What Was Your Best Gadget Purchase This Year?
The year is winding down and the time for reflection is on us once again. I like to end the year by thinking back on all the gadgets I purchased (far too many) and designating one as the best one of the lot. This year determining which was the best was easier than usual, due to the game-breaking nature of the selected gadget. I should be no surprise that my best gadget purchase this year was the MiFi. This little 3G modem/ Wi-Fi router literally changed the way I use mobile broadband for the better, and it is still a magical device for me.
So how about you? What was your very best gadget purchase this year, and why do you feel it is the best? I am interested to hear about your gadgets and why that one special device was the best. Let’s talk gadgets for a bit, it’s always fun. 
I gotta go with my Macbook Pro 13 inch — 7 hours of battery life (even it if it is a fixed battery, that’s plenty for me), great keyboard, solid construction. I’ll throw in my AppleSac sleeve and Crumpler Considerable Embarassment bag as a part of the ‘gadget package’.
I’ll second that.
My MacBook Pro 13″ Aluminum (Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,5). By far it’s the center of my mobile universe, and my iPhone of course =).
MiFI was good N900 was better, said goodbye to the Ipone and MyFi in one deal. Now have a phone that has real 3G from the carrier not from Verizon. The best 3G for the Iphone is Verizon MiFI
What 2010 will bring?
First choice is the Viliv S5, followed closely by the Verizon MyFi.
I just got myself an HP DM1 11.6 inch netbook and even though I have only played with it for about one hour it is definitely the best gadget I have bought this year!
MacBook Pro 13″
HP Firebird. Big difference from my 7 yr old Desktop.
I bought a HTC Hero (GSM unlocked) and absolutely love it. But now I am waiting anxiously for 2.1
If you install WMWifiRouter on your windows mobile phone you won’t need to carry an extra device
JoikuSpot for Symbian is a great alternative to MiFi, better in man ways.
Motorola Milestone was definitly the best choice for me this year.
Greetings…
I do a lot of presenting and really enjoyed using Papershow which allows me to write on paper and have it projected to my audience. I can then save my handwritten notes as a PDF file and email it to my participants.
Palm Pre. Rock solid multi-function communication device, GPS, Wi-Fi router, and a lot more. And it fits in a shirt pocket. If the measure of “best” gadget is based on amount of use, my Pre is the winner by a wide margin – noting else in my bag gets nearly as much use.
I second that emotion. Pre.
That’s really hard. It’s a toss up between my iPhone 3GS, my 13″ MacBook Pro and my Breitling B-1 watch. If I had to pick one of those it would have to be my B-1 watch.
I absolutely love it. It looks amazing, keeps brilliant time and has somevery useful functions including 2 alarms 2 timezones, a stopwatch, a countdown timer, a backlight and a fantastically engineered slide rule bezel. It tells the time on the analogue dial too
It really was a close call between the watch and the iPhone though.
BEST: Viliv S5 WORST: Sony PRS-505
Motorola Droid for me. As a long time Windows Mobile and TabletPC user, I’ve been able to do almost everything I need on the run with the Droid. Runner up would be the MiFi. Prior to buying the Droid, I used it on client sites and while mobile to connect my Tablet to the web. I used a WiFi router on my Windows Mobile devices, but wasn’t willing to risk my battery life if I wasn’t near a plug so the MiFi was a huge improvement for me.
Palm Pre. After I got pass a few units that had some issues, been using the same Pre since July and it’s been great. Looking forward to new features and apps being added in 2010.
Whereas the Viliv S5 was fun, it unfortunatey wasn’t the mobile solution I was looking for exactly. I sold it and continued searching for the perfect pocketable device. I stumbled across the Samsung Moment. It may not be perfect, but it’s pretty damn good. Since it’s my first Android device, I’d have to say my best purchase this year is Android in general. I love the platform and can see it’s great potential. Not to mention the Moment is actually a great phone despite its lack of popular advertisement.
HTC HD2: -super fast -super screen -good build quality
feels more like a small tablet..
the MiFi was the best tech purchase I nade this year too. I had been using the iphone teathering hack for a while, but realized how much time I was wasting with this method. The Mifi is quick, easy, an always works. And with the monthly fee to Verizon, it is the gadget that keeps on giving
Droid Eris, my first smartphone. I’m still learning all the in’s and out’s.
If I go by the most used and useful device(s), it would have to be the iPhone 3GS first, followed closely by my Kindle 2. But all of the devices listed in the comments are pretty good ones!
The most useful gadget that I received this year, would have to be my Logitech MX620 mouse that I got over the holidays. The dedicated back and forward buttons (which are programmable) along with the ‘quick scroll’ scroll wheel, make it my most used peripheral. I would have to say though, my Gateway NV5214u is my most ‘used’ gadget, but that’s because it’s my main computer.
Definitely my Sony Reader Touch. It’s a great thing.
Mifi and 13″ MacBook
It would have been the Viliv S5, except for the eee T91 I picked up about a month ago. I can’t decide which I like better. I would also have to put my new Droid pretty high on that list.
My Samsung Omnia purchased in June. While there seems to be that Windows Mobile “lag” associated with it, it has served faithfully as a phone with great web searching, GPS, and keeping all of my e-mail, calendar, and notes synchronized with my work Groupwise server.
My resurrected HP TC1100 would be a close second. Running Windows 7, this thing just flies now!
Sprint Mifi and the Archos 5 internet tablet. Also enjoying my HTC Hero.
MiFi is also for me my best purchase of 2009…using it right now on holidays
My iPhone 3GS. No question.
Next year, if Sprint 4g comes to Detroit, it’ll probably be a 4G MiFi (or USB adaptor).
Or my iTablet…
I went through many gadgets in 2009 – predominantly notebooks – that I looked at in detail on my blog. For the sake of integrity I actually purchase the units I review.
One thing to know about me is that notebook purchases for my own use happen very rarely, usually only once every 4-5 years. In that regard I’d have to say my best (and also biggest) 2009 purchase was my brand-new notebook to replace my existing workhorse. I write more about my purchase on my blog as well.
My Toshiba Qosmio X305-Q708 is an amazing notebook in every right, and a worthy upgrade from my previous HP zd7000. I am enjoying the heck out of it and it is the perfect notebook for what I do.
nr 1. the motorola milestone. nr 2. asus T91 Normaly the asus T91 must be on nr 1. But because of the performence he is on the second place
Macbook air ssd 2.13ghz. Light with osx without hacking. Just what i wanted. L
finally got my first iphone and i love it.
so best purchase this year is my iphone 3GS
worst is probably my nokia n85 but now that ive turned it into an ATT “mifi” with JOikuspot its not so bad afterall. in fact its almost better than a mifi since i dont have to get a new data plan and i can swap sim cards for flexibility. it has usb charging and it doubles as a backup phone, camera, flash drive, media player. can ur mifi take pictures?! Nokia N85fi lol
Runner up: In June it was the Palm Pre, but before July arrived, Sprint coverage brought me back to Verizon.
Ultimate winner: Motorola Droid, among the best gadgets I have ever owned!
Not an obvious one but for me it is the Vectrix VX1. Already several years in production but I only purchased one recently. It offers a great ride and allows me to get some real practical experience on our future in transportation which I am convinced will be electrical! The reason to call it a gadget is that I found that I treat it the same as other gadgets I have!
My eee PC 901 – old, but it was a major step-up from the 701 as XP is more useful than Linux to me [and 2x battery life turned it from 'toy' to 'tool']
My wonderful wife bought me an iPod Touch for my 40th birthday – great device which has persuaded me that an iPhone might be the device to replace my still-trusty Nokia N95 – although it’ll be almost 18 months before my contract lets me do this.
Tempted to get a MiFi but the N95 with Joiku-Spot does a similar job so will use that for now.
I bought my MacBook and iPhone in 2008, so the unchallenged favorite in 2009 is my Kindle 2. The only drawback is that many of the Kindle books aren’t available in Europe.
My best gadget for 2009 (based on the criteria of daily usage and functionality) would have to be my Macbook Air (small, light, full power computer with a great keyboard), and my iPhone 3GS (we have none of the 3G problems in South Africa that many have on AT&T in the USA). I also have a BatteryGreek external battery with the Magsafe adaptor which gives me an additional 6 hours of work on the Macbook Air.
Some of my other indispensable gadgets are my Garmin 305 Forerunner watch (for keeping tack of my mountainbike rides) – I use ‘Ascent’ on the Mac to graph my training and view my tracks in Google Maps.
Nokia E90 – this is a trusted old smart phone. It simply works! I have a work sim card in this phone and use it when I travel overseas. I also use the FM radio in the morning while I am shaving!
In 2010 I hope to get a new Macbook Pro 13″ (I miss the optical drive and ports on my Macbook Air). My phone is due for an upgrade in mid January and I hope to get a Droid.
As for 2009, or what is now unquestionably last year, that would have to be my HP TC1100-my first foray into Tablet PCs of any sort, and at a nice, low cost at that. From March ’til now, it’s been quite the aid to this young college student with a little help from OneNote, as well as SketchBook Pro to show to the artists what such systems can do for them.
However, it was old then, and the aged hardware is increasingly being hammered by today’s bloated applications and the Web. I hope it manages to sell in a few days so I can step up to a Gateway C-141xl or any of its relatives. (A Core 2 Duo at 2.5 GHz and dedicated ATI graphics ought to last me quite a while.)
I’m also about to replace my aged Logitech G5 with the newer G500, which adds two much-needed thumb buttons and puts the DPI switch buttons in a far more ergonomic position, among other things. The existing G5 will then be used with that Gateway C-141xl I hope to have instead of my desktop, for those times when the trackpad and Wacom pen are both undesirable (probably when I’m removing faces in old FPSs or something of that nature).
I still have a year to go on my contract with my USB modem so I purchased a CradlePoint PHS300 – it does the same thing as the MiFi but has a bigger footprint. The good news is that the PHS300 has a removable rechargable battery, and I have a spare ready to go if I’m not near an outlet.
Also, I got my first iPod touch – absolutely love it.
As a British reader,let me offer one further suggestion: the Pure Evoke digital/wifi radio, which also acts as a media streamer. Seamless integration at a great price!
I’ve handled my share of gadgets this year but I’d say the best one was a Livescribe pen. When in meetings or interviews, or in a cafe and sketching out thoughts, it’s proven invaluable – and it’s way smaller than carrying a tablet pc everywhere.
Runner up would be the iPod Nano – I love the iPod Touch but the size and battery of the nano can’t be beat – being able to drown out the rest of the world on demand without daily charging is nice if a bit worrying.
It’s a tie between my Kindle DX and my HTC Touch Pro2. The DX has radically reduced the amount of printing I do and upped the amount of reading in interstitial time, especially when travelling. The TP2 is the best Windows Mobile machine I’ve ever had. The only drawback is that the speakerphone (which works well) really requires a screen protector, and that makes drawing and handwriting recognition not as smooth as they usually are on a WM device. However, it’s still over threshold, and the keyboard is excellent when I have more than just a little jotting down to do.