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

HANDS-FREE CELLULAR HEADSETS

__First Class: __
__Plantronics M130 __
Want your hands free for all your other handheld devices? Wireless headsets help keep your cell phone in its place, letting your digits take care of higher-level parallel processing. The blue-purple Plantronics M130, with its small, noise-canceling boom mike, easily tops the other models tested for sound clarity at both ends of the call. Comfortwise, the earbud is pleasantly light but a bit large; those with small ears might prefer the hook (included), especially if they tend to power-walk - and talk - recklessly.

__M130: $44.95. Plantronics: (800) 544 4660, www.plantronics.com. __

__Business Class: __
__Jabra EarSet __
Jabra's groundbreaking one-piece design packs both microphone and speaker in your ear: The tiny unidirectional mike perches just outside the earpiece, leaving nothing but wire trailing down to your phone. A boom- and clip-on-free existence means you'll feel less like Lily Tomlin's Ernestine, but this clearing of clutter does mean a sacrifice in sound quality at the other end. Soft earbud covers come in an assortment of sizes.

__EarSet: from $39.95. Jabra: (800) 327 2230, www.jabra.com. __

__Coach: __
__GoNeo EarGlove __
The official licensee of wetsuit maker Body Glove, GoNeo shows its roots with a snug-fitting neoprene-like foam sleeve covering the mike boom and ear hook. Like the M130 and the EarSet, EarGlove comes in a range of models for a variety of phones, and low-cost adapters will make the standard 2.5-mm plug model fit anything. EarGlove's mike doesn't cancel noise, but the headset's snazzy colors (yellow, black, blue, or purple) mean you'll stand out for more than waving your arms in public.

__EarGlove: $24.95. GoNeo: (888) 383 7999, www.goneo.com. __

BODY FAT ANALYZERS

__First Class: __
__Health o meter Body Comp Scale __
Face it: It's not a weight problem, it's a fat problem. Still, the Body Comp measures both, and tracking your numbers can get as addictive as, well, eating. Step up, enter your height, sex, and activity level, then grip the hand contacts. The device sends a tiny electric current through your body to measure resistance, then displays your weight along with estimated fat ratio and body water percentage. The included inkjet printer produces a report that compares your stats with the norm and gives you target ranges.

__Health o meter Body Comp Scale: $3,500. Sunbeam: +1 (708) 598 9100, www.sunbeam.com. __

__Business Class: __
__Tanita TBF-551 Body Fat Monitor/Scale __
Built like a regular bathroom scale, Tanita's TBF-551 sends its fat-ferreting electricity through your bare feet via two shiny electrode footpads. Then your weight and body fat ratio (but not your body water ratio) take turns flashing on the display. By punching in your height, sex, and body type (Athlete, Adult, or Child), you can program the scale for up to four users - tap your button before you step on, and the scale will know it's you.

__TBF-551 Body Fat Monitor/Scale: $139.99. Tanita Corporation of America: (800) 826 4878, www.tanita.com. __

__Coach: __
__Omron Body Logic HBF-301 __
Omron's Body Logic won't measure your weight: You have to punch that in before you begin. But with this loss in scale-ability comes a gain in portability - the 20.8-ounce device is perfect for a foie gras tour of the Dordogne. Like the Body Comp, it sends current through twin handholds; using older estimation methods, the HBF-301 may be less accurate in absolute terms, but it's consistent, which makes it great for tracking when the goose is getting fat.

__Body Logic HBF-301: $99. Omron Healthcare: (877) 216 1333, +1 (847) 680 6200, www.omronhealthcare.com. __

METAL DETECTORS

__First Class: __
__Garrett GTI 2500 __
Like other metal detectors, Garrett's GTI 2500 senses perturbations in an electromagnetic field. But thanks to a DSP chip and redesigned deep-imaging search coil, this infinitely flexible hunter-gatherer also gives you a visual read on target size and depth - to help you distinguish soda cans from cannonballs before you start to dig. Information reads out on the backlit screen, or comes to you verbally via "Treasure Talk" voice notification, breaking into your prolonged, wordless solitude.

__GTI 2500: $1,099.95. Garrett: (800) 527 4011, www.garrett.com. __

__Business Class: __
__Fisher CZ5 Quicksilver __
The water-resistant CZ5 beats all comers when it comes to beachcombing - the Quicksilver's wet-sand mode lets you work the edges of the surf without getting false signals triggered by salt minerals. Depth and probable target identification - by metal, from aluminum to zinc - appear on the metered display, and the audio boost amps up weak signals from booty buried down deep. Quicksilver is easy for beginners to use, yet offers enough flexibility for treasure-crazed snowbirds and other hardcore scavengers.

__CZ5 Quicksilver: $849.95. Fisher Research Laboratory: +1 (209) 826 3292, www.fisherlab.com. __

__Coach: __
__Tesoro Bandido II µMax __
Like metal detectors of yore, Tesoro's Bandido relies solely on tone and a sensitive ear. But the all-analog µMax trumps the old guard with its All Metal or Discriminate operating modes; while any blip on a battlefield may be worth pursuing, you'll likely want to tune out the pop tops on the seashore. The manually adjustable ground balance means better sensitivity in iron-rich soils, keeping you hot on the scent of that Civil War relic.

__Bandido II µMax: $469. Tesoro Electronics: (800) 528 3352, +1 (520) 771 2646, www.tesoro.com. __