A tiny stocking stuffer that packs a punch

If you've never heard of the term downstreaming, the Massively Mini Media Player from Tiger Electronics is a good introduction to that word. The idea is to simplify grown-up gadgets enough to make them easy for the under-12 crowd to use, but not so watered down that they're mere toys (a good idea for tech-challenged adults as well). In this case, Tiger has put the basics of the iPod video/MP3 player in a tiny case that comes in three pastel shades. It measures 1 inch by 2.5 inches and is half an inch thick, has a 1.1-inch color screen, and 128 MB of flash memory – just enough to stash an hour of video and two hours of music (roughly 1,200 songs). The video conversion PC software is so easy to install that any computer-literate child (or adult) can set it up and get started. All the content goes on the player, connected through the USB port, via drag and drop files. This is extremely easy to do. The dials are simple – a menu button in the middle, surrounded by basic controls: forward, back, stop, and pause. An added bonus: a record function that can be used to capture content from the onboard FM radio tuner. All in all, a nifty little stocking stuffer for young and old. Suggested price: $79.99 Grade: A–