TipSheet : Lifestyle, Technology

Get Your Workout in Gear

Tara Weingarten — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 16:23:33 GMT

Working out shouldn’t be effortless, but the right equipment or accessory can make it less of a hassle. TIP SHEET found that these products gave our fitness routine a boost.

Walkvest: As you progress in your exercise and weightloss program, it’s harder to improve as quickly. The Walkvest, made famous recently by actress Valerie Bertinelli, who used it to shed pounds, allows you to add half-pound weights, up to eight pounds, to make your walking or running regimen more challenging ($59.90; walkvest.com).

Goody: If you often have to stop mid-workout to adjust your hair band or clip, what good is it? Goody’s StayPut collection really does just that. Its hair bands ($3.99) have 52 percent more holding power than a regular band, and the quarter-inch and half-inch claws ($3.99 to $4.99) grip probably longer than you can on those barbells (goody.com).

AquaJogger: Exercising in water is fun, puts less strain on joints and, the best part, you can’t feel yourself sweat. The most effective water-weights system we found comes from AquaJogger. A package that includes a buoyancy belt, which suspends you at shoulder height in deep water, two hand and two ankle weights and a get-started DVD is $89.95 (aquajogger.com).

Murad Vitamins: Some experts say that no fitness program is complete without supplements. Murad’s daily packets make it easy while you’re on the run with preselected vitamins that purport to maximize cellular hydration and strengthen connective tissue ($135 for a four-week supply; murad.com).

iTrain.com: Cheaper than a gym membership but just as effective. Download up to 200 workout programs that combine music with professional fitness instruction so you won’t have to go it alone. From 99 cents per workout.

Sennheiser Headphones: Anyone who jogs or runs knows how tough it is to keep ear buds in place, but Sennheiser, the German maker of great noise-canceling headsets, has a pair that do a swell job. The OMX70 Sport stereo clip-on headphones are adjustable for a better fit and moisture-resistant, so you can sweat and not short-circuit ($49.95; sennheiserusa.com).

Dial ‘A’ for Annoyance

Newsweek — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 10:56:42 GMT

By Linda Stern

Customer call centers tend to do one thing efficiently: frustrate complaining customers. Beat them at their own game with these tips from “Gotcha Capitalism” by Bob Sullivan (Ballantine Books. $14.95):

Start by checking the Web site gethuman.com for the secret code that will get you to a live rep more quickly. Call during regular business hours, when the best employees are manning the phones. And consider pressing the number for Spanish, as you’re likely to get a bilingual operator faster than you would by waiting for an English-only agent. Or call the sales office instead. Once you get through, jot down the rep’s name or operator number, and then state your case simply. Ask if he or she has the authority to solve the problem for you. If not, ask to be switched to a supervisor who does. Take that, “hold” music!

Bringing TV to Your Handheld

Newsweek — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 14:55:27 GMT

Nov. 5, 2007 issue

Thanks to a new wave of handheld, video-friendly devices, it’s never been easier to keep yourself (or the kids) entertained. But before you buy a portable boob tube, there are a few things to consider.

If you plan to eye lots of video, consider a display of at least three inches. In general, expect to squeeze about 20 to 60 hours of video into 16 gigs (most new players come with 8 or 16GB of memory). If that’s not enough, look for a player with a memory-card slot, or consider a hard-drive player. For the video itself, iPod owners can seamlessly download movies and TV shows from Apple’s iTunes Store, while other devices play videos bought from services like Amazon Unbox, CinemaNow and Wal-Mart (though integration isn’t as smooth as Apple’s). Still unsure? Here’s a look at the latest portable video players:

The iPod touch features a roomy 3.5-inch-screen, built-in wireless and a slick touchscreen interface for navigation. ($299 for 8GB, $399 for 16GB; apple.com).

Samsung’s YP-P2 features its own three-inch widescreen touch-controlled display and stereo Bluetooth for wireless listening (the ability to handle cell-phone calls is coming soon). But with only 8 gigs and no expansion slot, you might hit the storage ceiling quickly ($200 for 4GB, $250 for 8GB; samsung.com).

Barely bigger than a bank card, Creative’s Zen has a 2.5-inch screen, but it was still large enough to enjoy an episode of “The Office” downloaded from Amazon. The controls and interface are iPod-simple, and with an SD card slot, storage is unlimited ($200 for 8GB, $250 for 16GB; us.creative.com).

SanDisk’s Sansa View is not as small as the Zen, but the 2.4-inch screen is about the smallest we’d go. It does claim to have the longest battery life—seven hours for video versus about five for the others. ($150 for 8GB, $200 for 16GB; sandisk.com).

Archos’s 605 Wifi sports a 4.3-inch screen, 30- to 160GB storage, and pop-out kickstand. Thanks to built-in Wi-Fi, you can wirelessly buy or rent videos from CinemaNow. One drawback: downloads can take hours ($300 for 30GB, $400 for 160GB; archos.com). But at least you’ll have a great video library.

—Cathy Lu