So this comes a day late, but better late than never…as the old saying goes. I saw these machines late last fall and decided to get one for my parents for Christmas since they have a large record collection from back in the day. It took me three weeks to find a store that hadn’t sold out and I ended up calling a Brookstone store in Northern California and had them hold one for me. The unit I ended up buying was strictly a record to MP3, but while I was at CES I saw the cassette to MP3 unit which would also be a great gift. As for the price, not too bad. Both units are well under $200 and also easy to set up. I have heard a few songs my mom has converted and they sound darn good. Perfect, no, but darn good. For most of us, it would be tough to tell the difference from one bought and downloaded online.  done

So, this is the weekly column where I post a cool, affordable gadget that you can find in stores or online. At the same time, you can ask questions about gadgets, camera’s, computers, etc… and I will do my best to answer those questions and find out any information. You can also suggest products to review in the coming weeks. This time I have decided to focus on the product SPOT Satellite Messenger. SPOT stands for ‘Satellite Personal Tracker’. According to the website, since it utilizes 100% satellite technology, SPOT works around the world - even where cell phones don’t, delivering messages using GPS coordinates and two satellites. I got the chance to play around with one, but haven’t yet used it in the field or on the road. The unit costs about $169 and does not include a small satellite subscription fee. After the video click on the link for specs on this unit. Here is an interview and explanation I got during my recent trip to CES.

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Keep Reading …

I am heading for Washington DC for the big Correspondents Dinner. First time in a few years and I am looking forward to seeing friends in our DC bureau.

I will also be meeting with some of the public relations folks at several U.S. Government agencies. Always nice to shake a hand in person after only connecting on the phone for stories the last few years. A stop at Cap hill and a meeting with some in Congress is also planned.

These meet and greets are all informal and since we have so many stories that end up with approval from the nations capital, they are very important and always interesting.

I will be taking pics and some video and will post. I also have a Tech Tuesday coming later today, once I land in DC. Anything you want me to find out? Anyone you want me to seek out?

The ability to capture and store pictures, video and even music will eventually fit on the end of your pencil, or at least it seems that way. Take for example SanDisk, which recently hosted a launch of its new MicroSDHC card. Here’s a picture of the card which can fit on the tip of your finger. The new cards can literally sit on the end of your finger and hold more information than cards twice twice the size. The new tiny cards work in cell phones, music players, hand-held computers, digital cameras and for example the 8GB microSDHC card can store more than 2,000 digital songs, or more than 5,000 high-resolution pictures, or up to 5 hours of high-quality MPEG 4 video2.

You can find them in retail stores now and you’ll start to them more widely each and every day, so be prepared. Adapters make them fit into your current camera, phone, etc. We got to try them out a few months back and I wanted to wait until I started to see them showing up in all the stores before giving you the latest.

So far I have tried them and purchased a couple and have been happy with the results. The small size does make you take a very close look, as misplacing one would be very easy to do. According to SanDisk, by offering capacities of 6GB and 8GB, the company enables people to enjoy more photos, more map data for navigation, more videos, more games and more music, wherever they go, on any phone with a compatible microSDHC slot. During our trial, the company gave us a Nokia phone and provided bands like Linkin Park. This video is still stored on my card…take a look. 

More info from the company release…..follow the link. Keep Reading …

I will post the Trunk Show video tomorrow (Friday) I am going to edit it on the plane. So, to keep you occupied, I want to introduce you to the guy who keeps us all connected at Fox. For example, right now I am blogging on my computer using a Verizon card. Also I can and have blogged using my blackberry. When the bosses call for breaking news I answer on my Fox cell phone…all provided and registered by William Alvarez. He is the wizard and I stopped at his desk and decided to pull out the Sanyo camera and grab this clip of his New York Desk at the Fox headquarters.