NEW YORK (Money Magazine) - Still bundling up with a bulky parka? Get hip to the latest in winter-apparel technology: soft shells. They're deceptively light, about the weight of a sweatshirt, and their construction (of fleece and a tightly woven, stretchable nylon) keeps you warm even at 32 degrees farenheit and breathes freely enough to prevent you from sweating inside all that insulation. That's right: No more doffing your coat when running into the supermarket.

Arc'teryx Gamma SV

For unmatched quality and breath ability, the reigning soft-shell champ is the Arc'teryx Gamma SV Jacket (pictured; $250 at Altrec.com). For extra protection from the elements, try the new Mountain Hardwear Synchro ($210 at REI.com), which adds a layer of water-resistant laminate to shield you from rain and snow.

As more consumers upgrade from VCRs to DVD recorders, prices are dropping like box office receipts for Gigli. A decent DVD recorder can now be had for less than $300, and chances are that whatever you've recorded on one player will also now play on other machines -- even on your computer.

Low end -- The CyberHome CH-DVR 1500 lists for $350 but was selling for less than $300 on Walmart.com in mid-December. This is what to buy if you're simply looking to record shows or home movies that you'll be playing on the same unit, and aren't giving copies of your DVDs to people with players that don't read the machine's +Ror +RW recording formats.

Mid-range -- The Pioneer DVR-310-S has a $599 list price, although it can be found for less than $500 at Crutchfield.com and Goodguys.com. It uses the -R and -RW formats, which allow for extensive editing of a disk's contents and offer the broadest compatibility with other DVD players. Use the "chase play back" feature to watch a program from the beginning while the rest is still being recorded.

High-end -- The Panasonic DMR-E100H ($1,200 list, $875 at Amazon.com)is the right fix for the digital media junkie. Its 120-gigabytehard drive can hold up to 160 hours of video, so you can store and edit plenty of footage before burning it onto a DVD. Input slots for digital camcorders, digital still-camera cards and PC cards let you mix and edit images like the hottest Hollywood auteur.

As an entry-level digital camera, it's got some drawbacks. In an age of megapixels, it's decidedly low-res. You can't actually focus it. It drains power from its batteries even when it's turned off. And if you can't get to your PC before the battery goes poof, well, so will those priceless vacation snaps.

Yet the Stylecam Blink II has won a fervent following among some photographers. Why? It's a cute little thing, about the size of a credit card. And its pictures have a certain low-fi charm: Cynics might dismiss them as blurry, but to Blink fans the vibrant colors blend as in an impressionist painting (thanks to the camera's compression software); the edges of objects have a weird, trippy intensity about them.

Not the ideal camera to capture, say, a wedding, but a lot of fun almost any other time. It's available at Amazon.com for just $35. For all the specs, go to sipixdigital.com.