Analyst’s Top Tech Products of 2009

Cisco Flip HD Camera

The folks over at Cisco liked this pocket-friendly digital video camera so much they bought the company. Initially I thought the camcorder was a gimmick, but it actually works rather well and is very affordable (I bought a bunch of these for my nieces and nephew). There are those moments that can truly be memorable on YouTube and this is the perfect YouTube camera. I’m looking forward to future versions with a light source and some kind of stability control, but I liked this camera so much I gave a bunch as gifts this year. Simple, easy to use, and affordable, you can’t do better than that.

Muvee Reveal

Muvee Reveal does the full suite of production tasks you’d expect from a movie editing product and it is a hell of a lot cheaper than Final Cut Pro (and vastly easier to use). It is one of the few utilities that I found very useful as I began to explore this new inexpensive video experience.

M-Audio Keyboard, Microphone, Speakers

I built a home studio again this year and used the M-Audio speakers, microphone, keyboard, and mixer to create a credible beginner effort. My next door neighbor has been working five years now to complete a professional studio in his basement and I can give him grief that mine at least works while his may still be several years out. Granted, when done his will be professional level. Rock Band or Guitar Hero won’t teach you how to play an instrument or sing on key, and this stuff won’t either, but with lessons you could become a musician. Which reminds me that I need to start taking the damn lessons…

Steelcase Walkstation

I’ve had one of these for about a year now and I have been using it too much for gaming. This is a treadmill desk and several times last year I played for 6 or more hours. You see, it is on the first floor of my three-story house and after 6 hours I can’t lift my feet up the first stair. This can be a problem because all of the food is on the second floor (we only have cat food on the first floor and fortunately I’ve never gotten THAT hungry). If you find yourself on the computer a lot this is a way to get exercise and still game or work.

Kindle

The Kindle has gone places with me that most technology products would be afraid to go. I’m on my third Kindle now having started with the first and second generations and now gotten hooked on the larger and more expensive DX (bigger size, bigger print, no glasses). This year Sony did a refresh on its like of Reader e-reader units, but the company’s eBook store still sucks, and the new Barnes & Noble Nook looked interesting, but it is both hard to find and seems to be breaking on a lot of folks, with both showcasing why the Kindle is still simply better. I’m so attached to this thing that I actually get concerned if I don’t have it on me or in clear sight (I think I’m addicted).

Custom Desktop PC

I love building my own desktop PCs and the most fun was in picking up a Zotac Atom/Ion-based board which has everything including wireless networking on it, tossing it in a small Antec Skeleton Mini-itx case, and plopping in an SSD drive. For under $600, you get a screaming near solid state (the fans and optical drive spin) micro desktop that folks can’t help but comment on. If you are slow, it takes about 45 minutes to build one and it’s a lot of fun. (I’ve built three so far and given one away as a gift).

Wrapping Up

It’s been a fun year and I’m looking forward to being overwhelmed by Smart-Tablets/Smartpads next year as Apple and others roll these devices out to market. One from Notion Ink uses both the NVIDIA Tegra chipset (graphics) and the amazing Pixel Qi hybrid display. This one could give Apple a run for the money, but I’ll need to see it first before I can be sure. In any case, 2010 is looking to be just as chock full of fun products as this one – happy holidays!