FITBIT TRACKER

$99 www.fitbit.com

WHAT IS IT? The Fitbit is a tiny, wearable wellness-tracker” gadget. Once attached to your clothing, it senses motion and converts its findings into information about your daily activities. For instance, the Fitbit can measure the intensity and duration of physical activities, calories burnt, steps taken and distance travelled. It can even assess how long it took you to fall asleep and whether you woke up during the night.

SHOULD I BUY ONE? The Fitbit has been shortlisted for an innovation award at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Nonetheless, it’s a posh pedometer for the self-obsessed.

ORBITSOUND T12 SOUND BAR

£249 www.orbitsound.co.uk

WHAT IS IT? This British-designed speaker system provides stereo sound from a single speaker housed in a smart bar-shaped cabinet. Many rival television sound bars employ digital trickery to provide the illusion of surround sound from a single cabinet that contains multiple speakers, but the Orbitsound does not take this approach. Instead, it reengineers the principles of stereo reproduction to provide a true stereo sound field from a single compact enclosure that is uniform throughout the room rather than having one sweet spot. This, of course, sounds like nonsense, but InGear has tested one and it worked well, whether connected to a television source or using the built-in iPod dock.

SHOULD I BUY ONE? If you opt for a sound bar to sit under your TV, it’s academic exactly how many speakers are housed within it. Even so, this innovative, well-made kit is powerful yet easy on the ear.

GARMIN OREGON 400t GPS £330 www.garmin.co.uk

WHAT IS IT? The first GPS tool for hikers with touchscreen operation and Ordnance Survey (OS) maps, the 400T could be the ideal electronic guide. If you find contour-based maps difficult to decipher,this device can show you shaded representationsof how steep a hill is or where footpaths are. Garmin says it will run for an impressive 18 hours on two AA batteries. This top-of the-range 400t unit comes with a basic map of the UK. You will need to buy Garmin’s OS maps – prices not yet confirmed – and these currently cover the UK’s national parks and “selected trails” within Britain on a detailed scale of 1:25,000. The Garmin can even guide you home once back in your car, if you shell out for its road maps, at a cost of £79 for Europe.

SHOULD I BUY ONE? If the new OS-mapping features work as smoothly as Garmin says, the Oregon 400t will soon be de rigueur for lovers of the great outdoors.