(Business 2.0) - R2 SCRUBS TOO

iRobot Scooba

Manual labor is for suckers: If iRobot's latest household droid works as promised, you'll never waste another Saturday scrubbing the floor. The diminutive Scooba--which holds 8 ounces of cleaning solution--will automatically sweep, scrub, and dry any 200-square-foot hard surface. Infrared sensors are designed to keep the handy robot on course. $400; www.irobot.com

SOLAR SACK

Eclipse Solar Gear Fusion Messenger Bag

Covered with lightweight photovoltaic cells, Eclipse's solar-powered shoulder bag should generate enough power (about 3.5 watts) to charge your iPod, PDA, or mobile phone. Just plug your gadget into the bag's charger, and as long as you stay in the sun, the electronics you carry inside will be fully juiced. $170; www.eclipsesolargear.com

NANO ON THE BRAIN

Macally mTune-N Cordless Headset

Macally headphones contain a special slot to hold your iPod Nano; together they're supposed to become a wire-free personal sound system. The mTune keeps the Nano's click wheel within easy reach, and it draws power from the music player, so there are no additional batteries required. $50; www.macally.com

EXTRA-CREDIT HOMEWORK

Dell Inspiron E1705

Here's a brainy laptop that could be an ideal addition to any home office, since it's made for both work and play. Dell says the new Inspiron, one of the first laptops built around Intel's new dual-core processors, will excel at multitasking. That'll make it easy to, say, render complex graphics while surfing the Web. But the built-in Nvidia videocard and advanced DVD drive mean the Inspiron should be equally good for displaying videogames or movies. $2,300; www.dell.com

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