Microsoft's new $200 MSN TV 2 Internet & Media Player doesn't know what it wants to be. On the one hand it's a television-based Internet appliance that lets PC-less folks surf the Internet; on the other it's a home networking device that allows networked users to access digital music, photos, and video stored on their PC through their TV. As a $22-per-month dial-up device for newbies, it works reasonably well: It's easy to set up and use, though staring at your TV while Web pages slowly load isn't exactly a great experience. For a home networking device that shares your existing broadband (for $10 per month), it seems unduly complicated to use.

A built-in car navigation system isn't much help if you end up driving your friend's vehicle instead of your own. Cobra Electronics' $1299 Nav One 3000 lets you move it from one car to another, plus you can beam addresses to it from your PDA. Too bad that its large size and slow operation make it less desirable than competing products.