[.ca] Leo Laporte's 2006 Gadget Guide (ISBN 0789733951)

A Must For Every Geek:
Being a long-time Tech TV watcher (before G4 took over and changed my favourite shows) I was familiar with Leo's previous Gadget Guides but had never actually read one. Now that I have, all I can say is, it's better reading than the Sears Christmas Wish Catalogue. Leo has found items I'd never even heard of, and I read alot of product newsletters. The gadgets in this year's issue are nicely organized into easy to find catagories, and in the book's index I found even more items which for some reason I managed to miss on my first read-through of the book. While I would've liked to have seen a few more of the fun gadgets, such as USB Air Darts (good for those slow office times), I was far more interested in the outdoor gadgets for photographers and hikers, which sometimes intertwine when one is a landscape photographer. Leo and Michael have very nicely done alot of research which saved me alot of time, weeding out the cream of the gadget crop from the chafe - of course they also managed to make me want to win the lottery so that I could buy alot of the gadgets in this book - just because they're cool and look like they are something every geek household must have. The information provided for each gadget is comprehensive, and the humour which the authors have interjected into the section introductions and product descriptions makes for even more enjoyable reading.With the inclusion of manufacturer's websites in the product info, one can find even more great gadgets to add to a growing wish list. This book is definitely a volume which needs to be on the shelves of geeks everywhere, and I would highly recommend it as a starting point for product research.