Perfect Gift: Gadgets For Women

Functional & Fabulous Picks For A High-Tech Holiday

(CBS)  It used to be that when it came to electronics for women, choices were often based on color or cuteness.

Today, women want gadgets that look good, but are also are functional, of high quality and that provide superior service.

As part of our "Perfect Gift" series, The Early Show is taking a look at the hottest gadgets for women. CNETS's Natali del Conte offers the following ideas for a high-tech holiday:

Computer
Lenovo IdeaPadS10: $399

Lenovo's entrant pits perfectly in a purse. It comes in pink, red, black, and white. It has a processor made specifically for fast Web surfing, an express card for mobile broadband, and a roomy keyboard. It holds 160 gigs of memory, which is not a lot if you have a lot of music or photos, but netbooks are not made to hold your media library. They are made for computing on the go.

Fashion Laptop Cases
Bodhi Laptop Clutch: $538 - $2,000

This designer makes some really nice bags for women to carry around their technology. This is one of my favorites.

Belkin Mini Lap Top Cases: $(19.99 at Target)

A less expensive option in a range of styles and colors.

Portable Email Device
Peek: $99

This is an email-only device that is very popular. It is not a phone or a gaming device. It only lets you send and receive email and is simple to use. Del Conte says the keyboard is really comfortable for typing and the screen is big and clear. It comes in several new colors now like red, blue, and black. The only drawback is that the data plan is $20 per month, so budget for that.

Gadget Jewelry
Philips Swarovski Active Crystal Earphones: $95

Your earbuds could be as cute as your earrings. Del Conte likes these because they look like simple diamond studs. "It is like wearing earrings that are also earphones."

Earbuds
Monster Beats By Dre: $150

These are the earbud version of the really popular Beats By Dre headphones. The headphones provide high-end sound quality, but for women, they are not great because they mess up our hair. They are perfect for women on the go.

GPS
Garmin Nuvi GPS with Voice Command: $530

Garmin's high-end GPS system was really well rated on CNET. It is a really accurate GPS device with turn-by-turn navigation. It also has the most accurate voice command capability we have seen, says del Conte, which is great for not having to take your hands off the wheel. It also functions as a media player for your kids to watch videos or read books when the device is not in use.

Cellphones
BlackBerry Storm: $199

Del Conte said many of the women she polled on Twitter said they wanted the new Storm. People love their BlackBerries, but want a touchscreen phone like the iPhone. Also, Verizon customers wanted a touchscreen option as well because they weren't willing to leave AT&T. The Storm is only about 2 weeks old and it is really popular so far. It is sleek and shiny and it is a great messaging phone altogether. The touchscreen is different because you have to actually push down on the phone to activate a function. It also is able to run several applications at once, which is something the iPhone can't do.

Palm Centro: $49 on AT&T; $79 on Sprint; $99 on Verizon

One of the smallest and leat expensive smartphones on the market comes in a variety of colors. Del Conte says anyone who has a Palm Treo will love this phone because it is basically a mini version of the Treo, but less clunky. It has a touchscreen and a keyboard, and offers features such as email, messaging, Web browsing, and basically any of the features we expect out of smartphones. It is also just very affordable for a smartphone.

MP3 Player
Microsoft Zune: $99-$249 (depends on megabites)

This an editor's choice from CNET. It is a really great media player with features that the iPod does not have such as FM radio, FM radio purchasing, sharing options, wireless syncing, Wi-Fi, and more.

Camera
Fuji FinePix Z200: $150-$300

The Fuji FinePix line is a great line of cameras for portability and fashion. They are small, stylish, come in plenty of fun colors, and are easy to use. They are also relatively affordable for a 10 megapixel camera. They also have 5X optical zoom and image stabilization.

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