In Brief

By Anita Hamilton

COUCH COMPUTING Somewhere along the way, information appliances morphed from the worthy idea of a streamlined PC into $500 style statements that failed miserably. But Cidco could breath life into this much maligned category with its Mivo 350, a $200 machine that lets people send and receive e-mail, view attached photos and get news updates for $15 a month. Best of all, it's wireless, so users can compute from their sofas and easy chairs.

BRIGHT LIGHTS Dreading yet another year of hauling out the Christmas lights and replacing all the dead bulbs? New Forever Bright lights by Fiber Optic Designs are made of shatter-resistant light-emitting diodes that the company claims will last up to 20 years and cut energy costs up to 85%, compared with regular incandescent Christmas bulbs. Available in red, yellow and green and selling for about $10 for a string of 100, they might rekindle your holiday spirit.

HELLO, SUNSHINE It's hard getting out of bed on a chilly winter morning. So the folks at Oregon Scientific are giving you a new way to greet the day with a smile: their $100 ExactSet Projection Clock projects both the time and the outdoor temperature (provided by a remote sensor) in big red letters on your wall or ceiling. If that doesn't get you going, then there's always a backup: an 8-min. snooze button keeps lazybones on a short leash.

--By Anita Hamilton