Toys for adults

WHILE slogging through snow, rain, and below-zero weather shopping for gifts for children, don't forget fun toys and special items for special grown-ups this holiday season.

Although electronic gizmos and technological hardware top adult gift lists, the new Apple iPOD leads the pack for computer-savvy, music-loving patrons.

Always popular among business moguls, basketball and hip-hop stars are items like the T-Mobile Color Sidekick, an all-in-one communication device that is a favorite with celebrities like Jay-Z and Allen Iverson. The new Clie Personal Entertainment Organizer contains a built-in digital camera and a swivel screen design.

Check out these and other gift goodies. Whether you've been naughty or nice, Santa has a special fun gift for you and the special adult in your life.

THE CITYBUG ELECTRIC SCOOTER makes getting there fun. Simply take a seat, grab the handlebars, pull back on the throttle and get going! One four-hour charge of the scooter's high-capacity 24 V battery will propel the rider to a top speed of 14 mph and gives plenty of juice to cruise for up to 15 miles or more. The scooter weighs less than 48 pounds and comes with a detachable folding basket, rechargeable battery, two ignition keys and AC charger. Available at Sharper Image, deluxe Citybug Electric Scooter's price is $499.95,

THE V60P PUSH TO TALK PHONE is a cell phone that can be used across the nation as a digital two-way radio co communicate directly h business and personal contacts at the simple push of a button, It has voice-activated dialing and text-messaging capability. Available from Verizon Wireless, it retails for $199.99.

This new PERSONAL ENTERTAINMENT CENTER is a book-size portable dream machine that allows the consumer to enjoy a DVD movie, sports on TV, music on CD, news Oil radio or any of 20 relaxing and comforting sounds to soothe, relax and rejuvenate by replacing irritating noises. Available at Sharper Image, the center retails for $799.95.

THE HUMAN TOUCH LEATHER MASSAGE CHAIR re-creates the precise massaging action of human hands, through a patented system of mechanized rollers. This chair even has an adjustable leg rest that flips over to reveal a second massaging unit for kneading calves and feet. Available at Hammacher Schlemmer for $1,799.95.

APPLE'S IPOD is the pre-eminent portable personal music system. Its new docking interface allows transfer of music as well as portable storage for transfer of files. The new super-slim iPod holds more than 10,000 songs. User-s can download from the iTunes Music Score, offering thousands of titles for legal purchase for a paltry 99 cents a song, import from a CD, or record their own musical selections. The iPod boasts a huge hard drive, available in 10GB, 20GB and 40GB sizes. Available for MAC and Windows with a suggested retail price starting at $299.

T-MOBILE COLOR SIDEKICK, recently named Product of the Year by PC World, is an all-in-one communication device allowing consumers to surf the Web in full color, send and receive e-mail, on-line chat, play games, take and e-mail snapshots and stay organized. Popular with celebrities, musicians and athletes, it retails for $2.99,

THE CLIE PALM OS 5 (PEG-NX80V) personal entertainment organizer features a built-in digital camera, video recorder and playback, a high-resolution color display with swivel screen design, built-in voice recorder and a built-in MP3 audio player. Available from Sony Electronics for approximately $549.99.

THE FOLDAWAY ELLIPTICAL STRIDER with Heart-Rate Monitor will pump Lip your workout and still fold away under- a bed. Tone your calves, thighs, hips, buttocks, stomach chest and arms while gliding on this strider The LCD shows elapsed dine, steps taken, estimated calories burned, steps pet" minute and heart rate. Available from Sharper Image, the unit retails for $189.95.

NIKON COOLPIX 4300 DIGITAL CAMERA is compact and lightweight and still offers the sophisticated features that keen photographers desire. It has 12 programmed scene modes, which include portrait, landscape, sunset and museum settings that make the camera simple and easy enough for a beginner to use. For more experienced photographers, a manual mode gives control over exposure and other settings. It offers improved resolution with 4.0 mega-pixels and 3x optical zoom. It retails for $399.95.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group