Blu-Ray
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Panasonic DMP-BD 80 EG Blu-ray player from £239.00 on Ciao
Now that Blu-ray has nudged out HD DVD as the high-resolution format of choice, you can shop for Blu-ray with confidence your player won't be on the scrapheap in a couple of years time. Named in honour of the blue-violet laser that reads the format's high-definition optical discs, Blu-ray far outstrips earlier formats in terms of data storage.
Holding almost six times more information than a traditional DVD, Blu-ray makes for superb high definition playback quality, plus enhanced special features and interactive games. Sony's Playstation 3 console comes fitted with Blu-ray technology as standard, but there's a whole market of players out there starting from around £100, up to higher-end models like the Panasonic DMP-BD 80 EG, which adds USB ports and a picture-in-picture feature, for around £250.
Console gaming
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Microsoft Xbox 360 60GB LIVE Starter Pack from £54.99 on Ciao
Talking of the PlayStation, this summer Sony unveiled its new slimline PS3, a much more compact model - just a dainty seven pounds in weight compared to the original's hulking 11 pounds - with a new matte-black finish and less demanding power drain.
The Beatles Rock Band, available on PS3, Wii and XBox 360, is a great family game sure to unite young and old around the songs of the Fab Four, while the new FIFA 10 and military first-person shooter Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 look to be sure-fire Christmas hits across all platforms. And when the weather takes a turn for the worst, the Xbox 360 players will be wanting the Xbox 360 LIVE Starter Park granting full access to Xbox's communal gaming community, and throwing in a headset and 60GB hard drive so you can clash with friends (or enemies) whatever the weather.
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Music
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Sonos CR200 from £279.00
You might have liberated your household from the clutter of CD shelves, but if it feels like your music is locked away on your computer, the Sonos CR200 is the tool for you. Handheld, with a full-color VGA display and ultra-responsive touch screen, it gives you instant wireless access to all your music in one simple, accessible library. It also gives you total control over multiple rooms, allowing you to select tracks, shuffle playlists and tweak volume from any room in the house.
Home entertainment
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Logitech Harmony 1100 from £299.00 on Ciao
For total control over your home entertainment set-up, meanwhile, the Logitech Harmony 1100 might have all the answers. No need for separate controls for your TV, DVD, digital box and stereo: this single universal remote controls up to 15 devices simultaneously, and with an innovative, individualistic design scheme. It's less a remote stick, more a pad the size of a small paperback, with a 3.5" LCD touch screen and simple, accessible channel and volume controls.
It's web-programmable, easily compatible with PCs or Macs via a simple software wizard, and there's no need to worry about the battery running down either - it sits in a rechargeable dock when not in use.
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Remote-controlled vehicles
Make your hallway a runway or your lounge a construction yard with some great miniature remote-controlled vehicles. The Mini RC Forklift is a zippy little forklift with three speeds, two functioning lights and an operational fork. It runs off four AAA batteries, and two vehicles can run at once with no signal confusion between controllers.
For the more ambitious controller, though, Silverlit manufactures a range of remote-controlled helicopters, the most impressive being the Silverlit Tandem Z. A Chinook-style military helicopter with twin rotors and infra-red controls, it's one of the most stable of the indoor choppers, and hardy enough to survive the occasional collision with the bookcase.
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e-Readers
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Sony Portable Reader PRS-505 from £299.99 on Ciao
The UK launch of the Kindle, Amazon's very own e-Book reader, means that the e-Book marketplace is due to hot up. For now, though, Sony's Portable Reader remains one of the best buys on the market. An attractive, light tablet measuring around eight inches by six inches, it comes with a long-life rechargeable battery and built-in memory to store well over 100 books, with space for two additional Sony memory cards.
A matt-style 'digital ink' screen means you won't suffer from eye strain, although the lack of a back-lit screen means if you're planning to read under the covers, you'll need a torch as well.
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Electronic Cigarette
Finally, if you can't go for long without a cigarette but you don't want to spend the winter period shivering out in the back garden, RoyalSmokers M7 Electric Cigarette might prove a safe - and warm - alternative. Featuring a battery, an atomizer to create realistic vapor and a refillable cartridge of nicotine to give you the 'hit', it's a neat and social alternative to smoking that won't stink out the house and is safe for you and those around you. And who knows, if you reduce the dosage as you go, maybe you'll have given up by New Year.
