Once seen as a powerful application for professionals, videoconferencing is now within reach of the majority of computer users thanks to the widespread popularity of USB webcams. Our Product Survey looks at which will really help bring you closer to your contacts ...

Using a multimedia hard drive is supposed to be easy: fill it up with music, movies and photos, plug it into your TV, sit back, relax and enjoy the show. But with so many models available now, it's hard to know which is the best for you: do you really need HD? And what about connecting to your home network?

Ditching the keyboard supplied by your computer manufacturer and replacing it with a new model is hardly essential, but it's certainly enjoyable. Many of today's latest models ship with a wireless mouse, but we've found a lot of fluctuations in quality in these supposedly basic products.

All-in-one, or multifunction printers, are just that: they combine inkjet printing with a built-in scanner to offer color copying, and, increasingly, other features too. With a starting price of just 39 euros, they're a tempting offer for all sorts of users and are no longer relegated to their traditional status as home-office workhorses.

You may not have noticed but you spend a lot of time with a mouse in your hand. A high quality model produces less strain, has gains in precision and reactivity as well as automating the most common tasks. In this arena, the competition between Logitech, Microsoft and the others is ferocious. The latest innovations include a touch sensitive control and a scroll wheel that can adjusted to different settings...

More compatible than joysticks and much easier to handle, gamepads are the ideal interface for sports simulations, first person shooters and all sorts of other PC games, especially for converts from the world of console gaming.