Gadgets Cool Enough for 'CSI'

LOS ANGELES -- How did they do that? Gadget Grrl shares the technology and flaws of CSI's futurist virtual keyboard. Plus, dont miss this zoom lens that can zoom your Nokia phone into the next century. It's ideal for admiring your muse from afar.

I-Tech Virtual Keyboard $179.99 virtual-laser-keyboard.com

As seen on the TV show CSI/Miami, this virtual laser keyboard uses a laser to beam the keyboard onto a surface. Using Bluetooth technology, it works with BlackBerrys, Smartphones, PDAs, PCs or MACs.

The device is about the size of a Zippo cigarette lighter, but it beams out a virtual keyboard that is the same size as a full-sized model. This is a great gadget to carry along if you're tired of lugging a full-sized laptop but still want the ability to type on a keyboard instead of pecking on Chicklet-sized keys of a PDA.

The downside here is that the keyboard is difficult to see on a light surface or in bright light. It appears much better on a dark surface and in low light. Brightly lit airports might make it difficult to see the keyboard, but if you are flying at night, this could be great. One tip might be to carry along a piece of black construction paper or any other flat, dark surface to beam the keyboard on to ensure that you can see all of the red keys.

Another great feature here is that you don't have use any pressure to work the keys because they are virtual, so they won't stick like some physical keyboards.

Mobile Phone Telescope $19 gadget.brando.com.hk

If you own a Nokia cell phone, you might consider picking up this truly cool telescopic 6x zoom lens. Most cellphone cameras are limited when it comes to photographing at a distance, but this easy-to-use zoom lens helps decrease contortion of an image for brighter picture quality. It is designed specifically for several Nokia cell-phone models, including the N70, N80 and the N95. The option to zoom on a cell phone could come in handy, especially if you're documenting job sites or need to shoot from a distance.

Site to See: Things That Firefox Can Do for You

I was told to use Firefox as a browser by a reputable IT guy several years ago. This site illustrates why this browser has become so popular. And it also sorts through some of the hundreds of extensions and addons that have been created for Firefox. A few of my personal new favorites: Video Download Helper (creates an easy way to download video/photos on a Web site), FasterFox (for better speed surfing) and Bookmarks Synchronizer (to synchronize all your bookmarks from all your computers).