NEW GADGET

Picture the scene: you've had been a long, grinding day slaving over a hot set of spreadsheets. The office kettle is broken. The canteen closed early. And all you've had to eat all day is half a limp sandwich and a few crumbs from the bottom of Janice-from-Accounts' crisp packet. Then, just as you're about to save your entire day's spreadsheeting work, there's a power cut...

It's days like these that prompted the creation of the USB Armageddon Hub. Days when you want to tear your hair out and shriek 'Armageddonouttahere' at the very top of your voice. Days when flicking a switch, turning a key and pressing a big read button to destroy the world actually seems like a decent idea.

So let's all calm down and look at this rationally. The Hub - there are four USB sockets on board - enables one to connect this sublime tension-relieving, mirth-creating device to one's PC. The thinking is that by going through the motions of releasing a nuclear first strike, one will let off a bit of steam. And how.

The hub looks frighteningly realistic. It's solidly, built, too - enabling one to vent one's inner anger on it. And it saves it's coup de grace for the last moment, when all keys have been turned, switches flicked and buttons depressed... it emits a massive honk. Thereby saving the world from certain destruction and guaranteeing laughs all round. You hero.

Picture the scene. It's the height of summer, or what passes for summer. You're off to the park with your chums. You've just had a big night out and you've got the serious 'munchies', as we believe it's called. You now have a choice. Run off down to the Co-op for a few tubes of Pringles... or run off down to the Co-op for a few chicken drumsticks, sausages, veggie skewers and massive fat burgers. At Gadgetshop HQ, we know which sounds infinitely more appealing, which is why we searched high and low for this intriguing little contraption.

It's a compact, folding barbecue that's designed to be taken anywhere. Here's how it works: 1. Fold it out. 2. Fill it up. 3. Light it up. And that's it. No complex gas bottles, no heavy lifting and no rummaging around B&Q for those 'instant' types that you can use once and once only.

Now the spirit of summer can join you wherever you are, or even sit permanently in the boot of your car, ready for action whenever the mood takes you. Fully collapsing to just a few inches thick, it's ultra-light and ultra-portable yet robust and sturdy wherever you choose to put it. Just plonk it down, light it up and you're a twisted firestarter, as my nephew likes to put it.

Naturally, sailing has its hazards. One such hazard is sinking. Should you find yourself knee deep in water, we recommend this: the Ozone Inflatable Lounger. As you may have observed, the Ozone Inflatable Lounger is inflatable. Thus, it will give you the buoyancy you need to float safely to shore. But it also has another desirable feature to make you time at sea more enjoyable: two speakers moulded into its lining which you can plug your i-Pod, TV, MP3 player, or CD player into - providing, that is, it didn't go down with the boat.As you'd expect, the Ozone Inflatable Lounger is easy to inflate and deflate. And it does not need batteries or power cables.

The speakers take their power straight from the device to which they're connected.Of course, it's exceptionally agreeable on the eye too. A good looking craft which will serve to attract much attention - hopefully from passing ships and not from passing sharks. Please note: the Ozone Inflatable Lounger can also be used as indoors and makes a perfect seat.

It is not wise to try to hold a camera whilst you are jumping out of a plane. Or skiing down a mountain. Or climbing the Grand Canyon. But, naturally, if you are doing those things you will, somehow, want to capture the moment. Action Camera is your answer. It is a tough, no-nonsense digital movie camera that attaches easily to a helmet, mast, harness, or handlebars. It has a 640x480 VGA CMOS sensor to record your incredible footage with incredible quality. You can then playback your adrenaline-fuelled antics on your PC or TV, or upload them to MySpace or YouTube. And if that is not enough, it also has an in-built SD card slot, so you can boost the existing 32MB of on-board memory up to 2GB.

Ah yes, it's water, dirt, rain, snow and shock proof too. Now, be off with you. Haven't you got a cliff face to scale?

Get connected and get with the programme. Put some extreme innovation in the one's home and control in one's life courtesy of Spykee Cell, the member of the Spykee contingent with Bluetooth technology at its heart.

The adventure begins with Spykee Cell's fully motorised head. And it's a clever little barnet, too. Able to see through 360 degrees, his movements can be controlled via the magic of Bluetooth, direct from one's mobile phone.

And there's more. Cell is the veritable David Bailey of the Robot World, able to take its own pictures and send them direct to your mobile. He's musical, too. Plug in your iPod and take control direct from your mobile (you'll even see the playlist on your mobile's display).

He's also crammed with the latest special effects technology, able to summon-up a dazzling sound-and-light show almost at will. And needless to say, being a Spykee robot, there's more than one variant of Cell to build. So you'll always have a new incarnation to choose from.

Fresh from the reinvented and reinvigorated Meccano stable, the Spykee cyborg range has some dashed clever technology at its core. This awe-inspiring family of robots is preconfigured for the MP3 generation, either with in-built docking technology or USB connectivity to enable digital uploading at the touch of a button. Add it all to Spykee's ground-breaking functionality and it has us rather drooling at the mouth, in an ever-so manly way. Splendid.

One, two. One, two. Check, check. Two, two. Now getting nifty on the decks is child's play thanks to the awe-inspiringly innovative Computer DJ Kit from the audio boffins at Ion. It takes the analogue chore of lining up separately spinning plastic discs and digitizes the whole messy business.

Doing for DJ mixing what Photoshop has done for photography, it's nothing short of a revolution in the lives of would-be jocks, mobile DJs, party dudes and hardcore bedroom anoraks.

It looks like a two-channel mixing deck. It is, to all intents and purposes, a two-channel mixing deck. But, by cleverly substituting a pair of Technics SL1200s for your common or garden PC, it transforms even the humblest nerd into a cyber-friendly Judge Jules.

This complete kit has everything a self-respecting dude could need to play MP3s, WMAs, WAVs and other music files straight from PC. DJ-friendly USB technology enables splendidly easy plug and play connectivity with no drivers or sound cards needed - and, in the unlikely event that you will need to rig-up a phono connection to an old-fashioned set of decks, then, yes, you'll find those inputs are included.

And before you can say 'this one's for all you lovers out there', you're a real, live DJ who's just swapped his bulging record box for floor-filling classics for a sleek laptop chock-full of banging choons. Man.

We do all know what it's like. No, really. Even those of use at gadgetshop HQ have had linguistic difficulties and communications conundrums to contend with in our past lives. And there surely is no conundrum more dashed difficult to solve than the mobile phone that's about to run out of juice. Until now, that is.

Looking for all the world like a mini wind turbine, this compact instant charger gives one's deceased phone/camera/PDA/mp3 player battery a bypass and charges while on the go. Marvellous.

But there are squintillions of chargers out there, you cry as one. Ah yes. But none quite so inventive, light and convenient. This nifty little gadget uses the wonders of wind energy to generate electricity.

The Mini Kin is a portable, hybrid, universal power unit that stores wind energy and conventional power from a computer/laptop to its built in rechargeable lithium polymer battery. Simply place the Mini Kin onto your bike, vehicle window or arm to allow the wind to catch the fan and charge the built in rechargeable battery. Then simply plug into a mobile phone (or other device) whenever its battery is low for instant power. Alternatively, connect the charger to your computer via USB to build up charge.

Now one can never live in fear of being caught short in public again. Enabling one to complete that birthday phone call to one's grandmama, or that 'mwah mwah missing you too, sweetie', to one's ladyfriend without loss of either power or prestige.

Features

• The Mini Kin can charge a number of digital devices including, MP3 players, digital cameras and mobile phones
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Charge via USB or kinetic energy
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Charging for 60 minutes can transfer energy from built in battery to mobile phone battery enabling you to talk for up to 100-150 minutes
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Charges electrical devices without damaging the environment
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Small and portable with a modern design
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Safe to use with voltage protection
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Includes

• 1 Mini Kin
• 8 Adapters
• USB cable
• Arm strap
• Bicycle clip