Holiday Wish List: Mobile Devices

Holiday season is around the corner and I have come up with a wish list of mobile devices and gadgets. I am hoping at least someone in my pool of friends and family will be reading this list and pay close attention.

Laptop: Sony TXN-007 (James Bond 007 TX Spy Gear Bundle)
Runner-Up: Apple Macbook 2.0GHz

Small Form Factor PC: Sony UX Series
Runner-Up: SAMSUNG UMPC

Smartphone: Sprint Samsung IP-830W (International CDMA & GSM)
Runner-Up: Palm Treo 750v

Cellphone: Helio Drift (by Samsung)
Runner-Up: T-Mobile BlackBerry Pearl (I know, this is technically a smartphone)

Data Plan: Sprint 3G EV-DO Rev. A
Runner-Up: Cingular UMTS

Portable Gaming Console: Nintendo DS Lite
Runner-Up: Playstation Portable

Portable Entertainment: Apple iPod 80GB
Runner-Up: Apple iPod Nano 8GB

GPS is the Next Hotness in Cell Phones

Pairing GPS with cell phones is nothing new. I first noticed Sprint then Verizon bringing out GPS enabled phones to the masses about a year ago. Lately, however, I have noticed a bigger movement for phone makers to include a GPS chip/receiver to new handsets. First, I noticed BlackBerry released a 8703e through Sprint which enables turn-by-turn GPS. After some research, I found a video footage of the hot BlackBerry Pearl running GPS. Then, I found the new Helio Drift. Not only is this phone GPS enabled, it incorporates Google Map which brings a boat load of additional features such as real-time traffic status, satelite view and local listings.

I can't help but wondering how will these phones fare with battery issues, will it drain the device much faster as all wireless chips tend to do? How about the small screens? Is it hard to see the roads while driving? What about user input? Especially on phones without touchscreen, is it hard to manuver while driving?