Although it’s a bit late to try and get gifts shipped to you in time for the holidays, a lot of people will likely rush out this weekend to try and get some electronics purchasing done. Lance Ulanoff over at PC Mag, has some very good tips for those of you thinking about gadgets and gear purchases this holiday season, and although the title of the piece is called “What Not to Buy in 2007,” after reading it, I think his suggestions stand for 2008 as well, without a doubt.
Obviously on the “Do Not Buy” list are the old fashioned CRT display. No, seriously, I don’t care how cheap it is, or whether it has a “super-ultra-giga-flat screen,” LCD displays are cheap, huge, take less power, take up less space, and all around way more awesome at this stage. The old story about CRTs being better for gaming or graphic design may have an echo or two of truth left in them, but the fact is that you can find affordable LCDs with amazing response time for even the most serious gamer, and you can find LCDs with incredible color calibration options for the same price as that old designer CRT.
Also on the list are things like PC-less media players like the Slacker, stand-alone devices like a copier, printer, and scanner instead of an all-in-one (I used to be in the camp that if a device did them all, it probably did them terribly, but times have changed!), and more. It’s a solid list, and definitely one to remember if you’re heading out for some last minute shopping for the geek on your list.