TECH TIPS
Accessories galore for your gadgets
By Ric Manning
Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal
The new generation of handheld computers and music players has created a companion market for portable accessories.
Here are three add-ons that will keep your personal digital assistant safe, allow friends to listen to your music and let you crank up the volume.
A 'slider' for your handheld
The liquid crystal displays on Palms, Pocket PCs and other PDAs are delicate pieces of technology. Crack one and you can kiss your PDA goodbye.
Storing your handheld in a hard metal case is one way to protect its screen. But most metal cases open like books, making it awkward to hold your PDA when the cover is open.
Rhino-Skin's "slider" cases offer a more practical design. The cover slides around behind the device and snaps into place. That lets you hold the PDA in your hand or place it on a flat surface.
The interior of the case is lined with a soft, rubbery material that holds the PDA snugly. You can open the case, hold it upside down and shake it, and the handheld won't come loose.
Rhino-Skin makes versions of its slider cases to match specific PDAs. One version fits Palm's V, Vx, m500 and m505 while another is designed for the Palm III and IIIxe. Other versions are available for Handspring's Visor and Edge devices and for Compaq iPAQ and HP Jornada Pocket PCs.
The aluminum cases cost $39.95, and titanium versions are $69.95.
Inflatable speakers
Pocket computers and music players are fine for solo listening. But what if you want to share your music with others? Two British companies have developed a lightweight alternative to conventional powered speakers. Instead of heavy plastic cabinets, the speakers have an inflatable vinyl enclosure.
The speakers combine flat-panel technology created by NXT with a blow-up sound chamber invented by Joe Stephens, an industrial design student at Loughborough University. Stephens' company, Ellula Sounds, began selling the speakers in Britain last year and expects to have them on the market in the United States this summer.
The speakers can be made in various shapes. In one version sold by Budweiser, the speakers look like a pair of oversized beer cans. When the speakers aren't in use, they can be deflated for travel or storage. The first versions sold in Britain cost about $20 and come with a small amplifier and an AC adapter.
Sound booster
Portable speakers need their own amplifier because the signal that comes from a portable music player isn't strong enough to power external speakers.
Sometimes, it's even too weak for some headphones, especially in a noisy environment, such as on an airplane.
The Boostaroo can increase an audio signal by as much as 40 percent by drawing power from a AA battery. It can be used with a CD, cassette or MP3 player, a GameBoy, Pocket PC or portable TV.
The device also serves as a splitter, so up to three sets of headphones can plug into the same device.
The Boostaroo costs $19.95 and can be ordered from the company's Web site.
