Best Gadgets of 2011

2011 will be remembered for so many things in the tech world. The year will also be regarded as one in which many devices matured after exciting births in the previous years - tablets, dual-processor smartphones, ultrabooks, to name a few.

Gadgets & Gizmos, in an objective manner, has put the best gadgets on the podium, having ranked them on the basis of five attributes: Features, design, unique qualities, performance and value for money.

Here are the winners -

(Courtesy: Gadgets & Gizmos)

DESKTOP OF THE YEAR

LENOVO IDEACENTRE B520
Price: Rs 71,990

The Lenovo Ideacentre B520 not only looks good sitting on your desk with its frameless 23-inch screen, but the speakers at the bottom of the monitor give an ubercool appearance that one immediately falls in love with.

SPECS:
23-INCH FULL HD SCREEN; INTEL CORE i7 PROCESSOR 3.4 GHZ; 6 GB DDR3 RAM; 1TB HDD; NVIDIA GEFORCE GT 555M 2GB GRAPHIC; BLU-RAY DRIVE; HDMI, COMPONENT, BLUETOOTH, WI-FI; MULTI-TOUCH, 3D SUPPORTED; 5.0 SYSTEM SPEAKERS; TV TUNER.

LAPTOP OF THE YEAR

MACKBOOK AIR 13
Price: Rs 98,900

The MacBook Air 13 is both a hot looker and a great worker. It provides extreme performance in a tiny form factor.

SPECS:
13-INCH LED DISPLAY; INTEL CORE2DUO PROCESSOR 1.86 GHZ; 2GB DDR3 RAM; 256 GB SSD DRIVE; NVIDIA FEFORCE 320M GRAPHICS; 2 USB, CARD READER; WI-FI, BLUETOOTH; WEBCAM; 1.32 KG WEIGHT.

TABLET OF THE YEAR

APPLE iPAD 2
Price: Rs 36,900

When Apple changed the rules of the game with its iPad tablet, it set off a frenzy in the tech world. And despite a burgeoning tribe of tablets, the world looked forward to the second iteration of the iPad.

SPECS:
9.7-INCH LED DISPLAY; 1GHZ DUAL-CORE APPLE A5 PROCESSOR; iOS 5; 16 GB STORAGE; 720P REAR CAMERA, VGA FRONT CAMERA; 3G, WI-FI, BLUETOOTH; A-GPS; 613 GM.

SMARTPHONE OF THE YEAR

SAMSUNG GALAXY S II
Price: Rs 29,990

When you know that the Samsung Galaxy S II sold 10 million units within five months of its launch, you know there is something special about this phone. But it's not just about figures.

SPECS
4.3-INCH SUPER AMOLED DISPLAY; 1.2GHZ DUAL-CORE PROCESSOR; 8 MP CAMERA, FULL HD VIDEO CAPTURE; 16 GB MEMORY, EXPANDABLE TO 32 GB; BLUETOOTH, WI-FI, 3G, A-GPS; 1720 mAh BATTERY.

CAMERA PHONE OF THE YEAR

iPHONE 4
Price: Rs 37,900 for 8GB

This is an Apple phone and the images captured using the 5 MP sensor and the LED flash on the iPhone 4 are better than those captured by Samsung Galaxy S II and Sony Ericsson Arc.

SPECS:
3.5-INCH RETINA DISPLAY; 5 MP CAMERA SENSOR; 720P VIDEO CAPTURE; 8 GB MEMORY, NOT EXPANDABLE; 3G, WI-FI, BLUETOOTH, A-GPS; 137 GM.

MUSIC PHONE OF THE YEAR

NOKIA X5
Price: Rs 9,500

What impressed us about the Nokia x5 was its simplicity and the outstanding sound. The X5 has a dedicated music key placed below the display.

SPECS:
2.36-INCH NON-TOUCH DISPLAY; 5 MP CAMERA; 200 MB INTERNAL MEMORY, 2 GB MEMORY CARD; MEMORY EXPANDABLE TO 32 GB; FM RADIO, MUSIC PLAYER, 3G, WI-FI; 129 GM.

AFFORDABLE PHONE OF THE YEAR

SAMSUNG GURU DUAL 35
Price: Rs 3,150

It has the best quality, utility and design. Even though it isn't the true dual SIM phone as the network of the second connection goes off air when accessing a call on the first, Samsung has still managed to put up a great show.

SPECS:
2-INCH DISPLAY; VGA CAMERA; WIRELESS FM RADIO; MUSIC PLAYER; EXPANDABLE MEMORY UP TO 2 GB; BLUETOOTH; 1000 mAh BATTERY.

3D TV OF THE YEAR

LG 42 LW 6500
Price: Rs 99,900

LG did the best job of the year but yoking its 3D screen with what are called "Passive 3D" glasses. These weigh around 16 gm, compared to the 80-200 gm of normal active-shutter glasses.

SPECS:
42-INCH LED DISPLAY; FULL HD, PASSIVE 3D; HDMI, COMPONENT, COMPOSITE PORTS, SMART FUNCTIONS; 20 W RMS SOUND; MOTION-SENSING REMOTE; 140 W POWER CONSUMPTION.

LED TV OF THE YEAR

SAMSUNG UA 40D5900UR
Price: Rs 70,900

This Samsung beauty has 100 Hz clear motion rate, ultra clear panel for crystal clear images, digital noise filter and wide colour enhancement for improving image quality are what makes it really special.

SPECS:
40-INCH LED TV; FULL HD; HDMI PORT, USB PORT, COMPOSITE PORT; 10 WATT X 2 RMS, INTERNET CONNECTIVITY, 12.1 KG

DSLR OF THE YEAR

NIKON D7000
Price: Rs 70,900 (approx)

Pipping the Canon EOS 60D to the winning post, the Nikon D7000 offers great image quality, image depth and wide dynamic range.

SPECS:
16.2 MEGAPIXELS CMOS SENSOR; 3-INCH MONITOR; 18-105 KIT LENS; F3.5-F5.6; 6400 ISO; FULL HD VIDEO RECORDING; USB 2.0; EYEFI WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY; 690 GM WEIGHT.

ADVANCED COMPACT CAMERA OF THE YEAR

CANON POWERSHOT SX40 HS
Price: Rs 28,995

The first impressive feature you notice about this great advanced compact camera from Canon is its long 35X zoom (that's the equivalent of a 24mm-840mm lens).

SPECS:
12.1 MP CMOS SENSOR; 2.7-INCH LCD PANEL; 35X OPTICAL ZOOM; F2.7-F5.8; IS0 3200; FULL HD VIDEO; FOUR ASPECT RATIO OPTIONS FOR IMAGES; SD/SDHC/SDXC STORAGE; 600 GM WEIGHT.

COMPACT CAMERA OF THE YEAR

CANON IXUS 310HS

Aside from turning heads as a fashion statement of sorts, this handsome snapper boasts a large high-resolution LCD screen, 12.1 megapixels grab, an 8X zoom and Full HD movie capture.

SPECS:
12.1 MP BSI-CMOS SENSOR; 3.2-INCH DISPLAY; 24-105 MM LENS; F2.0-F5.8; 1/1600; ISO 3200; FOUR ASPECT RATIO OPTION FOR IMAGES; 185 GM.

CAMCORDER OF THE YEAR

CANON HFM41
Price: Rs 56,995

To start with, the CMOS Pro sensor captures high resolution quality videos. This is combined with 10x optical zoom for capturing details from a distance along with optical image stabiliser that eminently does what it is supposed to do.

SPECS:
3-INCH TOUCH DISPLAY; 1920x1080 HD RECORDING; 10X OPTICAL ZOOM; 32 GB ONBOARD MEMORY; TWO CARD SLOTS; OPTICAL IMAGE STABILISER; REMOTE.

HOME ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM OF THE YEAR

BOSE VIDEOWAVE
Price: Rs 4,78,000

Not only does it pleasure our eyes with high-grade video, but is also indulges our aural sense with its true surround sound capabilities.

SPECS:
42-INCH SCREEN; FULL HD; 16 SPEAKERS SURROUND SOUND; CLICK PAD REMOTE; HDMI, USB, COMPONENT PORTS; iPOD DOCK; 44 KG WITHOUT STAND.

MEDIA HUB OF THE YEAR

AMKETTE FLASH TV HD
Price: Rs 3,995

This instant plug-and-play media player with an HDMI cable enables watching 1080P HD content on a big screen without so much as a hiccup.

SPECS:
XVID, MPEG4, FLV VIDEO PLAYBACK; WAV, MP3, AAC AUDIO PLAYBACK; USB; SD CARD READER; HDMI, COMPONENT PORTS; INFRA-RED REMOTE CONTROL.

PORTABLE MEDIA PLAYER OF THE YEAR

APPLE iPOD TOUCH
Price: Rs 13,500

Its music output has always been the best-in-breed and the addition of a bright Retina display has enhanced the video watching experience on it.

SPECS:
3.5-INCH CAPACITIVE TOUCH DISPLAY; 8 GB ONBOARD MEMORY; TWIN CAMERA; HD RECORDING; 40 HOURS OF AUDIO PLAYBACK, 101 GM.

GAME OF THE YEAR

THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM
It is more than a game-a lovingly crafted world to explore and live in, staggering both in terms of sheer scale and scope and in terms of minute details and intricacies. It is a title that the industry has always wanted to make.

AUDIO SYSTEM OF THE YEAR

HARMON KARDON BDS 700
Price: Rs 59,900

Competing against music systems from Samsung, Philips, LG and Sony, it was Harmon Kardon's BDS 700 that managed to breast the tape. Packed with the latest features, the system consists of four small side speakers, one front middle speaker and a sub-woofer.

SPECS:
5.1 CHANNEL; HDMI, COMPOSITE, COMPONENTPORTS; USB; BLU-RAY PLAYER; ALL POPULAR MEDIA FORMAT PLAYBACK.

BUZZ OF THE YEAR OVERSEAS

KINDLE FIRE
When the whole world was running after the tablet and a myriad companies proffered their products to an eager consuming mass, Amazon came up with a very affordable tablet of its own (centre). Priced at $199, it gives users attractive features at a price that is half of the iPad tag.

SONY HMZ T1
Having made listening to music a very personal activity with its Walkman a generation ago, Sony has now come up with a personal video viewer (left). It is a head mounted device that allows the user to view 3D and other videos in an immersive theatre-like experience.

SAMSUNG GALAXY PLAYER
The Galaxy Player (right), a media player, is already being touted as the iPod killer. It has a 5-inch LCD display, plays all music formats and can access the Internet for more content.