TRINKLED

Touch-screen gadgets may be the big hit this Xmas

Electronics companies are scrambling to outdo each other in capturing consumers' interests this Christmas season by releasing a gamut of gadgets that would vie for a place in middle and upper class people's shopping carts. With the hype surrounding the Apple iPhone, touch-screen phones are expected to do well in the market. Among these phones is the Samsung Omnia, which boasts of a 5 megapixel camera with flash, and an optical mouse joystick that acts as a virtual mouse. Omnia is valued at P42,000 per unit. The Apple iPhone was launched earlier in the country. The iPhone is a three-in-one device - a mobile phone, pocket internet browser, and a touch-screen iPod. The iPhone is currently available only via Globe Telecoms, and prepaid kits start at P37,000 for an 8-gigabyte unit. A 16-gigabyte unit, meanwhile, costs P42,000. Another touch-screen phone is the HTC Touch Diamond phone. Aside from features similar to the iPhone, it boasts of a 3.2 megapixel camera, and it costs around P42,000. Laptops galore Meanwhile, in the world of laptops, netbooks - small size, low-cost and lightweight laptops - are becoming very popular mainly because they cost cheaper. Netbooks cost between P15,000 to P25,000, but would cost less when bought via installment plans. There are seven brands vying for market share in the country, and most of these netbooks are capable of doing simple tasks such as web surfing, emailing, taking webcam videos, playing music and games. Some have built-in wireless fidelity capabilities and have high memory capacities. Meanwhile, market leader Apple has launched a new line of its vaunted iPod mp3 music player. The new iPod Nano has a widescreen view and has a shake and shuffle feature. It is available in nine colors, and costs between P7,250 and P10,200, depending on the memory size. A new model of the iPod Touch, on the other hand, boasts of built-in speakers, but is still capable of its old tricks - wifi internet, games, and software apps. Samsung, meanwhile, has released the world's first 9 megapixel cameraphone, the Innova8. Tech experts say it would be best to scrutinize each product before buying them, and take advantage of zero percent installment rates of credit card companies when buying them. With a report from TJ Manotoc, ABS-CBN News