Top 5 gadgets: PlayTV

PLAYTV: by Sony, $199.95 It's taken a while but finally PlayTV is here. This handy device lets you record digital high definition free-to-air TV on your PlayStation3 with no subscription fees. Packing Twin HD tuners, it also lets you watch one channel while watching another, or while playing games, watching DVDs or Blu-ray movies. It can also stream stored shows on to your PSP, VAIO Laptop or via 3G on AINO mobile phones. Available from leading electronic retailers.
APPLE PEELER, CORER AND SLICER: by Avanti, $52.95. Sometime all the flashest apple devices in the world can't beat the original fruit. However, there is help available if you find peeling and coring them a pain. Just give a few turns on the crank handle and you've got yourself a peeled, cored and precisely sliced apple. If you're feeling adventurous you can also use it on pears and potatoes. Available from home-essentials.co.nz
MEGA RIG JURASSIC COPTER BUILDING SYSTEM: by Matchbox, $89.99. Dinosaurs plus helicopters equal pretty much every boy's coolest toy. Enter the Jurassic Copter. The 40-piece set is capable of being constructed into at least 25 different vehicles, making for plenty of ways to capture a menacing T-Rex and rescue the treasure. Even grown-ups may find themselves scheming up ways to sneak past the historic predator. It also connects to other Mega Rig building systems. Available from playdex.co.nz
VENTURER HD - ACTION CAMCORDER: $299. This cool camcorder runs with the theory that smaller is better in a big way. It's only as big as an average cellphone but it packs in the features. Capable of capturing HD video at 30FPS and taking 8 megapixal pictures, it has an LCD viewscreen plus a swivel head to help catch the action whatever the angle. Great for capturing action on the move. Available from thedeal.co.nz
WIRELESS HEADSET: by Logitech, $169.90. Headsets for computing aren't just for hardcore gamers anymore. With computers handling voice and video calls, music and movies these days, this wireless headset is a handy accessory that lets you chat, roam and move up to 12m away. This lightweight headset has up to six hours of battery life, a built-in equaliser for optimal audio quality and quick-access audio controls to let you easily tweak volume, pause music and navigate playlists. Available from leading electronic retailers.