With dark miserable January days upon us we can be excused for allowing our minds to wonder, picturing ourselves on a white sandy beach with a cocktail in one hand and a good book in the other. When we finally take the plunge and book our yearly break we need to make sure we have the tools at hand to make our travels as relaxed as possible.

From the best in entertainment to those little gadgets that make life easier; here are a list of some of the must have gadgets to make your holiday run as smoothly as possible.

CallUma Tag’n’Traq

Now there is no worse a feeling than being stood at the baggage carousel at the airport anxiously waiting for your luggage to appear. At first you’re calm, but when half an hour has passed and the crowds have dispersed and all that seems to be circling the carousel are a buggy and a few questionable boxes you start to panic. Now I have never been unlucky enough to have lost my luggage whilst travelling (touch wood) but I was once the last one to be reunited with my bag when travelling with a party of 20 and it was certainly nerve wracking.There’s no way to avoid the stress that it would undoubtedly cause if your baggage were to go missing but the CallUma Tag’n’Traq can help to put your find at ease a little.

Simply attach one of the tags to your luggage with your unique tracking number and if your luggage doesn’t turn up call CallUma with the number and they will do the rest, keeping you updated via text or email as to where your bag has got to. A great way to keep your mind at rest that if your luggage were to go missing it will be back with you as quickly as possible.

Wi-Fi finder

We’ve all been there, we’ve just stumbled across the best view we have ever seen or we happen to be at the most exciting tourist attraction and we are desperate to share this (show off) to all our Facebook and Twitter followers. But overseas in an unfamiliar place it can be difficult to know where we can get Wi-Fi. With the Wi-Fi finder you just point and click this little gadget and a series of LEDs will tell you where your nearest Wi-Fi hotspot is. Perfect AND easy to use.

Sony Bloggie 3D camera

When we go away we want to be able to capture the images we’ve seen in the best way possible so we can re-visit them again as many times as we want when we get home. The Sony Bloggie 3D camera allows us to capture images and view them back in 3D – what could make you feel more like you were back in your holiday paradise than watching it back in 3D?!

The light-weight pocket size camera has two screens and offers dynamic 1920×1080 3D HD video, you can even view your videos back immediately in 3D without the need for 3D glasses.

The camera also has the capability to take videos and still photographs in 2D should you prefer and is a must have for those who want to remember and share their holiday in as much detail as possible.

Top Tip

If you are planning on going away this year with these or any other travel gadgets, make sure you take out an adequate travel insurance policy. There’s nothing worse than facing a hefty loss if any of your more expensive possessions were to be lost or stolen whilst you were away. Price comparison sites such as MoneySupermarket.com can help you find a great deal on your travel insurance so it doesn’t have to cost the earth to protect your favourite holiday gadgets.

Earth calling  fans of the Playstation game LittleBigPlanet. Sackboy and Sackgirl are hitting the shops so you can soon get your hands on your very own in a range of guises. There is also a range of key rings and figures for you to collect. The all new Scared Sackboy joins the limited edition Happy and Angry Sackboys launched earlier this year. You can also get Sackgirl Rock and Afro Sackboy to be launched soon.

Kerings and Figures priced from £2.99 – £8.99 available at www.play.com www.amazon.co.uk www.game.co.uk

Sony ICF-CL75iP Alarm Clock

The Sony ICF-CL75iP alarm clock is so much more than an annoying bedside device to wake you up in the morning.

It has a 7-inch WVGA screen, 1GB of internal storage (and a USB port for more), a retractable iPod dock and an FM radio. It may seem kind of excessive to have an extra screen when an iPod or iPhone is sitting right there, but the clock can actually play videos too (MP4, Motion JPEG and AVI).

The alam clock has been a feature of the bedside table for the best part of 150 years, but it seems that more than 50% of all mobile phone users now set an alarm on their handset before climbing into bed, rather than using a traditional bedside clock.

Sony’s ICF-CL75iP alarm clock is a step forward in terms of alarm clock technology and they hope to bring back the traditional way to wake you up, as well as offering a modern solution for those who like all-in-one gadgets.

It’s a great little thing to take with you on holiday, on a business trip or anmy kind of travel, as it has so many functions in one, including the capability to watch a film.

The Sony’s ICF-CL75iP is available for around £120

Handpresso Domepod

The new Handpresso Domepod is a portable, hand powered and eco-friendly espresso coffee maker, which now works with all of your favourite ground coffee, unlike previous models where you need special cartridges.

The big selling point of the Handpresso Domepod is it’s lightweight portability, meaning you don’t need a huge coffee machine to get the same great tasting results, not only that, but also the amount of money you’d save by not plugging in a huge espresso maker and using this eco alternative.

The Handpresso is good if you’re going camping, spending an afternoon fishing, having a picnic, going to a festival etc, all you need to make a real espresso is this machine.

Working the device is simple, all you do is use the hand pump to build some pressure up, fill up the Domepod with you’re ground coffee, place some hot water in the reservoir and press the pressure release button, easy.

It’s available now online for around £80

Race in a Case

The Race in a Case Slot Racing Track is a unique eco-friendly alternative to other classic head-to-head tabletop racing games. Instead of having to use mountains of batteries or plug in the mains and run up your electricity bills, the Race in a Case runs purely on wind-up power.

Its hand-cranked electricity and speed generator technology gives a player all the power and control in order to have more fun.

The main selling point of the product is its portability due to its lightweight design, it’s eco-friendly (the fact you can take it anywhere and don’t need to worry about finding a power supply) and there’s minimum assembly as it’s all contained in a hard heavy-duty plastic casing that you simply unfold.

The more you wind the controller, the more you accelerate, the less you decelerate or maintain speed. The aim is to beat your opponent and win by depending solely on your manual winding skills and self-control. Also included in the case are various decorations to spruce up your racetrack and make it look more realistic, i.e. a chequered flag, landscape backgrounds, fake starting line lights etc.

Race in a Case Racing Track will be available online from the 14th October from around £50.

Here are my gadgets from ‘Something for the Weekend’ yesterday. I was quite pleased the Sodastream didn’t explode all over me!! woo hoo!

Sony PS3

The Playstation 3 Slim has arrived and it’s much lighter, cooler and quieter, but more importantly, it’s greener and more energy efficient than its predecessor as it uses about a third less power.
The new PS3 Slim weighs in approximately two-thirds the size of the first PS3, but packs a hard drive of twice the original’s size; a large 120GB. Thanks to revamped internal architecture (with Cell Broadband Engine^TM processor) the PS3 Slim runs cooler and quieter than the original PS3.
The new PS3 continues to offer the features and functions of the previous models, such as the ability to enjoy high-definition Blu-ray disc (BD) movies and games, the ability to use wireless controllers, as well as various content and services downloadable through the network etc. Also like the previous model, you can’t play PS2 games on the PS3, but PS3 games have far superior graphics anyway.
PlayStation Network members can also now download free applications, such as PlayStation Home, a ground-breaking 3D social gaming community available on PS3 that allows users to interact, communicate and share gaming experiences.
It was released on 1st Sept 2009 and is available in stores and online for £249 (games sold separately)

 Chill Pill Portable Speaker

The Chill Pill is a pocket sized, self-contained capsule that easily changes into two powered portable speakers. It’s designed for people who enjoy listening to music out loud but on the go.
They are compatible with most devices that have a standard 1/8″ headphone port, including iPods, and portable CD players, iPhone 3G (original iPhone with adapter), most other digital audio players, laptops and desktop computers.
Some of the features that make these speakers different to their competitors include;
• They have three different modes – ‘Travel mode’ whereby the speakers magnetically click together for easier transport, ‘Speaker Mode 1′ whereby the speakers are separated but kept closed and ‘Speaker Mode 2′ which allows you to twist and pop the speakers up to enhance the bass and volume
• They run on a rechargeable lithium ion battery which provides six hours of playing time (can be charged a computer’s USB port or via optional AC adapter)
• They have a sound output of 4 Watts, which is fairly loud for such a small speaker.
They are available in Red, Silver & Black; online and in select high street stores for around £40

Soda Stream Pure Drinks Maker

SodaStreams are no longer a cola-producing cream plastic 70′s designed piece of kitchenware. The modern PURE range is more sophisticated and incorporates stainless steel and brushed steel. The new Pure machine includes a 60 litre aluminium gas cylinder (that gives your drink its fizz) and two carbonating bottles, one of which has a steel base and lid.
The new SodaStream simple, sleek and easy to use. All you need is tap water to make a sparkling drink in seconds.
The emphasis of the new machines are to help families be more eco-friendly and help the environment by saving the need to store or dispose of cans and bottles.
Unlike the limited drinks selection that was available with the SodaStream of old, the new range has a wide range of ‘regular’ and ‘sugar-free’ flavours to choose from. The regular flavours have two thirds less sugar than standard “non diet” drinks and the sugar-free range still tastes like a normal fizzy drink but without the calories.

Regular Flavours include Orange and Mango, Cola, Apple, Lemon-Lime and Ginger Ale. Sugar free flavours include Cranberry & Rasberry, Orange, Cola and Lemonade but there’s no iconic cream soda.

SodaStream is available online and price vary between £59 – £79

Me and my sis used to love our Sony Walkmans, we were inseparable (me and my walkman that is), it really was the must have gadget when we were growing up, it didn’t look like that though, more like a small laptop!

So now years later, while the taste in music and clothes have dramatically
changed (my sister had yellow and brown checked flares for gods sake)… the Walkman is back.

Sony are releasing the latest comeback today, although the X series has much tougher competition now with the iPod reigning supreme in the music player market.

The new Walkman can be used to watch videos, browse photos, listen to music and surf the net. The 16GB model is £209, and £279 for the 32GB model.

Paul Gyles, Sony UK group product manager for Audio, said, “When Sony launched
the first ever Walkman, it changed how people listen to music. “With the X Series, we’re aiming to change how people see their media players – using a touchscreen, an unbelievably crisp OLED display and digital noise cancelling technology for the first ever time in a media player means that the X Series offers the best audio and visual experience around.”

Are Sony just looking to the past or does the X series really cut it? Listen to my review on BBC radio later on today.

Available in Sony Centres and selected retailers from May 13th. £209 for the 16GB model, £279 for the 32 GB.

Features

• 16GB (4,000 songs) or 32GB (8000 songs)
•  3″ OLED touchscreen
•  Built-in Digital Noise Cancelling.
•  13.5mm EX earbud headphones for balanced rich sound quality, with unique  closed and air-tight fit giving you deeper bass
•  Continuous playback for 33 hours of music and 9 hours of video
•  Surf the web with built-in Wi-Fi: On-board connectivity lets you stream YouTube™ clips and podcasts
• S-Master digital amplifier
•  DSEE
•  Clear Audio Technologies