I’ve been doing quite a few reviews lately and I’ve come across some great entertainment products that any gadget freak would love to have in the new year. These are not necessarily mainstream products. You may have never heard of them. But now that you have, I guarantee that if you check them out, you will not be sorry. These five products are fun and easy to use. And best of all, they won’t break the bank. This list could be really long, but I wanted to keep it to products that are fairly reasonable.

1. Orb Music Player ($69): If you are like me and have ripped CDs and purchased MP3s on your computer, you will love the Orb Music Player. It is small and simple to use and allows you to stream your music library direct to your stereo without having to move around large equipment. And even better, if you are an iPhone or Android phone user, you just use your phone as your remote. In addition to your local library, you can also stream Pandora and Sirius Internet radio.

2. Western Digital TV Live Hub ($199): I am also all about saving money on cable by watching what I can on the Internet. This includes Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube. You can do that and more with the Western Digital TV Live Hub. What makes it stand out over some other similar products is that it includes a 1Tb hard drive on which you can store music, movies and photos, so they are right at your fingertips.

3. Flip UltraHD camera ($129): Yes, we have all already heard of Flip, and you probably have one. But this Cisco product has recently been improved with better video quality and image stabilization. And this is by far the easiest way to edit and share videos. There is no huge learning curve. It’s just easy. And the quality is great. You can easily upload to YouTube at 720p. This is also perfect if you plan to share your family movies using one of the products mentioned in this post that allows you to stream media in your home.

4. Vudu (Pay $2.99 – $5.99 per movie): This is not a product, but a service. Think Netflix, without the monthly fee. I discovered Vudu on my LG television. It allows you to rent movies and watch them instantly. Unlike Netflix, Vudu features several new releases. In many cases, movies are released the same day as On-Demand. And if you have a nice HDTV, you can watch movies in 1080p HD for only $5.99 each. So, you watch only what you want, when you want with no recurring fees.

5. LG BD550 Blu-ray Player ($99): I don’t have this Blu-ray player yet, but I want it. As mentioned, I just bought a new LED LCD TV for Christmas. It is also an LG and I have experienced the same features that this Blu-ray player has. Not only does it play Blu-ray disks, it also has Wi-Fi. So you can stream Netflix, Vudu, YouTube, Pandora, and more. New features are constantly being added.   I don’t really need the extra features since I have them on my TV already, but for this price, why would I get anything else?

These are just a few of the new advances in home technology that we can take advantage of. Gone are the days of VCR tapes from the video store. I remember there was even an extra charge if you returned the tape without remembering to rewind! Now, if we want to rent a movie, we don’t even have to leave the house. Just grab your popcorn and hit the couch with your remote.

Kris Cain

Kris Cain, one of our tech editors, is a Chicago area mom to two sets of twins, photography nut, gadget addict, web designer, and blogger who has worked in IT for over 13 years. On her blog, LittleTechGirl.com she writes about her love of gadgets, technology, and her children.

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