You might think it's just boys who love their toys but according to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), more women are buying up gadgets than men (at about 55 percent of all tech spenders).
Sure, these stats include moms who pick up a Nintendo Wii for the kids, but more so than ever it's cool for women to be into electronic gizmos. Not surprising, perhaps, fashion is becoming a top priority among manufacturers who understand gadgets can look good and be functional at the same time (beauty and brains, if you will).
If you're searching for a perfect stocking-stuffer your honey will love, consider one of these following five suggestions.
Between the lines
If you think electronic book readers are bulky, hard to read and impossible to use then you haven't laid your hands on the new Sony PRS-700 ($399.99; sonystyle.ca), a super-thin e-book reader with text so real-looking you'd swear it was ink on paper.
Along with the ability to store hundreds of books in its memory (and thousands more with two memory card slots), this third-generation model is the first that offer touch-screen navigation so you simply flick your finger left or right to "turn" pages.
Connect the Sony Reader to a PC and download content from the Sony eBook Store (ebookstore.sony.com) or copy over your audiobook files (in MP3) for when you'd rather listen to a story than read one.
You've been framed
Don't dump your digital photos onto your computer's hard drive and forget about them. Instead, liberate your memories by picking up a gorgeous digital photo frame for your wall or desk.
Instead of a static paper photo, a great gift such as the Kodak EasyShare W1020 Wireless Digital Frame ($269.95; kodak.ca) features a bright 10-inch touchscreen model that cycles through your photos or videos every few seconds, minutes, hours or days (with or without music). Plus this top-of-the-line Wi-Fi-ready model lets you share photos with friends over the Net (via your Kodak Gallery or Flickr account) as well as receive up-to-the-minute news, weather, sports score, stock quotes and more.
Feeling blue
It might be against the law in your province to talk and drive at the same time -- unless you're wearing a hands-free solution, such as a Bluetooth headset.
Style meets substance with the award-winning Jawbone from Aliph ($129.99; jawbone.com), a great-looking headset available in multiple colours. Not only is this earpiece incredibly comfortable but its Noise Assassin technology aggressively eliminates background noise so your caller can hear you clearly.
Compared to the original Jawbone this new model is also 50 percent smaller, offers long battery life between charges and was built with durable, medical-grade plastic.
Music n' more
Seven years on and just as popular as ever, the iPod keeps improving in quality, features and memory - and the iPod touch (from $259; apple.ca) is a perfect example. Use your fingertip on the gorgeous 3.5-inch display to scroll through your album art like a Rolodex, or to access your videos, photos, games, podcasts or audiobooks. Integrated Wi-Fi means you can surf the Net while in a hotspot or wirelessly download music and applications from the iTunes store.
Similar to the iPhone (but without the 3-year contract!) the iPod touch also features an optional speaker, built-in "accelerator" sensors and up to 36 hours of battery life between charges.
Photo finish
Okay, so we'll squeeze one pink item in this round-up (you expected more, no?). The Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS Digital ELPH ($279.99; canon.ca) offers "pink melody" as one of five fashion-conscious hues, brushed in aluminum, but is much more than a pretty picture. This 8.0-megapixel "digicam" features 3x optical zoom, image stabilizer and an enhanced face-detection feature that automatically adjust focus and light where you want it most.
Motion-detection technology is also handy since it can reduce blur by calculating subject movement and adjusting settings accordingly. The large 2.5-inch LCD works well both indoor and outside.
