It’s enough to make you tear your hair out. Your digital camera is out of juice after taking just a few pictures even though you inserted new batteries the last time it was used. This extremely irritating effect is known as spontaneous discharge, whereby a battery, without further use, only has a fraction of its original capacity after a short time.

Those looking for the epitome of universal talent will strike it rich with Hama at the radio / television exhibition in Berlin. Hama will present the Tech-line 1000&1 Card Reader; a card reader that not only reads all cards without an adapter, but also does so extremely quickly. Transfer rates of up to 32 MB per second are achieved via USB 2.0 thanks to a high-speed chip set.

Many people would be lost without GPS navigation. In order to get around without problems, an external GPS receiver is often needed in combination with a notebook, PDA, or mobile phone. Hama, the accessory professionals, have a solar-supported Bluetooth version in their product range.

Many athletes swear that they need external support; thankfully, most of them only get this support from music using MP3 players. The Hama “DMP 620 Sports” models are the right companion: lightweight, splash-proof, and in cool colours. The new 2 GB player’s rubberised case, available in red, blue, green, orange or yellow, defies wind and weather. Body-conscious users in particular will value the integrated stopwatch and calculator for the body mass index that many swear by. The inner workings of the lightweight “Sports” players (33 grams including rechargeable battery) also have a lot to offer.