If like us you’re pretty fed up with the way system maintenance apps dump on the 64-bit Windows user, you’ll appreciate a bit of good news.

Selecting presents for the geek or gadgeteer in your life? We take the hassle out of gift buying, so you can put your feet up and relax.

Since the release of the Eee PC 701, the 'Notebook' has dominated. Easy to use, cheap and able to be left on the coffee table next to the remote, Notebooks are true appliance computing. The choice of which one to buy comes down to personal preference, but it's hard not to prefer those with the best usability. Our rundown of your options covers their performance, battery life, and design.

Here's a handful of the best laptop bags around - perfect for protecting your pride and joy while you're out and about. In addition to the essential protection, these bags also come with oodles of style.

Once you've tasted the freedom of surfing the Internet on your smartphones, it's hard to go back. Fortunately, a number of mobile phone providers offer great deals on smartphones with included data. We've assessed their ease of use, features and handset design.

AMD has officially announced its plans for the move to 32nm scheduled for late next year.

If there's someone in your life without a digital camera, there's never been a better time to get them started. Compact cameras now offer 8-12 megapixels for under $500, and provide large LCDs for easy viewfinding and shot setup as well as automatic face recognition, multiple focal points and more!

Blu-ray writers are more affordable than ever. We look at four internal models to find the best way to go high-def. The last time we did a round-up of optical drives, the former war was in full swing. But now Blu-ray has at last seen off HD DVD and taken its place as the industry standard for high-capacity optical media.

GPS units are now mainstream, and the prices have never been better - the Tomtom One in particular is an incredible bargain, and it's been on our A-list for a full two years. Around Christmas time, it's relatively easy to find deals that include pouches, external antenna, screen protectors and other accessories: shop around before buying.

Whether you're after something small, portable and cheap - such as the Creative Zen Mozaic - or something more fully featured, we've got the latest and greatest in portable music on test. The benchmark they all try to meet is the iPod Classic, which at $300 for 80GB of storage and 45 hours of audio battery life is still the clear leader.

Some items just don't fit any other category, but their looks, features or quirkness scream 'Christmas Gift Idea'. From everyone's favourite AI dinosaur, Pleo, to the groundbreaking Tivo PVR, we think we've got a little something for everyone.

The P45 chipset takes the stability of the P35 chipset and introduces support for PCI Express 2.0 - the latest standard for graphic cards. If you were waiting for the best choice of upgrade for an existing LGA775 system, or want a board for a budget system, this is definitely the chipset of choice. It's great time to bag an upgrade. What better gift for the DIY geek in your household?

Pair break code used on half of all wireless traffic.

good speed, good features and plenty of flexibility make this a winner

Slow speeds and a high price make this an underwhelming offering

Good value if purchased with a plan, the telstra’s speed impresses

No excess data charges, a free modem and a good software package make virgin worth a look

Disappointing speeds in our tests, underwhelming plans and expensive hardware make Unwired a niche choice

A free modem and competitive pricing around the 5GB mark make Vodafone worth a look – but other networks are cheaper per GB

Quality, speed and a huge array of features go some way to justifying the price