The Hour

The Hour gadget guru Colin Kelly takes a look at all that’s new in the electronics world including a watch that doubles as a mobile phone.

sWap Watch (circa £250)
Cast out your mobile phones (but keep the SIM card) and get ready for a new dawn in mobile technology. The sWap Watch has arrived. The tables have now been turned. The sWap Watch doesn't just double as a mobile phone - it's like having a multimedia centre strapped to your wrist, and all without the crushing shoulder strain. Want to check your emails? Surf the internet? Listen to music? Take Pictures? Watch a movie? MAKE a movie? It does ALL of these. If you really get bored (and with this watch, it's hard to see how you could) you could even check the time (from one of the many different watch faces stored in it's memory) or make a phone call. The watch will accept most SIM cards, so upgrading is hassle free and making calls couldn't be simpler - just plug in the hands free kit and you're good to go. If you really want to go one step beyond and banish those pesky wires along with your mobile phone then you'll be ecstatic to hear that the watch is Bluetooth compatible. You won't even have to fork out for the headset as it's included in the package.

Find out more about the sWap Watch.

Speedo Aqua Beat Waterproof MP3 Player (circa £80)
The Speedo Aqua Beat MP3 can be used safely in up to 10 feet of water and is available in Green, Pink or Black. It has Ergonomic buttons are easy to use when swimming, or for any other activity, 1GB memory supports MP3 & WMA files so Saves between 250 and 500 songs. It floats in the water, enabling quick recovery if dropped.

Find out more about the Speedo Aqua Beat MP3.

The InfoScan 3 Lite (circa £80)
The Info Scan Lite makes digital note taking easier than using a standard highlighter! Roll the InfoScan3 Lite across printed text to instantly recognize and store more than 500 pages of text, or scan directly to any Windows based application. Use the new on-screen, touch keyboard to edit or add text of your own. Scans and recognizes English, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese. View stored information on the integrated LCD display and easily transfer data to any PC, PDA or Smartphone via standard USB or infra-red connections.

Find out more about the InfoScan 3 Lite.

PoGo Instant Photo Printer (circa £50)
You've probably got oodles of photos trapped inside your mobile phone and digital camera. But how do you print them off when you're out and about? No, you don't cart around a computer, a tech-nerd and a bulky printer. You don't even dust off your raincoat and head to the nearest photo lab. You use the revolutionary PoGo Instant Photo Printer.
This inkless portable printer is brought to you by Polaroid and it's just as idiot-proof as the photo-spewing cameras you played with back in the day. All you do is send your pics to the PoGo wirelessly via Bluetooth (mobile phone) or with a USB lead (PictBridge-friendly camera) and watch in awe as this smart gizmo churns out a quality image on a 2"x3" slice of sticky-back photo paper in under 60 seconds. You can then peel off the backing and stick your pics wherever you fancy.
Unlike old-style instant photos you won't have to shake your pics dry because the PoGo uses miraculous heat-activated Zink paper, no ink cartridges required. What's more the prints are smudge-proof, water-resistant, fade-resistant and tear-proof. Print off that hilarious photo of your over-refreshed colleague asleep on the photocopier with his pants pulled down and stick it on the boss's door and it'll be there for ages. Probably.

Find out more about PoGo Instant Photo printer