GITEX: The hot and the cool

Gulf News web editor Adam Flinter trawls through the stands at GITEX to pick out the must-have gadgets you will be clamouring for over the next 12 months.

iMate Momento
Digital photo frames have yet to catch on in the UAE, but perhaps 2007 will be the year it happens. And it could be a Dubai-based firm who are at the forefront of pushing this technology.

The iMate Momento scores highly on the aesthetic front (it's got a sleek post modern design and mobile phone style interchangeable frames), but it also hits the mark for geek factor.

Want to download your pictures to the frame while you crash around Hong Kong? No problem. Want to print out your snaps using the frame? Piece of cake. Want to bore your neighbours to death with the 21st century equivalent of the dreaded holiday snap slideshow? Hell, it'll even play MP3s to make the evening more bearable.
Released: Early 2007
Price: TBC

iMaingo
Resembling those chunky old-fashioned personal stereo cases, the iMaingo is an ingenious invention that had 30somethings at the show turning misty-eyed at the heady days of twisted tape reels, fast forward and eject.

The 2007 incarnation allows you to take your MP3 player out and about without you worrying whether its precious little parts will get ravaged by the elements (in the UAE's case — sand and sea).

Basically you pop your MP3 into the case (and it fits most players including mobile phones), zip it up and hey presto — safe and sound.

You also end up with a pretty decent set of integrated speakers as well (or a dual jack if you don't want to annoy everyone), meaning you can entertain your friends for hours with the latest Peruvian nose flute album you just downloaded.
Released: mid 2007
Price: TBC

Playstation 3
The Sony section of the hall was pretty impressive, and not just for the tinfoil jackets which the beautiful people were forced to sport — presumably in an attempt to look futuristic (or possibly just to make them look stupid). But in a room full of glitzy gadgets, the new Playstation took the plaudits.

There was a strictly enforced queuing system in place for a go on the new machine, and the machine itself was housed in a comfortable little room, away from prying eyes.

Vain attempts to entice people into the Playstation Portable section were fobbed off.

Now the run through wasn't exactly thorough, but the demo which allowed me to pretend I was Michael Schumacher was enough to convince me that this is one console which will have people smashing open their piggy bank with glee.
Released: March 2007
Price: TBC

Hannspree
In a show where the pre-requisite seemed to be to make the world look slicker, the Taiwanese manufacturer decided to make it look a little cuter.

Hannspree caught the eye with a bonkers range of LCD televisions tailored mostly to kids and sports nuts.

My one reservation is that the screens may be a little on the small side with some of the kiddie efforts weighing in at just 9.6 inches.

However which kid (grown up or otherwise) would not want to watch their favourite programme on a TV which has been housed inside a cuddly giraffe, a shiny red fire truck or even a basketball?

With a third range of genuinely stylish "proper" TVs, a couple of UAE distribution deals in place and a launch date just in time for Christmas — Hannspree could be a name that is on the lips of many people over the next 12 months.
Released: December 2006
Price: TBC

iMuslim
There are media players left, right and centre at GITEX. In fact every time you look around you run the risk of running into or stepping on one. So it is nice to see technology being used to update religious traditions in the modern era.

I know we've all heard the Athaan being used on mobile phones in the UAE, but the iMuslim is a genuinely interesting development.

Not only does it look pretty neat, it is very portable and contains the entire Quran (in Arabic, French and English), the Hadith, Islamic calendar, prayer times and a video tour of the Holy Kabbah. And that's just for starters. The world's first Islamic multimedia player (IMP) should appeal to anyone with an interest in Islam.
Released: On the market
Price: US$150 (Dh550)

Creative Zen V
Did I mention that there were a lot of MP3 players at GITEX?

One of the more dubious trends for next year would appear to be to make your MP3 player as small as possible, then inserting a video screen.

Creative is one of the key players in this field, with their new Zen V Plus player, which is dwarfed by the palm of your hand but contains an eye wincingly small 1.5 inch screen.

They look great, sound great and I'm sure this will be hot, but this is one trend that I won't buy into.

The Samsung K5 is Korea's answer to iPod iconic style. It has a retro-electro look which wouldn't look out of place on the set of a 1980s sci-fi movie and has a meaty sound.

However, it's too fiddly, has no video, the interface isn't user friendly and a rather tinny speaker built in. Almost there but not quite.
Released: On the market
Price: GITEX offer Dh429

Panasonic 1080P
At the other end of the scale we have this visually stunning offer from Panasonic.

To get an idea, imagine the biggest TV you know, and then double it.

Make it a plasma with pretty decent picture quality and you can see why this is going to be a big hit in the UAE.

It probably costs more than my yearly salary (I didn't ask because it is a definite case of, if you have to ask you can't afford it) but it is a pretty impressive sight in the flesh.

Expect it to be hanging on the wall of your wealthy friend's house within the next six months and start dreaming that you will be invited round to watch DVDs and play the latest Playstation 3 games on it.
Released: 2007
Price: TBC

LG notebooks
Not exactly brand spanking new, but so slick. The Korean company has really caught onto the concept of luxury design in the past few years.

The Xnote series (including the TX, C1 and LW25) are probably the most visually pleasing of all of the small notebooks you could spend your dirhams on. Scratch that, it's gorgeous.

Despite making its debut earlier in the year, it was easily the best looking laptop at the show that didn't have an apple on the front.

The 2007 versions were on display and were compact but not too small, had Intel Duo processors, decent-sized hard drive and the added bonus of a digital TV tuner. Not much more to say except I want to go out and buy one right now.
Released: On the market
Price: Varies depending on model and stockists