Tech Tools

Compiled by CIARA O'BRIEN

Cyborg RAT-7 Gaming Mouse – €84

The Cyborg RAT-7 Gaming Mouse couldn’t be mistaken for your run-of-the-mill point and click device. It certainly stands out from the crowd of bland peripherals. It’s customisable for a start; you can change its shape with interchangeable parts, remove weight from it and even change the position of the thumb panel so that it’s tailor-made for your hand. Because it’s built for gaming, it has some useful features, such as a precision aim mode, three programmable custom settings that you flip through at the touch of a button, and five programmable buttons. Perfect for gamers, or just those who want something a little different on their desktop.

cyborggaming.com

Motorola Xoom - from €455

As far as tablets go, the Motorola Xoom is a worthy competitor for the iPad 2. Sure, it’s a little chunkier than its Apple rival, but the Xoom has more than a few things going in its favour. It’s dual core for a start, which means it works pretty fast. The Android tablet also has a slightly larger screen – a 10.1in widescreen display – which works well with media or even when you’re just using the built-in cameras to video chat over Skype. The one area it could improve on is tailor-made apps for Honeycomb, which aren’t quite as numerous as iPad apps.

motorola.com

Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo – From free on contract

We’ll refrain from jokes about how the Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo could really be the One, but the truth is that it’s a pretty good mobile phone. Behind all the jargon – Reality Display, anyone? – the Neo packs in some good features, including a decent camera that uses mobile Exmor R sensor for capturing great photos in low light. Video can be shot in HD and played back on the phone’s 3.7in screen or a HD TV, thanks to a built-in HDMI connector. It runs on a 1Ghz processor.

Sonyericsson.com