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Looking for gift ideas for that special audiophile in your life? Here are some, priced from affordable to crazy expensive. Let's get started!

"Miles! Live at Montreux - The Definitive Miles Davis at Montreux Collection, 1973-1991" This historically important 10-DVD set ($150) captures all of Miles Davis' performances at the Montreux Jazz Festival between 1973 and 1991. The final concert features Davis paying tribute to his collaborator and close friend Gil Evans, who died in 1988. The audio and video quality of the collection varies, but most of it is surprisingly good.

Audio Technica ATH M50 headphones These headphones are nearly impossible to fault; they're extremely comfortable, great-sounding, ruggedly built, and fairly priced. The ATH M50 ($199) is a closed-back design and provides nearly as much isolation from external noise as noise-canceling headphones, but sounds better than any NC headphones I've heard to date.… Read more

The year gone by saw Twitter become the medium where the message was, sometimes, "Oh, Lordy. I shouldn't have done that."

Some would divide Twitter's history into two distinct periods: before Anthony's Weiner's penis and after.

Yet who are we to cast stones at Twitterati when we have occasionally betwitted the social network ourselves? So please let me share my own encounter with a celebrity who seemed to reveal a lot more about his sensitivities than one might have imagined he would.

Here's what happened.

I was walking up New York's Sixth … Read more

The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) today named its Top Safety Picks--115 vehicles in all. The list includes 15 vehicles from Toyota, Lexus, and Scion, 14 vehicles from General Motors, and 13 each from Volkswagen and Audi.

The winners' circle includes 18 new vehicles for 2012, and 97 models that qualified for the 2011 award carry over to 2012.

"For the second year running, a record number of models qualify," IIHS President Adrian Lund said in a press release. "It's tough to win, and we commend auto manufacturers for making safety a top priority.&… Read more

Oh, dear. As much as I love presenting my picks for the 10 best games of the year, there's also a certain morbid joy in divulging the year's worst games and trends.

Just like the film industry, a lot of titles get released in a single calendar year. There's a few winners, a whole lot of stuff that falls somewhere in the middle, and a select few that stand out as the worst of the worst.

So sit back, relax, and be proud you didn't buy any of these truly awful games. And if you did, well, I'm sorry. … Read more

It's that time of the year again: a time to look back at 2011 for its gaming prowess, to pay tribute to those elite pieces of electronic interactive entertainment that reside in a league all by themselves.

Just like last year, 2011 treated us to a few new franchises, but ultimately the sequels once again hogged the spotlight. While 2010 stumbled toward the end of the year, 2011 went out with an absolute bang, seeing nearly a dozen blockbuster titles hit store shelves within just a few weeks.

To see my list, check out the slideshow, or click through.… Read more

Audio gifts are always a great idea for anyone who likes music or home theater. Here's a quick round up of affordable goodies, priced from $100 or less!

Logitech Mini Boombox First thing, the "Boombox" name might be a little misleading; this tiny thing can't boom, but the Logitech Mini Boombox does sound better than I could have imagined for its size, and price, $100. I'm not of fan micro speakers, but this one ain't bad.

The Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder The Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder ($100) is exactly what … Read more

The wireless router is arguably the most important piece of the networking setup at your home or your office.

It's the central gateway that connects to the Internet, then shares that connection with all of the devices connected to it, via a network cable or Wi-Fi signal. Other services depend on the router, as well, such as file sharing, voice over IP, remote access, and VPN.

A router generally has to be on and functioning 24-7. There are thousands, if not millions, of data packages going through it every day, and you expect it to work without any hiccups. Ironically, it's also the device that most people pay the least attention to. In fact, the only time it's noticed at all is when it's not working right.

That said, it's very important to pick a router that's not just fast and feature-rich, but also reliable. Following is the list of the top five wireless routers I've reviewed this year that fit that description.… Read more

The Apple TV might still be a hobby, but it's the king of the set-top box market, researcher Strategy Analytics says.

By the end of the year, worldwide set-top box sales are expected to hit nearly 12 million units, the research firm said yesterday. Apple is expected to sell about 4 million Apple TV units this year, giving it 32 percent market share and the lead against countless other products vying for control in that space, including Roku's line of devices.

Apple launched its latest Apple TV last year. The device allows users to stream movies, television shows, … Read more

At some point you've probably heard about AirPlay, a wireless streaming feature found on your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and your Mac.

It was first announced in 2010, but with the arrival of iOS 4.3 (and now iOS 5), its features have been enhanced, and more third-party consumer electronics manufacturers are finally adding it to their products, though prices remain elevated. … Read more