Opinion/Review | Dec 2008 | M.McKennedy
Michael McKennedy
The Xmas holiday (the season of giving) is approaching fast and I have yet to see any gifts from you arriving at my doorstep or in my mailbox! There are only a few weeks left but you still have time. Here are 8 tech/sport related items I would buy for myself if I were you buying presents for me this holiday season.
Warning: Please don’t take this article seriously, well, I mean the products are real, and yes I obviously want all of them but this is not intended to convince any of my family members to purchase any (or all) of these gifts for me this Xmas. If you are a stranger, sure go ahead, buy me the gifts! I will happily use them! (Thanks in advance!) This is intended as a product review article, with a little twist.
iPhone
Apple’s iPhone: I am sure that I am not alone here saying that Apple did a fantastic job making us want an iPhone! I mean c’mon, it’s functional, beautiful and technologically advanced (well maybe not any more since every phone manufacture is now copying what Apple has teased us with). I mean really, is there any problem that the iPhone can’t solve? Why don’t I have one already? Two reasons….1. money! I know that they are only about $200 at the moment but I just don’t have an extra cash and since you do, I expect to see one in my mailbox on Dec. 24 – don’t disappoint me! 2. because the damn thing will not work here in West Bolton, VT. Rumor has it that the service for iPhones will be available in VT at some point in time and for all know it’s here now! Just get me the phone…if I don’t get phone service I can still use it to play music! Plus, having an iPhone makes you one of the ‘cool’ people, correct? And we all know how important that is! I do see people here in Vermont with iPhones so either Vermonters know what makes them cool or there is phone service available, either way I expect to get one for Xmas so get on it!
Scanner
35 MM Photo Negative Scanner: something like the iConvert™ Slide and Negative Scanner will work. It’s only $99 but it’s $99 that I don’t have and obviously you do! So let’s go…make the purchase already! Why do I need one of these you ask? Because I have been shooting photos for about 25 years now and I have a large box of negatives that I would love to convert to a digital format! So when you are making this purchase just think to yourself, “I am doing this so he can archive the history of his life! This is important stuff here!” Now get that credit card out and go place an order will you? I am waiting! No really, I am sitting by my mailbox right now (on a wireless laptop of course) and I am waiting for my package to arrive. This is Vermont, and it’s cold, so don’t make me wait too much longer!
Canon PowerShot G10
Canon PowerShot G10: I already have a few cameras but who knows what I could do if I had the G10! With 14.7 megapixels and a 28mm wide-angle lens it kicks the crap out of my PowerShot A590 IS (which has a whopping 8 megapixels)! The price is right for you too! Selling for just under $500 this digital camera will make a great gift for me! Go ahead, I dare you buy it for me! If you do I will send you a few free original M.McKennedy images. How can you go wrong with this deal? Oh, and one last thing…don’t forget that I will need a way to carry the camera (hint: camera bag) as well as a memory upgrade!
17" MacBook Pro
MacBook Pro: I am a PC user but only because Macs are so freakin’ expensive! But, since you are buying – money is no object! so go ahead and splurge, get me the 17inch MacBook Pro! Starting at $2799 the 17-inch MacBook Pro includes 2.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB Memory and a 320GB 5400-rpm hard drive standard! Yes the price is more than I paid for each of my first 3 used cars but again, it’s your money so I am not concerned with the price tag! Don’t forget to upgrade any parts possible, and if you can grab a decent warranty I will be greatful! Oh, and since I will be transitioning to a Mac could you please add on the following software…..Adobe PhotoShop (most recent version), and DreamWeaver please!
iPod Touch
iPod Touch: This is the third item on my Xmas list made by Apple and I’m not even on their payroll (yet). (Note: This item should only be purchased if you cannot get me the iPhone for some strange reason.) Rolling in at a near give-away price of $399 with 32GB of memory (which holds 7,000 songs or a massive 40 hours of video) the iPod Touch is next on this years holiday gift list. Yes, I already have an old-school iPod (Mini), it only holds 1000 songs, and it’s a little beat-up but really, the old clunker is still my main source of music in the car, at work, at home, when I am hiking, biking and snowboarding blah…blah…blah…I am ready to dump my home stereo system for an iPod docking station and iPod Touch. Actually, now that I think of it you should make it two iPods, one to take with me and one for the home. And since we are on the subject of increasing the amount of money you spend, why don’t you throw in a docking system with some sort of sweet surround-sound system! I dare you! – send it my way! I won’t regret it!
2009 Kona One20 Supreme
Kona Mountain Bike – 2009 One20 Supreme: Priced at a mere $3499 the Kona 2009 One20 Supreme would certainlly make my West Bolton-style mountain biking habits much more pleasurable! This beauty has a Kona Race Light Scandium Butted 5” Travel Frame • Fox 32 F120 RL 120mm Travel Fork • Fox Float RP23 Rear Shock • Shimano XT Drivetrain & SLX Hydraulic Disc Brakes • Mavic Crosstrail Wheelset and Maxxis CrossMark 26 x 2.1 Kevlar Tires. To be perfectly honest I really don’t know what the above specifications mean! But I do know that a mountain bike with a $3499 price tag must be a sweet ride! And I already have a helmet so you don’t have to spend any extra cash but I could use a new CamelBak backpack too and why not throw in a GPS unit for the bike? You wouldn’t want me getting lost would you?
Seagate FreeAgent Xtreme (1.5TB)
Seagate FreeAgent Xtreme (1.5TB) External Hard-drive: 1.5TB (1,024 gigabytes)? Holy crap! My laptop holds a whimpy 150GB! I spend hours upon hours on computers and I wouldn’t want to lose any data, and I certain that you don’t want to be responsible for any data lose either so gather up that extra $270 you have saved and send me the Seagate FreeAgent Xtreme. It’s a small price to pay for peace-of-mind (especially my peace-of-mind)! The six years of photos I have stored between two computers are priceless, so don’t put a price on them! Part with your hard-earned (or not so hard-earned, doesn’t really matter to me) cash! And if you do get this for me I promise that I will try to think of you when I run the first backup! Ooooh, what excitement, for $270 you can secure a reserved spot in my brain – what a small price to pay! Who else offers such deals?
As you are doing your holiday shopping this year think of me. Think of how great it would make you feel knowing that the gifts you gave to me will be used and used often! Think of the pleasure you would get knowing that I didn’t have to spend any money to buy these items for myself! Tis’ the season for giving you know! And yes, I do understand that I could have requested a few much more noble items for example – world peace, a clean environment or to put an end to world hunger but I didn’t think that you had this type of cash so I stuck with presents that have a price range that is a bit more up-your-alley! You don’t have to thank me now, when I receive the gifts I will know that you are really saying thank you! And if you have the power to cure world hunger please go for it! Don’t let my desire for material goods get in your way! Happy Holidays!
