Aardvark Daily

What's hot for 2006?

Unless you're as big a scrouge as the Finance Minister, chances are that you're running around right now, looking for prezzies to buy your loved ones.

Nobody has paid for any advertising here (but I got a free PowerBall!) -- it's just stuff that I've tried or has been recommended by reliable readers.

So what's hot (and what's not?):

HOT: PowerBall
Well first-up, I'm going to give a plug for the PowerBall.

Why?

Well the reasons are two-fold. First-up, they're a lot of fun and the kind of gift that *everyone* can enjoy. Just bring one out at your next party and watch how otherwise sedate and boring people suddenly try to go one-up on each other by rattling their wrists to bits. Another reason is because the find folks at PowerBall sent me one to review and I'm a sucker for a free lunch (there's a lesson there for other perveyors of fine goods :-)

HOT: MINI RC-HELICOPTER
Now everyone loves cool little toys right?

What's more, given the way that our weather seems to have gone to hell in a handbasket, something you can use indoors is also a great idea.

Well how about a tiny little remote-controlled helicopter that not only flies but is virtually indestructable?

The PicoZ is apparently a *big* hit in the USA and stocks are *very* hard to find (although there are plenty of crappy sub-standard Chinese knock-offs around that are simply not anywhere near as good or durable). I've seen these helis on TradeMe for about $100 but I also tracked down a reliable US source on the Net (I've bought stuff here and received A1 service) that will send you a very good one for US$34.95 (NZZ$50 or so) plus postage. I'm reliably informed that *these* helis are of excellent quality and performance!

Go check vids on YouTube.

HOT: THINK GEEK
My next suggestion isn't a product but a place. If you've never visited Think Geek then you'll find heaps of cool stuff there, it'll make your mouth water!

HOT: MEMORY CARDS
Another place worthy of a pointer is FlashCards.co.nz. Don't forget, you'll be giving the gift of memory, and it's worth reflecting on the fact that when you grow old, memories are all you'll have (unless you've got Alzheimers of course).

HOT: MISSILES
Remember the old arcade/Atari game "Missile Command"?

Well here it is, for real!. Yes, buy yourself one of these and you'll have no problems with your fellow workers when you go back to work -- unless they've bought one too.

NOT HOT: FERRIT
This might be the site to visit if you have trouble getting to sleep on Christmas Eve. A couple of minutes here and it's level of boring will create a wave of snoring.

NOT HOT: DICK SMITH MUSIC DOWNLOAD VOUCHERS
Don't waste your money buying a loved one a music download voucher from Dick Smith's RipIt music store. As was pointed out in a recent column, this site is *bad* *bad* *bad* and will spit-up at your FireFox browser.

...

But hang on, we're not finished yet. I've got more "must/must-not buy" suggestions rolling in as I type. I'll post them here once they're sorted.

Keep em coming -- Tell me!.

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