The gadget & Lifestyle Awards 2010: Winners

It was not an easy job to pick up the top winners from each category for the

8 members Jury team. Vikram Chandra and Rajiv Makhni from NDTV, actress and

former Miss India Gul Panag, technology consultants Atul Chitnis and Kishore

Bhargava, Stuff editor Nishant Padhiar, tech writer Ashish Bhatia, and

CyberMedia chief editor Prasanto K Roy went through intensive discussions before

finaliing on the winners. In our July issue we announced winners of 9 categories

out of 16. The winners of the remaining 7 categories were as follows:

Audio Products



Philips BluRay Home Theatre HTS 7540: Although this is a classic home

theatre in a box setup, it takes things a step further. The Blu-Ray player and

amplifier are one device, with all the 5 speakers (4 towers and 1 center) and

the subwoofer connected to the main unit. Its fast, with Blu-Ray discs loading

up quickly. The tower speakers are nicely designed with toughened glass stands

although the setup does take a bit of time and a couple of people because of the

assembly required. The main unit has a USB and aux in port as well; the USB port

plays audio files, photos and DivX movie files from USB flash devices. Setting

this up in the classic 5.1-setup style yields some pretty great results. You get

a wide sweet spot and powerful sound, thanks to the large ported sub.

Gaming Products



Sony Playstation3 Slim: A gamer's delight, the new PS3 console is slimmer,

lighter, dressed in matte finish and offers delightful performance in all

arenas. Gameplay is superb, BluRay is an absolute delight and media storage and

playback from the built in hard drive is simple. Really impressed with the

BluRay playback as well and the experience improves even further if you get the

dedicated BluRay remote (optional accessory). The DualShock3 controller offers

extensive feedback during gameplay. It can be charged using the USB port on the

PS3, and the battery can last about 15 hours of gameplay. Tried it out with a

Full HD and HD Ready televisions, and there was no let up in the constant

brilliance of the PS3 Slim.

Imaging Devices



Canon Eos 550D: The EOS 550D is an update of a long line of entry-level

DSLRs available from Canon. The 500D introduced video recording into the mix at

a good price. While it did full HD (1920 x 1080 pixel) video, frame rate in this

mode was limited to 20 fps, which leads to choppy video (this is noticeable if

the camera or the subject moves fast). That's why for all practical purposes,

the EOS 500D was limited to 720p HD video. The EOS 550D now takes the same CMOS

sensor as the more expensive EOS 7D, adds full HD video recording with

selectable frame rates (24, 25 or 30 fps) and an ultra high-resolution

widescreen LCD.

Portable Audio



Bose QuietComfort 15 : The QC15 are top of the line acoustic noise

cancelling headphones from Bose. The headphones have redesigned ear cushions

that use new materials in a proprietary design to establish a critical

acoustical seal thus helping to further reduce noise while providing a

comfortable fit. The headphone has a TriPort acoustic headphone structure and

active equalization to provide balance sound output. The headphone uses a single

AAA battery for the noise cancellation and is extremely comfortable to use.

TV Display



Samsung 7000 Series 3D LED television: The 7000 3D LED is an absolutely

fantastic product, which is truly on the highway to the future. The price,

however, will be a bit too steep for a lot of people. The 7000 3D LED does tend

to heat up quite a lot, be it with a DTH or a DVD or even a 3D movie. This is

due to the extremely slim form factor and the lack of cooling fans on the rear

panel. But for those who are willing to spend, this will be some experience.

Green Award



Bureau of Energy Efficiency: The Government of India set up Bureau of Energy

Efficiency (BEE) under the provisions of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001. The

mission of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency is to assist in developing policies

and strategies with a thrust on self-regulation and market principles, within

the overall framework of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 with the primary

objective of reducing energy intensity of the Indian economy. The Green award

was given to BEE with a unanimous vote by the jury team.

Celebrity Endorsement



Kareena Kapoor: Kareena Kapoor won the Celebrity endorsement segment for
her role as a brand ambassador through the year for various IT brands.