Incredible’s top 5 gadgets

Incredible Connection has announced its top 5 gadgets for the month of September. The month’s roundup includes everything from headphones to tablets.
iFrogz Earpollution Ronin headphones
Price: R399.95

NEED TO KNOW:
·          Stylish design
·          Thick and flexible cord
·          Padded cups and headband

Great sound often comes at a hefty price, but the Earpollution Ronin headphones prove that there’s a balance to be struck. Not only do these cans offer good-quality audio for gaming, watching movies or listening to music, but they also pack enough punch to impress during those activities.

They’ve got a suitably industrial-looking design, with sharp-edged surfaces and “engineered” details, but they’re lightweight, and have extremely comfortable padding on both the earcups and the headband, trimmed in vinyl and fabric, respectively. Carrying through with the heavyweight design, the headphone cord – usually a weak point on many sets – is properly durable and rugged, with excellent anchoring on both ends. If you’re not keen on spending R1000 or more for a set of headphones, these are affordable and rugged enough for everyday use, while providing great audio

Rating: 4.5 stars

Alienware M14x laptop
Price: R17 999.95

NEED TO KNOW:
·          14” LED HD+ display
·          Intel Core i7 processor
·          Dual graphics cards

Gaming laptops make a whole lot of sense. Instead of lugging around a big monitor and desktop tower, to go play games with friends, you simply pop one of these musclebound beasts in your backpack and hit the road.

And with the way modern processors go, this isn’t lacking, either. It packs an Intel Core i7 quad-core processor, and features Intel’s own onboard graphics solution in addition to a discrete nVIDIA GeForce 555M graphics card. It’s got 4GB of RAM, plenty enough for the 64-bit Windows 7 installation, and storage comes courtesy of a 750GB hard drive.

Gaming performance, as can be expected, is fantastic. Just install your favourite game and set everything to high, and it plays well. If the 14” display seems cramped, there are plenty of outputs to hook it up to an external monitor, and you can continue enjoying your gaming goodness in big-o-vision.

Rating: 4.5 stars

HTC Cha Cha smartphone
Price: R2 999.95

NEED TO KNOW:
·          Smartphone for social media addicts
·          Physical QWERTY keyboard
·          Runs Android 2.3.3

In its earlier days, Facebook was blocked by companies and dismissed as a fad, but now it’s nearly impossible to do without it. Whether you’re keeping in touch with friends or running a fan page for a company, you need always-on access to the world’s largest social network.
To make that easier, the Cha Cha – HTC’s newest Android device – has a QWERTY keyboard, making for faster messaging, and a dedicated Facebook button. This lights up whenever the task you’re busy with has a Facebook feature tied to it. For example, taking a photo will light up said button, alerting you that you can instantly share that pic with your pals.
Since it’s an Android device, it can run all the apps you find on the Marketplace, and even though it’s a bit cramped, the display is still touch sensitive.

Battery life is respectable. If you restrain yourself you’ll be able to get a day and a half of use before reaching for the charger, which ain’t that bad when it comes to compact smartphones.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Norton Mobile Security
Price: R299.95

NEED TO KNOW:
·          Security suite for Android devices
·          Wipes, locks and locates phones remotely
·          Can block calls and SMSs

What’s the world coming to when we need a Norton Security suite on our mobile devices? Well, it’s not as bad as you think. The threat of a virus eating up all your airtime is some ways off, we think, but the other features offered by Norton Mobile Security do have a place.

First up, it’ll let you track your phone using Google Maps – a feature that can be activated via SMS – and if you can’t find your phone it’s also possible to remotely wipe it and keep your data safe from prying eyes.

On the other end of the spectrum it’ll also let you manage your calls and text messages. If you’re being pestered by certain people, or simply want to screen your calls, Norton can be set up to automatically reject certain numbers. The initial cost includes a 12-month subscription, with an annual renewal fee of R299.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Acer Iconia A501
Price: R6 999.95

NEED TO KNOW:
·          Acer’s 10.1” 32GB Tablet PC
·          Runs Android Honeycomb v3.0.1
·          Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity

Acer’s Iconia A500 tablet PC was the Taiwanese company’s first attempt at an Android tablet, and when it first arrived in early 2011, it came with everything but a built-in 3G radio. Enter the A501, an updated version of the original Iconia that boasts everything the A500 had, along with a 3G radio and an updated version of Android Honeycomb.

Now, with the A501’s Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity, it’s possible to stay connected to the Internet – and crucial services like Facebook and Twitter – even when on the road. Other advantages of the Iconia’s design include the ability to connect any USB keyboard using a full-sized USB port and output visuals to an HDTV using the built-in mini HDMI port.

Even though it’s not quite an iPad killer, the Iconia A501 is a solid tablet PC, and one of the nicest Android tablets we’ve seen so far.

Rating: 4.5 stars

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