Stuff Geeks Want

If you’re the sort of person who can’t be bothered swapping winter tires on your car—or you don’t want to mortgage the self-esteem boost those 18″ spinners on your Civic deliver—consider picking up a set of Thule K-Summit snow chains to get you through the winter.

The K-Summit brings traction technology into the 21st century, with an advanced design that can fit around even large wheels or low profile tires.

Constructed of durable, hardened Manganese Nickel Alloy Steel, the K-Summit resembles a high-tech bear trap and hangs onto your wheel with the same ferocity, although the fact that it’s bolted to one of your lug nuts probably doesn’t hurt, either.

Handcrafted in Italy, the K-Summit is priced accordingly at about $200 a wheel.

$405 for a set of 2 from Amazon (Make sure you get the right size; search Amazon for the other sizes if that’s not the one for you.)

This is totally the geek car that we’ve all been secretly lusting after. My friend Josh got to test drive one this past week, and his very own Tesla will be delivered later this year.

Here’s a quick list of some of the reasons this is the ultimate geek car:

• 100% electric
• 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds
• Top speed of 125 (we’re sure someone is going to jailbreak this sucker though
• 13,000 rpm redline
• 220 miles per charge
• costs $0.02 (yes that’s 2 cents) per mile to drive
• did we mention it’s fast?

Can’t wait to take a ride with Josh.

Every true geek needs a way to power his or her gadgets in their car, but why buy something that is just a power inverter, when that geek could own a power inverter with three AC outlets, a DC outlet, radio, a light, an emergency power source that can also be used to jump start your car?

The Duracell DPP-600HD is totally the thing you need in your trunk, or, if you’re like me, you need it plugged into your cigarette lighter to power your laptop and portable DVD players for the kids when you’re on a long road trip.

It will also come in very handy if you make a quick trip up into the mountains, get lost, and get buried by an avalanche, and need a power supply for a few days while they send the rescue helicopters out to look for you. Remember, the bottom of a MacBook Pro can get pretty hot if you use it a lot. With this baby all you need is your MacBook and a copy of Photoshop and some wicked PS Actions to heat you up when you get cold… and the radio will keep your mind off the ice forming on the insides of the windows, I’m sure.

Price: $99.99 from Amazon.com

This year, Saab introduced a very limited edition 9-3 that is a throw-back to the 1985 Saab 900 SPG, a classic coupe known for its trademark black exterior treatment, three-arm alloys, and turbo engine. This year’s special edition is called the Turbo X, and it’s a Dark Knight, if I’ve ever seen one.

The Turbo X is powered by a 280hp turbo-charged V-6, and thanks to the Haldex 4 all-wheel drive and rear electronic limited-slip differential (eLSD) that moves the torque from side-to-side which dampens the yaw. Thanks to the Haldex 4 and eLSD, this is the first Saab I’ve ever driven that doesn’t let the steering own you when you’re mashing the accelerator down. And after my test-drive, I can tell you that this is the best handling Saab ever built.

It sits 0.4 inches lower than the Aero trim package, and has larger braker, stiffer springs and dampers, and rides like a true sports car.

The all-black exterior, and interior is amazingly apportioned, and the classic boost guage taken from the 1985 Saab 900 is nostalgic touch that will make any Saab fan feel at home. You can get the Turbo X in a Sedan or SportCombi (wagon) model for around $44,000, if you can get one. There are only 600 being delivered to the U.S.

Let’s face it: Fuel efficiency is inversely proportional to how cool a car looks.

That’s why the truly stylish and eco-conscious ditch a couple wheels and spring for a motorcycle instead, like Ducati’s sweet new Superbike 848.

The 848 is built on the same platform as Ducati’s mind-blowing 1098, but with a less racetrack-worthy motor, which would only improve the odds of killing yourself on your daily commute, anyway.

Not that the 848 is any less insane of a ride: with 134 horsepower, the 369 pound bike will smoke almost any car out there and sports a better power-to-weight ratio than Ducati’s legendary (and now retired) 999.

It’s also got some sweet Italian styling cues, including a single-sided rear swing-arm to show off its gorgeous wheel, high-mount exhaust, and tastefully executed projection headlamps.

Alas, the 848 also carries that requisite premium anything Italian and exotic does: a $13,495 price tag.

If you have ever found yourself with a dead car battery, you know what a chore getting a jump start can be at times.

But if you had Duracell’s DPP-600HD Powerpack 600 in your trunk, you wouldn’t have to worry.

This mega-battery-to-go packs 28 amp-hours, enough juice to jump your car or provide up to 600 watts of power to electronics. What can you do with 600 watts?

• charge your cell phone for up to 35 hours
• power a laptop for up to 7 hours
• drive a 13-inch color TV for 5.5 hours
• even juice a small jigsaw for about 20 minutes

This amount of power makes the Powerpack 600 not just handy for your car, but also your campsite or area of your home or garden where a power receptacle isn’t handy.

Did we mention it also has an AM/FM clock radio and emergency light? It’s also surprisingly small: just 16.5″x11″ around its base.

Pick one up from Amazon for $109.99 and take advantage of the free shipping, important since this beast weighs about 25 pounds.

If you don’t need all that juice, you can spring for the more affordable Duracell DPP-300EP Powerpack 300 ($74.99), which delivers half the power in a smaller package. It also trades the jumper cables for an air compressor, a feature we wish they could have put in the Powerpack 600, as well.

I’ve been looking for a solid GPS for a while: nothing too fancy, just something that’s light and compact and gives good directions.

You wouldn’t think this would be too difficult, especially for someone as tech savvy as me, but the number of GPS units targeted at general consumers is ludicrous; just scope out all the automotive models Garmin offers (hint: there’s about 35). Even if you exclude the high-end models ($400 and up) you’re still left with a dizzying array of choices that seem to vary by only one feature.

So let me save you some time and direct you to the model I finally settled on: the nüvi 360. What’s so good about this one?

• 3.5-inch display
• full maps of the U.S. (AK, HI, and Puerto Rico included) and Canada
• 6 million + points of interest
• voice directions with street names
• SD card slot supports displaying photos or playing MP3s
• Bluetooth

That last feature is the real kicker, as the nüvi 360 is the cheapest of Garmin’s GPS units to include Bluetooth, which allows you to make and answer calls through the unit and use its speaker for hands-free calling.

The best part is you only pay a little more for some of the features the 360 packs (like voice directions with street names) than the lower models. The MP3 playback support also guarantees I’ll be able to listen to audiobooks even when I’m in a crappy rental car with only a radio or a moving truck.

About the only thing the 360 doesn’t have that I wish it did is a widescreen 4.3-inch display option, like the cheaper 200w and 250w models, and the high-end nüvi 600- and 700-series. If you want that, and the features the 360 packs, you’ll need to spring for the nüvi 660, which costs more than $100 extra (about $350 from Amazon).

Price: Amazon sells the nüvi 360 for just $179 with free shipping.

By the way, I’m not the only one who thinks the 360 rocks: it has a 4.5 rating on Amazon based on 800+ reviews, snagged a 4.5 rating from PC Magazine back in 2006 when it debuted, and was named “Best Value” by PC World in their February 2008 issue that pitted it against four other GPS units.

For years Europeans have enjoyed the tiny Mercedes Benz-developed smart car, a vehicle so tiny that Americans who traveled abroad frequently mistook it as a toy as they thought of their Escalade waiting at home.

While fuel prices in the U.S. still aren’t as high as they were in Europe five years ago, Americans are definitely not the ones laughing anymore. With fuel approaching $4/gallon and most SUVs struggling to go 15 miles on that gallon, the idea of being green and efficient has finally started to catch on in the U.S.

And, thankfully, so too has the smart car.

Smart’s fortwo (as in, for two people) is slowly rolling onto American streets, starting at modest $11,590. The 1.0L, 3-cylinder engine is dwarfed by those found in even some motorcycles, but with 70HP it’s “fast enough”, topping out at 90 mph and taking you from 0-60 mph in a leisurely 12.8 seconds.

Fuel economy is rated at 33/41 mpg (city/highway) using the EPA’s 2008 standards, which means you’ll very likely see those numbers in the real world, if not better (using the EPA’s 2007 standard, fuel economy jumps to 40/45, but that’s based on less-than-realistic driving parameters).

Keep in mind that despite its Benz roots, the smart car is totally bare bones. Extras like AC ($600), radio ($350-$495), and power steering ($450) are standard on virtually every car today. But there are some luxury options, too, like heated seats ($220) and a panorama roof ($350).

Or, for a few grand more, smart offers two upgraded models of the fortwo: the passion coupe for $13,590 that includes a list of popular options many would want, and the passion cabriolet, which sells for $16,590 and can lose its roof when desired.

The smart car is available in a number of color options and easily removable door panels means you can even mix and match them down the road. And for those concerned about its dimensions, it’s more spacious inside than you’d think. This one’s a grow-er, not a show-er.

Radar detectors are a tricky purchase, primarily because most suck. That includes the $49 Woot special you got last Christmas. If you want to risk a $200 ticket plus insurance premiums with a piece of plastic that cost less than that, be my guest.

Cobra’s XRS R9G represents the pinnacle of Cobra’s radar detectors. While the Cobra brand doesn’t have the legendary rep that Valentine, Beltronics (STI model) or Escort (Passport 9500 model) might, the XRS R9G is trying hard to change that.

To that end, Cobra has packed a number of slick features into this thing: GPS, so it can remember where you have marked false signals (by a shopping center, for example), a traffic-light and speed camera database so you know where the hidden ones lurk, and the ability to recognize your speed and mute itself if you’re going below a preset limit.

Does this make the XRS R9G worth $450 (about the same as other top-of-the-line detectors)? I’m not sure, but fortunately we don’t have to figure that out, as Amazon stocks it for a mere $257.90. Woot!

Uber-geeks (venture capitalists) should skip over this and go directly to the Audi R8 featured here last week. The R8 is a geek’s dream due in small part to its exclusivity (the best geek will buck the status quo, and pull it off with class!) and in larger part to the white LEDs that accent the xenon headlights and illuminate sequentially when fired up.

BMW’s, meanwhile, haven’t been that exclusive since Steve Urkel drove an Isetta on Family Matters (bucking the status quo!).

But the BMW 1 series changes that.

Europeans have had the 1 since 2004, but only in the more practical 5-door hatch configuration. Maybe BMW thought fitting five Americans in a 1 series would be impossible, but for its U.S. debut it elected to deliver sprightly new coupe and convertible models.

The lowly 128i will tap the piggy bank for a sliver under $30,000 (before taxes and other gotchas), but winners will pay the 20 percent premium and go for the twin-turbo 135i which puts out 300HP.

And in a nod to early adopters: all 2008 1-series feature an exclusive start/stop button engraved with “Year One of the 1″. Which will either turn the model into a collector’s item or, more likely, serve as a warning to future used car buyers that whatever quirks and tweaks came in the second and third year of the car are still lovingly there in this one.