Hasta La Gadget!

While more and more printer manufacturers are gearing MFPs for the dual role of home and home office, Epson has focused its Stylus NX line squarely on the home market. Its latest, the Stylus NX515 , excels in the role of a home device that can print, scan, and copy, earning an Editors’ Choice,. The printer beat out HP’s recent entry, the Photosmart C4680 All-in-One , among others.

The NX515 is even good for home-office use, if your needs are mostly confined to light-duty printing. Its Ethernet and WiFi connectivity recommend it for a dual role, though its lack of an automatic document feeder (ADF) and a fax modem work against it; its lightning-fast printing of high-quality, smear-resistant documents is some compensation. The NX515 ‘s photo printing speed is less impressive than text, but photo quality is fantastic, especially for black-and-white images, is fantastic, and the prints are water- and scratch-resistant.

Although at $149 (direct) the Epson Stylus NX515 is higher priced than many of its peers, it offers enough to be worth the extra expense. And you may be able to find it at a considerable discount–as I write this, Amazon is offering it for just under $100.

Gyration has a new mouse, and the keyword this time is elegant. The Gyration Air Mouse Elite works without a hard surface, letting you mouse around from the couch or while giving a presentation–but this version has a more elegant feel than previous models.

The secret to surface-free mousing is that the Air Mouse Elite uses motion-sensing technology that lets you issue commands or presentation effects with slight wrist movements performed in the air. A tiny internal gyroscope measures the angle and speed of your movements. The mouse is wireless, and communicates to a distance of 100 feet via radio frequencies. It even works through walls, for those rare times when you’re not in the same room as your computer.

Included software lets you create your own gestures or turn the cursor into a laser pointer or pen. The mouse also includes a laser sensor, for traditional desktop work. It should be available at electronics stores within a few weeks for a list price of $99.99.

Dell today announced plans to acquire Perot Systems for $3.9 billion. The PC manufacturer’s purchase values the Plano, Texas-based IT company at $30 a share. Dell expects the deal to close before January.

With the acquisition, Dell hopes to expand its own offering of IT services, while helping to deploy more of its own systems to existing Perot customers. The deal, according to Dell, will also help increase Perot System’s reach across the world.

Perot System’s was founded by one-time third-party presidential candidate Ross Perot. Perot’s son, Ross Perot Jr. will be considered for a seat on the deal board, once the deal goes through.

Toshiba’s existing Dynadock contains a variety of interesting connectivity options: four USB ports, two “sleep-and-charge” ports for powering up wireless devices, an audio card, and even an integrated video card for powering a second display. All Toshiba asks is that users connect a USB cable between the Dynadock and their laptop.

Now, you don’t even need that.

With the Dynadock Wireless U, Toshiba has replaced the USB cable with Wireless USB, a technology that has struggled to take hold. I would assume that the technology will still require a dongle for your laptop, although we’ve asked Toshiba to clarify.

The Dynadock Wireless U will be available in mid-September from a variety
of major consumer electronics and computer stores nationwide or directly
at www.toshibadirect.com
for $299.99. Unfortunately , we don’t have a picture of the newly revampled Dynadock, but we can assume that it will look like the old version, shown here.

It seems so obvious, but we had to wait for Logitech to create it. Yesterday, the peripheral giant announced the Portable Lapdesk N315, a combination cooling pad and mousing surface. With it, you can stay productive on your laptop wherever you go, and avoid using that irritating trackpad.

The Lapdesk offers a no-slip surface so your laptop stays in place, and shields your legs from uncomfortable heat. It includes a retractable mouse pad, so that you can work on the couch and still have an ideal mousing surface. It’s sized for laptops with a 15.6-inch display or smaller.

You can order the Lapdesk from Logitech’s site for $29.99.