Most ladies’ shopping addiction is to clothes, jewelry, etc. My addiction is to buying computer stuff, gadgets, electronics, etc.
The economic downturn has provided me with a new foolproof method for justifying my penchant for buying electronic gadgets..helping the economy! It’s obvious that spending helps the economy, so I’m glad to step up to the plate and do my part. 
Here’s the lineup of my new gadgets…
DeLorme PN-40 GPS
The DeLorme PN-40 is my new handheld GPS. I had DeLorme’s Bluetooth GPS, the BT-20, before this. I used it with my Palm TX, which ran DeLorme’s Street Atlas handheld version. That setup technically worked all right, but there were a lot of negatives to it, I’ll spare you the details.
So I thought about a new GPS, primarily for geocaching, but also for some road navigation, finding points of interest, and “tracking” during a trip, so I could take the “track” file and then geotag the multitude of photos I take during road trips.
A handheld model could fill all of these needs, and I chose the DeLorme PN-40. An added bonus on the PN-40 is the ability to have multiple types of maps (layers) on the device. One can have the map file, topo, USGS, nautical maps, aerial imagery, and custom stuff as well. This GPS comes with DeLorme’s excellent mapping software, Topo 7, but for a $100 upgrade, XMap can be used to import any custom images, maps, satellite photos, etc. I can create a very intricate route, transfer it to the DeLorme, and use it to navigate during my trip.
The cool thing with this device is that I can georeference old maps and transfer them to the device. I can then be out traveling and use the GPS viewing an old map. Why, you ask? This would be very helpful to identify old alignments of US Highways, auto trails, etc. If Only I had this when Pat and I assisted Thomas Repp of AMERICAN ROAD magazine with researching an old auto trail in Indiana, the Ben Hur Route.
Garmin Nuvi
Garmin nuvi 200
Well, even with having the awesome DeLorme GPS, I found that it wasn’t the best for street navigation when I was trying to look for a place “on the fly” and navigate there…fair, but not as responsive as I’d hoped. Wrong turn? Forget it…took too long to recalculate. So, I opted to also procure a Garmin Nuvi 200. Nice little device. It’s a more bare bones model, and doesn’t do multipoint routes (I think I can add one via point), no software to create routes, doesn’t speak street names (but of course, it displays the street name). It’s quite a nice gadget! I still love the capability of the DeLorme to transfer a route that I created on my map software, so there’s good reason to have both devices. Now only if DeLorme could make a street-routing device that functions like the PN-40 (integration with Street Atlas or XMap, waypoints, routes, etc.) but with added features like lightning-fast response for street navigation, spoken turn by turn directions, faster search capability, easier addition of large amounts of points of interest (that would be really sweet!) so I could load POI Factory files in no time, like I can on the Garmin.
Samsung Epix
I have been a Palm devotee for some time. First, I had a Palm IIIxe:
Then, I moved up to the color Palm Z22:
Lastly, I had the Palm TX.
I was very initially enthused about the Palm TX, and had high hopes: high resolution color screen, more memory, better processor…and wi-fi! Alas, this device wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Frequent resets, wi-fi was a joke, and the worst part…a faulty battery status indicator. At first, I thought the device had trouble holding a charge (well, I think it does, somewhat…because it does drain faster than one would expect, even when not used for several days!). But the real problem is that at any point, the battery indicator shows a full charge, when in fact, the battery is ready to fully discharge. The solution, was probably just to charge it every day, but that device was getting frustrating. It was time to move on, and perhaps look into a Smartphone or something.
This led me to the Samsung Epix.
3G, phone, Internet, wi-fi, organizer, contacts, etc. So far so good. It has its quirks, to be sure…but it’s pretty good.
Nikon D700 DSLR
I started out in high school with a Nikon EM, an entry level Nikon SLR, evidently marketed as an easy to use “SLR Camera for Women.” Hilarious! It was actually not a fully manual SLR at all! It was an aperture-priority only camera (huh…so funny in retrospect!!). Rather than manually adjusting both the aperture and shutter, one would only adjust the aperture ring on the lens, allowing the camera to select the correct shutter speed for the correct exposure. But since that was my first and only SLR experience, I was clueless.
Sadly, I no longer have this fine little camera. I sure wish I did, though. It would be nice to play around with it a little, for nostalgic reasons. I really liked it alot!
**UPDATE: After reading this paragraph, my husband procured a working Nikon EM for my birthday!! So, I will get a chance to play around with one!Nikon EM
Concurrently with the Nikon EM, I owned a series of point and shoot 35 mm cameras. Though unremarkable and forgettable, there was one that worked very well. Since it was forgettable overall, I don’t remember what kind it was, but it worked well for a point and shoot. It too, disappeared from my life along with the Nikon EM (but that’s another story!).
Several more point and shoots later, in 2003, I decided to go digital. While not a pioneer in adopting digital, I certainly am never one to shy away from new technology (unless finances prohibit…). I knew I didn’t want a point and shoot, but I didn’t go with an SLR either at that point. I opted for a camera with manual adjustments, but without interchangeable lenses, and selected the Sony Mavica CD-500. I liked it alot. It used relatively inexpensive media, mini CDs. Exposure modes of Auto, Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Manual, and some scene modes. 5 MP. It made decent movie files, too.
Sony Mavica CD500
In hindsight, here’s what I didn’t like: shutter lag. Unbearable. Useless at the Indy 500! For stationary subjects, all was well, but there were some action shots I would have liked to take! Startup: slooooooow…had to be at least 10 seconds. Maximum 1/1000 shutter speed. Aperture range of 2.0 to 8.0. Maximum ISO of 400. Zoom equivalent of 34-102 mm. It was also painfully slow writing data to the mini-CD’s. However, with this said, at first, the camera suited me quite well. It helped me learn about settings, manual adjustments, and so forth. Of course, the greatest benefit to digital is that I could look at my images immediately, and tweak the settings to get the right exposure, depth of field, subject motion, etc. The Sony Mavica CD500 served me quite well for three years. But I outgrew it, and was tiring of the shutter lag and slow performance. So, I opted for a Digital SLR and chose the Nikon D50.
Nikon D50
This camera had 6 MP, ISO ranges from 200 – 1600, the same exposure modes (P, M, A, S + scene selections and auto), the shutter speed went up to 1/4000! Instant startup time, no shutter lag and a host of lens selections. I added a Nikon SB-800 Speedlight to my arsenal, along with a Promaster 18-200 mm lens. I liked having one all-around lens for most purposes without having to switch lenses all the time. Using this camera greatly increased my photography skills, and I am pleased with having owned it.
The Nikon D50 served me very well for just over 3 years. Though nothing was wrong with it, and I swore I wouldn’t upgrade yet, the lure of the latest and greatest Nikon, along with an terrific offer I couldn’t refuse, led me to an upgrade. I thought about the Nikon D90, but that wasn’t enough of an upgrade for me at this rate. I pored over Ken Rockwell’s excellent site, reading all of the details about each one. The Nikon D3 was out of my price range, so I opted for the next best thing. Nikon’s very advanced consumer model, second-from-the top, D700.
Nikon D700
This camera is just terrific! I can’t and won’t provide a highly technical review (see
Ken Rockwell’s site for that), but there are so many great things about this camera. First, it’s a full frame sensor (FX), so it’s not the smaller, DX size. This allows for wider shots, more light sensitivity, larger prints, and probably a ton of other reasons beyond my technical knowledge (or lack thereof). At 12.1 MP, it’s not huge, but short of printing huge billboard size prints, this is more than enough for me and 98% of consumers (in fact, I rather liked the smaller 6 MP files of the D50…). ISO ranges from 100 (LO) to 25,600. This camera is wonderful at higher ISOs, with far less noise than on a DX camera. Makes it so easy to take better photos in low light! 1/8000 shutter speed, and 5 FPS. There is an optional battery pack that can boost this up to 8FPS, but I’m not a sports professional, so not necessary.
There’s some other cool features I like, such as 51 point autofocus, Active-D lighting, face detection, and much more that I’ll be learning as I get better acquainted with the D700.
