Awesome Gadgets

Sony’s Japan-only NW-A840 is just 7.2 mm thick, making it their thinnest Walkman; it packs a 2.8″ OLED display, up to 64 GB storage, TV out, and premium MDR-EX300SL earphones.

Korg’s microSAMPLER is a compact keyboard with loop-sequencer, line input, audio player caddy, gooseneck mic, and five sampling methods; it also includes 21 KAOSS PAD effects.

HP’s ENVY laptops rival the MacBook Air (0.8″ thin/up to 18 hours battery life for the ENVY 13), but are surprisingly powerful: the ENVY 15 tops out with Core i7 and 16 GB RAM.

You can’t Wingardium Leviosa your TV with it, but The Wand Company’s Remote Control Wand can be programmed to change channels and the volume with “magical” gestures.

Logitech further slims down its Lapdesk line with the Portable Lapdesk N315; designed to keep your legs cool, it’s completely flat with an anti-slip top and retractable mouse pad.

We’re still waiting for our own flight to space, but MIT students recently sent a camera 17.5 miles into near-space using a prepaid GPS cellphone, hand warmers and a styrofoam beer cooler.

Customize your PS3 Slim according to your tastes (or the lack thereof) courtesy of ColorWare: choose one of nearly four dozen colors for the the top, bottom, logo and controllers.

Codenamed Etna, LG’s GW620 is their first Android phone; it features a 3″ TFT touch screen, slide-out QWERTY, quad-band GSM/HSDPA, Wi-Fi, and 5 MP camera w/autofocus.

Move over, carbon fiber: Case-Mate’s iPhone Recession Cases are made out of 2009’s “it” material–not-quite form-fitting cardboard; even better: free Sharpie Script personalization.

Most of 9/9/09’s fanfare focused on the video cam-packin’ Nano, but there was no missing their special edition Shuffle: it’s finished in stainless steel and only available in Apple stores.

Thrustmaster’s quartet of Ferrari Gamepads are perfect for prancing pony fans with grips reminiscent of Ferrari car noses; two are wireless and all are compatible with PC/PS3.

Available through Verizon 9/13, Nokia’s 7705 Twist is more for the ladies with a built-in mirror, but its compact design, swiveling QWERTY, and 3MP autofocus camera are intriguing.

You’ll lose ’em in thick brush, but Mad Catz’ Xbox 360 and PS3 Controllers put Modern Warfare 2 fans in the crosshairs with digital camo and dual back-mounted Combat buttons.

Just about every major US carrier has their own HTC Touch Pro2, but Verizon hits the sweet spot 9/11/09 with a $200 price (after $100 MIR), a full $150 cheaper than Sprint or T-Mo.

Alright, so the name could use some work unless you fancy a perm, but the PowerCurl is a potential godsend for MacBook owners; it’s a clip-on cord wrap for MagSafe Adapters.

Available 4Q 2009, Motorola’s CLIQ runs a custom MOTOBLUR Android skin; it boasts a 3.1″ touchscreen, UMTS/HSPA 3G, Wi-Fi, and 5 MP camera with autofocus and video recording.

It’s similar in appearance to the M8/M8.2 with a magnesium housing, but Leica’s M9 packs a full-frame 18 MP sensor, a more intuitive button layout, and a near silent shutter.

Sony’s MDR-DS7100 wireless headphones mean business: they boast 7.1 channel sound, a 50 mm driver, 100 foot range via the 2.4 GHz band and 13 hours of battery life.

Made for portability, Microsoft’s Mobile Keyboard 6000 is just a few mm thicker than an AAA battery at the rear, requires Bluetooth, and can be purchased with a separate number pad.

Apple’s iPod Nano 5G may look like the 4G, but it’s a brand new beast with a cheaper price tag, a larger 2.2″ display, 640×480 video camera, pedometer, FM radio, mic and speaker.

Beyond the Nano, Apple’s other 9/9 news: iPod Touch gets up to 64 GB and Open GL, Classic gets 160 GB, Shuffle gets new colors, iTunes store gets tweaked and iPhone OS goes up to 3.1.

Logitech finally rolls out its Wireless Guitar Controller to the Wii; it’ll work with both Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero and features a maple neck, rosewood fingerboard and metal frets.

Replacing the Glyde, Samsung’s Rogue is Verizon’s first with an AMOLED phone; specs: a 3.1″ resistive touchscreen, full slide-out QWERTY, EV-DO Rev. A, and 3 MP w/autofocus.