Alice Hill's Top 10 Essentials

1. DVD Burner
Why? Because the VCR tape is as old school as a vinyl LP.
Why Now? Prices have dropped 70% in the last three months. It's time.
Price Range: $250 - $450

What to Buy:

For those who hate the idea of opening a PC, HP has a great line of external burners, including my choice, the HP DVD Writer DVD300e. Everything you needs in the box, including a USB cable, 2 blank starter discs (one read only and one re-writeable) and software for creating home movie DVDs, data back-ups, and DVD copies of non-copyright protected material. $349

And to those who know their way around a ribbon cable, nothing tops this baby. The Philips DVDRW228 is the fastest kid on the block and it doubles as a CD burner. Best of all, an internal drive is a lot cheaper than an external unit. $250

2. Digital Jukebox
Why: Store 500 audio CDs in something that will fit in your palm.
Why Now: Storage is cheap and this unit does it all.
Price Range: $240 - $310

What to Buy:

Digital music devices have flooded the market, but my pick is the Archos Jukebox MP3 Recorder 20. The unit is USB 2.0 compatible (that means a 40X transfer rate over USB 1.1) You can store 500 CDs worth of music, transfer music to another PC, play your music on any stereo, and it even doubles as a walkman style player with a 10 hour battery life, headphones, and carrying case. The 10 Gig version is even less, but if you have a ton of CDs and more music on your PC, spring for the 20. The price is right. $210

3. FireWire Card
Why: More and more devices use 1394 (FireWire) to connect.
Why Now: FireWire is still not standard fare in most PCs.
Price Range: $41 - $100

What to Buy:
This isn't a category where one brand is going to dramatically outshine another, but I went with Adaptec. They've been making add-in boards since techies like me have been manually setting IRQs and jumpers, and the Adaptec FireConnect 4300 is a nice easy to install PCI card you literally drop in and fire up. Once you're up and running you can connect digital camcorders, video capture and editing devices, external hard drives, and more. $40

4. Truly Ground-Breaking Video Games
Why: Video games outsold the film industry this year.
Why Now: No longer for kids, the hottest games this year are made specifically for adults.
Price Range: $40 - $50

What to Buy:
There are two games taking the gaming world by storm and there's nothing childish about either one of them. The first is the ground-breaking title The Sims from the creators of Sim City. Create virtual people that depending on what path you put them on, may rise to the top of the corporate heap or pursue a party life with mounting debts. This month, you can take it all online and hook your Sims into a massive internet world - considered the next wave in online gaming. $40 for the PC

The politically correct are having a stroke over the violence in Grand Theft Auto Vice City, but they are missing the power of this year's break-out hit. Start the game as a low life thug and work your way through street gangs and drug dealer's to become the leading kingpin. Along the way you can hijack cars, motorcycles, police vehicles, and even a helicopter. The aerial views of this massive city are a programming feat the industry is still buzzing about. Definitely not for kids, but for those lucky enough to have a PS2 in the conference room, the ability to kick the hell out of a drug dealer during a snoozefest conference call is priceless! $50 for the PlayStation 2

5. Digital Camcorder
Why: They are unbelievably small and unbelievably affordable
Why Now: Digital video means you can edit movies on your PC
Price Range: $450 - $700

What to Buy:
I was fearful of the unbelievably small mini-DV camcorders because they supposedly looked good but had the battery lifespan of a gnat. Not so with my trusty Cannon ZR45. The battery it comes with was better than my last camcorder, but the optional battery I bought lasted me almost 10 days in France without a charge. Sleek, smaller than some still cameras, and very easy to use, this is the way to go. Avoid the newer palmtop models - they place your hand over the mic for alarming noise possibilities. This style is as easy and sleek as they come, and wait till you make your first DVD on the PC thanks to finally going digital. $485

6. USB KeyChain Drive

Why: Because taking your files home on a floppy is so last century.
Why Now: Once a pricey novelty, demand has made this category a runaway hit
Price Range: $80-$250 depending on storage capability

What to Buy:

If you travel with a crucial PowerPoint or shuttle the same files back and forth, stop hauling a heavy laptop or filling your pockets with outdated floppy discs. A keychain drive like the 256MB Bonzai lets you load your essentials into a tiny pocket-sized unit and then plug the drive into any USB port for instant access to your data. Windows see the device like any other hard drive. Store files, folder, music, or photos. The ultimate in portability. $109

7. Easy Digital Video Editing Software
Why: Editing digital video should be as easy and fun as it looks in commercials.
Why Now: Low cost quality software is finally replacing the $600 packages and freebie junk.
Price Range: $72 - $99

What to Buy:

I've tried them all including the $600 Adobe Premier that needs a degree in digital filmmaking to decipher, but DVD Complete from Dazzle is a slick soup to nuts solution for anyone wanting to make professional looking DVDs from their home movies and other digital video files. Capture digital video straight from your DV camcorder, edit clips and add effects, and even create a unified look to your movie down to the menus, jewel case art, and labels. DVD Complete is the ultimate all in one solution. Power hint: Try Pinnacle Studio V8 for a little more oomph on the editing side and little less on the labeling and project management side. About $70

8. WiFi Broadband Router
Why: Sharing your broadband Internet connection wirelessly rules the roost
Why Now: Do you want more cables in your life?
Price Range: $80 - $100

What to Buy:

I almost didn't include this product because I figure everyone with broadband has taken the wireless plunge months ago. And why not? The price is right and when you've surfed the 'net from your easy chair or back porch, there is no turning back. I like the Linksys line. Don't forget you'll need a wireless card for your laptop too. $80 for router, $60 for laptop card.

9. TV Tuner Card
Why: If you won't spring for TiVo, this gets your cable TV into the digital age
Why Now: Cheap, easy, and a must if you have a DVD burner and want to archive your favorite shows
Price Range: $58 - $150

What to Buy:

There are of ton of these products on the market, but I liked the Pinnacle Systems card for its low price and great feature set. The PCTV Pro version records video in MPEG1 a MPEG2, will output to tape, CD or DVD, and offers many of the features of a more expensive solution including a radio tuner. Great for sampling this new way of using your TV. Upgrade to TiVO when you get serious and you can still use the board to capture your TiVo files and make DVDs. Nice! $75

10. External Hard Drive
Why: If you use a laptop, this is the easiest way to add more storage.
Why Now: Music and photos make mass storage a must.
Price Range: $250 - $300

What to Buy:
Hard drive king Maxtor Corp. has a nice line of external hard drives that connect via USB 2.0 or firewire for speedy file transfers. I like the one button back-up, as well as the way I can centralize my music and photo files as well as protect my work data and other files in case my laptop dies. Perfect for laptop users or those who have too many PCs and not enough time to keep everything in order. About $259 for 160 GBs.