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Cell phone looking worn out? Camera not as slender as it once seemed? No worries. This year's best gadgets can meet your every need, from photo prints that don't smudge to MP3-player cases that let you listen to music underwater. How about home-theater systems that automatically adjust the sound of their speakers? Or a camcorder that doesn't use tapes or DVDs? Out with the old and in with the new has never been so exciting. Over the next 10 pages, TIME showcases some of the coolest products on the market. Will technological wonders never cease? We hope not.

Bose SoundDock
This sweet-sounding boom box and charging station is a stylish place to park your iPod (shown here with iBeam flashlight). It fits any iPod with a docking port, even the Mini, and comes with remote control. bose.com ($300)

H20 Audio SV-iPod
A watertight case keeps your standard or Mini iPod dry even in the pool or at the lake. The shocking twist: with the included headphones, you can listen to music while submerged. h2oaudio.com ($150)

iPod Photo
The color-screen iPod synchs music and photos and comes with up to 60 GB of space to hold both. And it can connect to a TV, so you can add music to your (let's be honest) boring vacation slide shows. apple.com ($500 to $600)

HP iPod Tattoos
Make your own custom cover, or download free ones from HP. This mildly adhesive paper comes in 10-packs, so if you get bored with one design, you can peel it off and replace it. hp.com ($15 per pack)

Griffin iBeam for iPods
The flashlight, opposite page, and laser pointer come as a yin-and-yang pair. One helps you find stuff in the dark; the other is a proven tool for annoying house cats and rock musicians. griffintechnology.com ($20)

More Music
New ways to rock your world, at home or on the go

Tivoli Audio Sirius Radio
Satellite radio has made its biggest waves in the world of cars, but now it's coming home. The latest radio from the makers of the cult fave Kloss Model One receives Sirius' signal. tivoliaudio.com ($300 plus subscription)

Move Over, Mini
The standard iPod is tough to beat, but at $250 Apple's 4-GB Mini is facing some serious competition. Virgin's new Player 5 GB ($250; virginelectronics.com) has smart playlists, an FM tuner and twin headphone jacks. Creative's 5-GB Zen Micro ($280; creative.com), with its radical touch-pad face, comes in 10 colors, twice as many as the Mini. The 5-GB Dell Pocket DJ ($200; dell.com) may have fewer frills, but it also costs fewer dollars.

Roku M1000 SoundBridge
Want to stream music from a PC to a stereo system anywhere in the house? This device requires some nerd skills during setup. But it's worth it. rokulabs.com ($250)

Hot Boxes
Computers for every member of the family, full of power — and pizazz

Personal Views
The Media Center PC is finally coming of age. With these specially designed computers, you can already record TV shows. But now, by pairing the newest models — such as the Gateway 7200S ($1,400; gateway.com)--with two new add-ons, that technology goes mobile. You can transfer shows and songs to Creative's Zen Portable Media Center ($500; creative.com) to enjoy on a plane or bus or in your breakfast nook. If the PC is in the den but you want to see your shows on the living room TV, try Linksys' Media Center Extender ($300; linksys.com), which lets your computer broadcast to another screen.

Apple iMac G5
Critics say they miss the last iMac's movable monitor or that there's too much white space below this one's wide screen. We say it's a smooth — and powerful — operator. apple.com (from $1,300)

Disney Dream Desk PC
Many a child will fall for this big-eared blue machine. In addition to a kid-size mouse, it includes a color printer and a light pen for drawing. disneydirect.com ($950)

Hip-e Node
It may sound off the wall, but this PC for teens was designed by teens. Almost every visual element can be customized. There's an optional MP3 player and a prepaid cell phone too. hip-e.com (from $1,700)

Picture Perfect
Film is dying, but shed no tears. The newest cameras are better than ever

In Living Color
The quest for killer prints has taken developers in different directions. Epson's Stylus Photo R800 ($400; www.epson.com) composes images using eight separate inks: the traditional cyan, magenta, yellow and black, plus a glossy black, a deeper red and blue, and a clear-gloss coating for white areas. The Dell Photo Printer 540 ($180; dell.com), which issues only 4-in. by 6-in. prints, fuses thermal dye onto special photo paper. Four passes of primary color, and out comes an image that fingerprints won't harm. The 540 can print directly from the memory cards of most cameras or connect to the latest digital cameras for custom jobs.

Nikon D70 Digital SLR
With training-wheel features for amateurs, plus manual control for pro shooters, the D70 will boost the ego of anyone who pretends to know what an f-stop is. nikonusa .com ($1,300 with basic lens)

Panasonic PV-GS120
The price of pro-quality video technology is dropping fast. This MiniDV camcorder has separate imaging sensors for reds, greens and blues plus a 10x Leica zoom lens. panasonic.com ($700)

JVC Everio GZ-MC100
Forget tape: the Everio saves 60 min. of DVD-grade video (up to 5 hr. of lower quality) on a removable 4-GB hard drive. It's also equipped with a 2-megapixel still camera. jvc.com ($1,200)

Sony Cyber-shot L1
You may think that hiding a 4-megapixel performance-minded camera with a 3x optical zoom in so small a body is quite a feat, but the real achievement is the reasonable sticker price. sonystyle.com ($300)

Canon PowerShot SD300
Slim but powerful, this 4megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom has a spacious 2-in. highresolution LCD screen in back, great for lining up and reviewing shots. powershot.com ($400)

Geek Gadgets
Tech toys for those who, at work or play, spend most of their life in front of the computer

USB Christmas Tree
If your new PC came with more USB ports than you'll ever need, it may be time to decorate your work space. This LED-laden tree cycles through six different colors. thinkgeek.com ($13)

James Bond Stealth Camera
Given that cameras now come hidden in most phones, who would think to look for one in this Zippo-style lighter case? Great for anyone vying to be 008. thinkgeek.com ($100)

Philips Key019 Camcorder
This tiny USB camcorder recharges when connected to a Mac or PC. The video isn't DVD quality but looks decent on the LCD screen hidden in the viewfinder. usa.philips.com ($250)

Roadworthy
In-car navigation devices chart a course by taking readings from global-positioning-system satellites and matching your location to an internal map, calling out every turn with a clear but soothing bionic voice. Garmin's Quest ($650; garmin.com) has a small screen and requires some setup on a PC, but it runs on car power or a built-in battery, so it's great for hikes as well as drives. Magellan's popular RoadMate 700 ($1,300; magellangps.com) comes ready to roll with detailed street maps of the U.S. and Canada — plus an optional map of Europe — stored in memory.

Maxtor OneTouch II
Hit the big button and this 250-GB external drive backs up your sacred PC or Mac data. DriveLock keeps the files safe in case the drive is lost or stolen. maxtor.com ($300)

USB Mini Aquarium
The fish are fake, but the tropical excitement is real. O.K., maybe that's overstating it, but as the fish swim around, it really looks as if they're waiting for food. thinkgeek.com ($20)

Logitech MX1000 Laser Mouse
If your desk makes optical mice go herky-jerky, try the laser mouse. It's 20 times as precise. It's also the first mouse to sport a lithium-ion battery. logitech.com ($80)

Lexar JumpDrive TouchGuard
This 256-MB USB key chain has a fingerprint scanner to securely manage your passwords. After setup, put your finger on the pad when you visit a site — and you're in. lexar.com ($80)

Microsoft Starck Optical Mouse
It may look like a futuristic tree ornament or one of Ridley Scott's Alien eggs, but it's really a stylish wired mouse by celebrated designer Philippe Starck. microsoft.com/hardware ($30)

Dream Calls
Today's cell phones shoot video, play music and organize your day. Ignore the sticker shock — most carriers offer fat rebates

Samsung MM-A700
Feature rich, even for a loaded Sprint PCS phone, the A700 has voice recognition and a 1megapixel camera and camcorder, plus news, sports and weather in streaming video. sprintpcs.com ($400)

BlackBerry 7100t
RIM's BlackBerry may have a corporate following, but the latest is business casual. It juggles personal and work e-mail and is small enough to fit in your pocket. t-mobile.com ($300)

Sony Ericsson S710
When swiveled shut, the 710 looks like one of Sony's Cyber-shot cameras. It shoots like one too, with 1megapixel resolution and a slot for a Memory Stick card. cingular.com ($400)

Motorola V710
A major leap forward for Verizon Wireless, this is the carrier's first phone to combine true voice recognition with a speakerphone and wireless connectivity for headsets. verizonwireless.com ($320)

Wire-Free Wireless
Drivers, start your engines. If you hate to plug in a wired headset when you need to make a call behind the wheel, a cool solution is here. To cut the cord, upgrade to a phone that has Bluetooth connectivity (except for the Samsung, all our featured phones have it), and get a Bluetooth earpiece like the Motorola HS820 ($80; hellomoto.com). You will be surprised how clear it can sound, and you'll have one less distraction on the road.

Screen Magic
Home entertainment now goes way beyond TV. Are you ready to invest in a whole new experience?

Sound All 'round
If you haven't yet jumped into surround sound — that is, bedecked your TV room with at least five speakers and a subwoofer — you have two sweet new options that include DVD player and speakers. Yamaha's affordable CinemaStation DVX-S650 home theater ($650; yamaha.com/yec) can adjust the relative settings of each speaker by "listening" to the room with its special microphone. Not sure you want all those speakers? Denon doesn't blame you. Its D-M51DVS ($800; usa.denon.com) creates seemingly real surround sound using only two speakers and, of course, the sub.

Sharp Aquos LC-20B6U-S
With its high-resolution screen (1024 by 762 if you're keeping score), this thin 20-in. LCD can be used as a high-definition TV or a PC monitor. There's also a 15-in. non-HD model for $650. sharpusa.com ($1,200)

Logitech Harmony 676
Pretty smart for a universal remote, the 676 relies on a Web wizard to get you set up, instead of making you punch in those annoying codes. Three changeable color plates are included. logitech.com ($230)

Hitachi 50VS810
Craving a big screen with class, but plasma's still too pricey? The 50-in. CineForm rear-projection TV uses new technology so it's bright, lightweight and almost as slim — at a lower cost. hitachi.us/tv($4,000)

Toshiba 26HF84
There's still life in the old-school cathode-ray-tube category. This 26-in. high-definition wide-screen set, with the latest digital-video inputs, is one of the best deals around. tacp.toshiba.com ($800)

GoVideo VR2940
Combine a VCR with a DVD recorder, and you have a way to put home movies on disc. This uses special software to prevent DVD-creation headaches. www.govideo.com ($350)

Playtime
From tiny digital tops to wily kung fu bots, kids get the darnedest things

E-L-M-O
Elmo dolls always balance on the fine line between genius and insanity. This year he spells his name with big-arm gestures to a variant of the Village People's classic YMCA. fisher-price.com ($20)

Robosapien
A fast walker and a big talker (if Caveman can be considered a language), this one is more excitable than your average toy. Just beware its kung fu fury — and audible bodily functions. wowwee.com ($100)

Playskool VideoNow Jr.
With a color screen and a chunky design suitable for small hands, this videodisc player can be a road-trip pacifier. Titles include full-length episodes of The Wiggles and other kid favorites. playskool.com ($70)

Vtech V.Smile TV Learning System
If your child isn't yet ready for an Xbox, try the V.Smile. Its Smartridge library ($20 each, for ages 3 to 7) offers math, logic and word-skill lessons from familiar faces like Simba and Spider-Man. vtechkids.com ($60)

I-Top Pro
When this top is spinning, LEDs on its side form letters, numbers and messages. It's full of simple addictive games like Top This, where it counts its own rotations. There's also a Magic 8-Ball mode for the indecisive. irwintoy.com ($15)

• Wilson Rothman