Tech Tools

Compiled by CIARA O'BRIEN

Samsung Galaxy S (from €49)

The Galaxy S is probably one of the best phones Samsung has produced in quite some time. Powered by Android, the Galaxy S sports an excellent Super Amoled screen that is not only bright and vibrant, but also responds to touch in exactly the way you want it to.

It won’t avoid being compared to the iPhone, but the good thing is that it comes out pretty well against its Apple rival.

The best things about it are the large screen (4in), the fact that it’s lightweight and it runs on Android software, which gives you access to thousands of apps. The 1GHz processor means it will power through applications quickly.

The phone also buys into the “hub” trend too, with a social hub function that allows you to store all contacts from email, Facebook and your phonebook to one central address book. And it has already won an award, being named European Smartphone of the Year 2010-2011 at the European EISA Awards.

samsung.com

Lomography Panoramic 360 degree camera (€125)

The Lomography Panoramic 360 degree camera is a little perplexing at first. It does not look like much of anything on first glance. But the pictures it produces are more than a little impressive. Forget about digital: this camera is strictly for analogue lovers. In fact most things about it are a bit retro.

It is based on a concept from the 1980s, the company says. And it has a pull-cord. It is not quite as weird as it sounds. You hold the cameras handle with one hand, pull the cord with the other, and once you release it, the camera will spin around on its own axis, taking shots of everything around it. The result is an image about four times longer than your standard landscape shot. It does not need any special film, because it will work with any 35mm film that can be developed in a photo lab. You can see a few examples of the photographs here: http://microsites.lomography.com/spinner-360

Canoscan 9000F (€235)

Scanners are among those little thought about tech products which can be very useful. The Canon Canoscan 9000F will handle everything from documents to film negatives, and throws in some handy extras such as auto-image repair.

The device itself scans at a high resolution, with a 9600 x 9600dpi sensor, which means you get a brilliantly detailed image that can be enlarged or printed at high resolution. And if you’re scanning old photos or film that is scratched, dusty or faded, the scanner’s technology, dubbed Fare (Film Automatic Retouching and Enhancement), will scan for any physical defects and automatically restore damaged photo prints.

It is quite fast too, scanning 35mm negative film at about 18 seconds per frame and an A4 colour photo or document in about seven seconds, but obviously at lower resolutions.

Canon.com