Best

__ Best __ - Great stuff - tested and approved in our top-secret labs.

SCROLLING MOUSES

__ First Class: __
__ Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer __
The latest PC pointers have added a front wheel that you can roll or press like a button. IntelliMouse's roller, for instance, lets you scan a Web page without using the onscreen scroll bar. Combined with the Ctrl key, the wheel also acts as a zoom for quickly blowing up or shrinking text. The mouse's two extra buttons, on the left side, are preset to act as your browser's Back and Forward. But all the buttons (including the wheel) can be reset via IntelliMouse software to shortcut-menu commands like Home, Print, and Save. This model even replaces the mouse ball with an optical sensor that tracks your work surface.

__ IntelliMouse Explorer: $74.95. Microsoft: (800) 426 9400, www.microsoft.com. __

__ Business Class: __
__ Logitech MouseMan Wheel __
The curvy MouseMan has a notched wheel that lets you scroll up and down a page in increments, handy for ticking through your Outlook in-box. It's also got a zooming control, plus an iMac-ready USB connector along with a PS/2 plug. MouseMan's buttons - including a spare on the left side - are easy to program via MouseWare. And the mouse's edges are made of a comfortable rubbery material that helps even the most fumble-fingered get a grip.

__ MouseMan Wheel: $49.95. Logitech: (800) 231 7717, www.logitech.com. __

__ Coach: __
__ Kensington Mouse-in-a-Box Scroll __
Kensington offers a cute, cheap way to get rolling with a slim blue wheel wedged between the two front buttons, which can be customized via Scroll Mouse software to perform Web and Windows commands. Double-click, drag-lock, minimize a window, or paste - all with one tiny button. And the Mouse-in-a-Box easily hooks into your PS/2 or serial port.

__ Mouse-in-a-Box Scroll: $29.99. Kensington Technology: (800) 280 8318, www.kensington.com. __

DIGITAL REAR-PROJECTION TVS

__ First Class: __
__ Faroudja RP5800 __
Today's DTV already offers picture and sound far superior to that of an analog set, though most digital televisions need a separate tuner to get high-definition quality, if they are HDTV compatible at all. The Faroudja may set you back to the tune of a luxury car - and that's without speakers or a tuner - but the 65-inch screen can handle 1080-interlaced resolution (true HDTV), and it displays images in a range of aspect ratios, from TV's conventional 4:3 to 2.85:1. This top-flight model adds liquid coupling for higher contrast in its three electromagnetic CRTs, keeping the picture bright and sharp.

__ RP5800: $35,000. Faroudja: +1 (408) 735 1492, www.faroudja.com. __

__ Business Class: __
__ Pioneer Pro 700HD __
The slopes of the Winter Gravity Games will feel a mere snowboard's length away on this sharp, 1080i-capable, 64-inch screen. The Pro boasts three 7-inch CRTs distributed to keep the picture from blurring, even at the edges. And since detail often suffers in traditional projection TVs as scenes transition from dark to bright, Pioneer uses advanced scanning technology to increase or slow down the speed of the electron beam for better picture definition.

__ Pro 700HD: $8,300. Pioneer: (800) 421 1404, www.pioneerelectronics.com. __

__ Coach: __
__ Panasonic PT-56WXF95 __
Combining 1080i capability with solid image quality, this 56-inch screen has built-in line doublers - which means no horizontal scan lines - and looks great playing HDTV. The Panasonic also has three 7-inch CRTs and offers a five-speaker surround-sound system and picture-in-picture with split-screen display, so your bedmate can enjoy a late-night movie while you catch SportsCenter.

__ PT-56WXF95: $5,499. Panasonic: (800) 211 7262, www.panasonic.com. __

PORTABLE REFLECTOR TELESCOPES

__ First Class: __
__ Orion Argonaut 6" Maksutov-Newtonian __
Most telescope buyers - Peeping Toms excepted - set their sights on heavenly bodies beyond the reach of urban light pollution. But in astronomy circles, being portable means sacrificing a little image quality and schlepping a scope the size of a suitcase. At 21 pounds (65 pounds with mount and tripod), the Argonaut is ample yet luggable, and its 6-inch aperture yields crisp, contrasty images. A baffle between the primary and secondary mirrors keeps light from bouncing around in the tube - so luminous objects like the moon won't appear fuzzy - while the scope's focal length of 900 mm gives a sizable view of the sky.

__ Argonaut 6" Maksutov-Newtonian (plus mount and tripod): $1,999. Orion: (800) 676 1343, www.telescope.com. __

__ Business Class: __
__ Celestron G-5 Schmidt-Cassegrain __
Celestron has updated its 5-inch-aperture, 6-pound reflector (24 pounds with mount and tripod), adding the same Schmidt-Cassegrain optics used on space shuttles. The G-5's focal length of 1,250 mm gives you high-power images of our solar system, as well as wide-field views of the cosmos. Easy compatibility with standard 35-mm cameras and single-axis motors that can guide the telescope for long exposures make astrophotographs a snap.

__ G-5 Schmidt-Cassegrain (mount and tripod included): $1,278. Celestron: +1 (310) 328 9560, www.celestron.com. __

__ Coach: __
__ Meade ETX-90EC Astro Telescope __
This 9-pound Meade (20 pounds with mount and tripod) has a 1,250-mm focal length and delivers exceptionally clear images, especially considering its compact 3.5-inch aperture. Perfect for amateur astronomers who prefer stargazing to star searching, its optional Autostar Computer Controller tracks down any of the 14,000 - and counting - celestial objects programmed in its database.

__ ETX-90EC Astro Telescope with Autostar (mount and tripod included): $976. Meade: +1 (949) 451 1450, www.meade.com. __