cooling, a biometric swipe for sign-on, and an HD webcam for keeping in touch with family back home. The brilliant 15.6” LED screen and optional Blu-ray player make it perfect for winding down after a long week of studying. ($600, hp.com)
HP Wi-Fi Mobile Mouse—The first mouse that connects using Wi-Fi to your PC, the innovative mouse contours to your hand and has multiple controls to easily navigate the web. ($49, hp.com)
Kobo eReader Touch—the well-designed touch-screen Kobo sports a lightweight design and using E Ink technology to provide an easy-to-read display. Available in four colors, this lightest-weight eBook reader supports a variety of open standard bookstore formats. ($130, kobobooks.com)
Amazon Kindle—the standard-bearer of the eBook revoluation, the Kindle continues to dominate e-reading. New this year, the Kindle store offers textbook rentals of any length from 30 to 360 days which can be read on your Kindle or any of a variety of phone/computer platforms. ($114, amazon.com)
HP Envy 100—The sleek and compact wireless Envy 100 won’t wake your roommate and supports AirPrint and an easy-to-use print-by-email feature. This printer has memory card slots for photo printing and a scanner to make digital copies of class notes and handouts. ($200, hp.com)
Grace Digital Audio Microsystem—The perfect bookshelf system for background music while studying or cranking the tunes to let loose after finals. Get content from various sources via. the buit-in WiFi connection, load songs from your USB device or connect any portable music player. With five alarm settings, it’ll also wake you up! ($250, GraceDigitalAudio.com)
GriffinTech TechSafe Cable Lock System—Keep your laptop secure… lock it up. Look for an optional Anchor Clamp that turns any table into a secure place to lock down your laptop. ($30, griffintechnology.com)
PowerSkin Battery Pack—with hours between chargers, you can’t afford to be without juice for your smartphone. The PowerSkin battery pack is a case that doubles as a battery pack keeping you in touch with friends and family. ($50-80, power-skin.com)
RageGage: RageGage Smash Pad— a stress-reliever button that contains fun and cheeky expressions to blow off steam during late-night study sessions. A perfect gift for those students heading back to class—sure beats taking your frustration out on the dorm walls. Save the damage deposit and pick up the $20 Smash Pad instead! ($20, ragegage.com)
Grace Digital Audio Microsystem—The perfect bookshelf system for background music while studying or cranking the tunes to let loose after finals. Get content from various sources via. the buit-in WiFi connection, load songs from your USB device or connect any portable music player. With five alarm settings, it’ll also wake you up! ($250, GraceDigitalAudio.com)
