Homes and Gardens

A useful hobby and enthusiast tool that counts amongst it's abilities carving, engraving, sharpening, cleaning, cutting and sanding.

This audio unit allows the serious Hi-Fi user to have his CD player, Radio, Internet Radio, NAS and even iPod all in one unit together with the all important amplifier. Just add speakers of your choice for a high quality unit.

I first saw this at the beginning of the year and only now in late summer did I get to see this environmentally friendly 'green' TV. Strange that it is only available in 40 and 46inch versions, I saw the former, still because of design it takes up little more room than my 32inch model.

Mention Dyson and you immediately think of vacuum cleaners. Now we have a Dyson cleaner powered by a new engine.

When we found ourselves in a new home with none of the usual white goods, we were very pleased with the versatility of the Morphy Richard Intellichef multi-function cooker and the Intellisteam.

Here not one but two exciting precision tools for the home hobbyist. First do not confuse these items with toys they are definitely not, these items are tools for the home hobbyist. First an engraving stylus and then a quality soldering iron.

While the majority of manufacturers of external speaker systems have tended to concentrate their support for the iPod platform, Edifier has adopted a more wide ranging approach with the launch of its MP300 Plus Portable System.

120 years ago the electric motor was invented and although it has had minor changes it remains more or less the same as it was then. James Dyson has invented a totally new and considerably lighter offering, just one of the new things in this latest handheld unit.

Around 18 months or so ago photo frames were are the rage, ‘the new must have thing’ well at that time I was given one – well almost one – by Sony and now another has materialised by AgfaPhoto, so lets look at both.

First a WebCam that looks like an old style stills camera and second a set of earbuds that is less expensive than a number of those reviewed recently. The latter is also in white so others may just think it is linked to an iPod.

The normal household upright or cylinder vacuum cleaner can sometimes be just too large and cumbersome for a small job. Dyson’s DC31 meets the need for a convenient handheld machine when one just needs to do a quick clean up.

Here I am looking at Kitchen Scales and an Electric Carving Knife from a chef (Antony Worrall Thompson) who graces the TV screens but as far as I know does not throw tantrums that a number of other ‘celebrity’ chefs do.

Two very useful gadgets, the first when you need an accurate adjustable spanner. The second when the car’s cigar lighter needs to work overtime as you are out and about and need to charge more than a USB device as this is an inverter and also allows you to power 13amp items from the car battery.

This is certainly big; in fact I was not sure I could fit it in my lounge in the normal place. My first surprise was that I could lift it easily enough onto its stand and then onto the unit where it sits.

A couple of weeks ago I told you about some very neat (even secret) cameras and excellent software from Logitech, it was however rather expensive. Here a far simpler Ethernet solution that may well fit the job and even the pocket.

While the telephone can be a life-line for the elderly, they might have a problem hearing the phone when it rings if their hearing is impaired

Another item requested a long while ago; here the cameras can be external, internal or hidden. They all work using the same software that apart from the front end locally the recordings can also be viewed on any remote PC.

I suspect more of us will be resorting to soup and bread for lunch and while a lot of us crave Coffee Shop coffee I suspect that will soon be something else that will be experienced less. However good coffee can be achieved at home for around 20p a cup.

This is the smallest projector I have seen; it is smaller than most mobile phones. However from two metres away it can display a bright clear image on any flat wall, in fact I even tried it on a ceiling but that would require you to be lying down on a floor or sofa.

This is as you might imagine not a whisper quiet unit, however it is powerful in fact dare I say it, it almost has the suction power of a D*s*n and that was the only cleaner to actually lift a section of a fitted carpet from the floor.

If you need a set of kitchen scales that are supremely accurate and look great as well, then take a look at the Salter Mix 'n' Measure

Fancy a piping hot cup of water in three seconds, yes three seconds, then this could be for you. Of course it’s up to you to decide if you want water, tea, coffee, soup or many other beverages this just heats the water very quickly.

Another rather nice 32inch Digital TV this one from LG. Called scarlet simply because the back of the unit is err scarlet. It has an intriguing hole below the screen but above the stand, place your finger in it and it turns the unit on/off from/to standby.

Just over two years ago I reviewed a coffee machine from the people who made the coffee Nescafe. Now there is a new version and this is from the people who make the machine Krups. It’s still the same coffee but the machine is even better.

If like our house you have remote controls coming out of your ears, but never the right one then this little box could be just the thing for you. As well as controlling up to four separate devices it will also completely power them down - saving you money, batteries and the world resources.

A light-weight, powerful and versatile cordless drill from Bosch making use of the latest in battery technology.

If like me you are of mature years you will remember pressure cookers and I am sure today such objects would be illegal. This however is very unlike what was on offer it is just a rapid method of one pot cooking.

DAB Radios have appeared in various shapes and sizes with a range of features including a model that is at home in the kitchen.

Rice is something that’s lots of people struggle to cook well. So maybe a device designed for the job is something that can help you get rice as good as your local Chinese or Indian restaurant or take-away.

A great little dustbuster vacuum cleaner for your car which runs off the car battery and has a pivot nozzle to reach awkward places.