Gizmos & Gadgets Ed Tech Kickoff Workshop Virginia Appuhn Carbondale Community High School January 19 th, 2005

Topics Scanners Printers Flash drives Media Cards & Card Readers Digital Cameras TV Viewers Wireless mouse or keyboard PDAs & other things Rechargeable batteries

Scanners Connect via USB Flatbed should have adjustable top to allow book scanning. Dont rely on OCR software to scan documents to be edited. Dont press down on scanner! Prices range $50 to $500 Current good Office Max sale: HP ScanJet 2400 for $50. Will need to purchase USB cable.

Inkjet Printers Low-end Inkjets start at $30-$40 Come with starter ink cartridge. Buy extra cartridges right away (cost as much as printer). Higher-end inkjets range from $80 to $250 Usually cost per print is better. Some are for photo printing. Some have built-in media card readers for direct printing from camera

Laser Printers - Personal HP LaserJet - $200 Brother Laser $100 Buy extra ink cartridge and will need USB cable. Not designed for networked printing.

Printer/Scanner Combo Price range $100 to $250 May have limited scanner ability (lid may not adjust) Can act as copier but would use up ink

Flash Drives Also known as Pen Drives Thumb Drives Pocket Drives USB Drives Great option to replace floppy disks. Many students are using them now. Can attach to lanyard or keychain. Require no internal power – uses USB. Rewriteable

Flash Drives Pricing: $10 and up depending on capacity. Wal-Mart has generic 128Mb for $15 Make sure it will fit your computer. Automatically configures on Windows 2000 and XP. Win98 requires driver.

Media Cards Very common in cameras, PDAs, etc. Many different types. Retains files without power Most priced $30-$80 Rewriteable Wal-Mart has 64Mb SD Card for $15

Media Cards Sony Memory Stick - Used in Sony Clie & cameras SD Card (Secure Digital) very common SmartMedia (fragile) CompactFlash xTreme Digital Olympus Cameras

Media Card Readers Priced $10 to $50 Often have rebates Connect via USB Can purchase for one type only, or to read multiple types of cards. Some new computers or printers have built-in readers.

Media Card Readers Will create drive mappings when connected. May conflict with other drive mappings on your computer. Be careful when inserting cards – watch orientation.

Digital Cameras Low-End Cameras Price range $30-$100 No zoom Manual focus Limited flash Usually no viewscreen Might have memory card option Good for student use Easy to use Download via USB Some may double as a webcam. Without a card, photos are lost if battery is dead.

Medium Digital Cameras Price range $100 - $200 or so. Has 3X Optical Zoom Has memory card option (may come with one) Auto-focus and flash May take videos also Has viewscreen Fairly easy to use Download via USB or from card $130 Olympus camera

Other Digital Cameras Sony Mavica Camera that uses floppy disk – very easy to use and excellent battery life. $300 and up. Higher end cameras: over $ X Optical Zoom Sometimes Complicated to use.

TV Viewer (Photo Album) Will display photos from media card on TV Can read many card types. Some will play music or video files. Can be connected to computer also. Price Range $30 - $80

Other Stuff: Wireless mouse $30 Wireless keyboard $30 Wireless remote presenter $50 PDAs $100 - $600 Camera/Printer package $200-$300

MP3 Player/FM Tuner/Recorder Price range $100 to $300

Rechargeable Batteries Needed for cameras Be sure to check device for correct size and type Sony cameras have excellent rechargeable batteries Price range for AA charger and 4 batteries $25 - $40.

Product Mail-in Rebates Be sure to send them in by the deadline You need the UPC symbol from the package May only be able to get one per buyer – so may be a problem for multiple purchases for one school.

Final Notes: Make sure the gizmo or gadget will work with your computer. Best pricing on these items are often sales at OfficeMax, Staples, or Best Buy. If you buy anything, a newer better model will be out within the next month. You and your students will enjoy working with any of these gizmos or gadgets.