Reviewed.com's picks for top gadget gifts
— -- As consumers cautiously creep out of the recession and into the 2011 holiday season, manufacturers are hoping their latest tech products will catch the eye of gift givers. Reviewed.com, a division of USA TODAY, puts hundreds of products through the rigors of its testing labs. Its annual Select Awards spotlight the best personal tech the industry has to offer. Here's a selection of some of this year's award-winners, including tips on how to find the best deals .
Camera of the year
Nikon D5100 (MSRP $849.95): The advent of the sub-$1,000 digital SLR has been great for amateur shooters looking to get more serious about photography. With image quality that can match (and at times exceed) more expensive cameras, the D5100 offers entry-level shooters great image quality in a lightweight, affordable package.
Holiday Shopping Deals: Our camera of the year is well worth the full retail price, and you won't find it on sale in many places. Black Friday through Sunday, however, BJ's is offering a great deal: $849.99 for the camera with the 18-55mm kit lens, 55-200mm telephoto lens, Nikon camera bag, and instructional DVD.
Best camera value
Canon PowerShot ELPH 100 HS (MSRP $179.99)
The Canon ELPH 100 HS is a near-perfect point-and-shoot specimen. It's incredibly fast, easy to use, and captures better pictures and video than the competition — and certainly better than your smartphone. Canon manages to cram all that quality and usability into a $180 camera, which makes the 100 HS a great buy for the holidays.
Holiday Shopping Deals: You'll find the 100 HS on sale for $130 all over the Internet, making this incredible deal even better. Some places to shop: Office Depot, $129.99 w/ free 4GB Memory Card; Radio Shack, $129.99 (case, 4GB memory, and screen protectors for another $12.99); Staples, $129.99, with 50% off all regularly priced camera bags.
Camcorder of the year
Canon Vixia HF G10 (MSRP $1,499.99)
The Canon HF G10 is a bold, powerful, camcorder that produced excellent HD video in all of our tests. Canon's decision to go with a brand-new image sensor paid off, producing crisp, clean video in bright light, while working wonders in low-light situations. Loaded with professional-grade controls and features, the HF G10 skirts the line between professional and consumer. The price tag, while steep, is justified.
Holiday Shopping Deals: You can't expect to find the best camcorder of the year for cheap. A few places, however, are shaving a couple hundred dollars off the price for the holiday season: Abe's of Maine, $1,299.00; Amazon, $1,279.95; Sears, $1,279.00.
Best budget camcorder
Samsung HMX-W200 (MSRP $159.99)
It's a rare occasion for a budget camcorder to truly impress us with good video performance, but that's exactly what happened when the Samsung HMX-W200 waltzed into our labs. Compared to other models in its price range, the W200 produced some of the sharpest video we've ever seen, and its results in low light conditions were equally as impressive. For a camcorder that retails for well under $200, the HMX-W200 is an excellent deal. It is compact, waterproof, records beautiful Full HD video, and is easy to use.
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