Sony Ericsson HBH-300: tech around your neck

Lately we’ve been testing Sony Ericsson's Akono HBH-300 Bluetooth headset. It's the least discreet of the company's headsets, with a long boom that puts the microphone halfway down your cheek. The position probably contributes to the clear audio, but it does make you feel like a telemarketer -- or one of the Borg, if you're science-fictionally inclined. At 28g it's also quite heavy, and after a few hours you can feel your head tilting to one side.

Sony Ericsson solves both problems by providing a lanyard so you can wear it round your neck. When a call comes in, you press the answer button, then hook it over your ear. Given that it looks like a high-tech take on an ancient fertility symbol, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to display the HBH-300 on your chest -- if you have space. Lately it seems as if every other gadget is supplied with a lanyard.

• Apple's iPod shuffle is the most recognisable MP3-player-on-a-string, but it certainly isn't alone. iriver's N10, Samsung's YP-T7 and Sony's NW-E100 series players can all be worn like jewellery.

• Nokia's Medallion I and Medallion II are modern takes on the traditional locket. Snap a picture of your loved one with your camera phone, then beam it into the pendant and fasten it round your neck. Added bonus: they can store up to eight images for the chronically unfaithful.

• Canon's IXUS i5 digital camera comes in four different colours to match your outfits. It’s sold with a wrist strap, but the brochure shows it standing on its end or dangling like a pendant, hinting that its proper place is on your chest.

While the Japanese have never been shy about showing off their latest, smallest, cutest phones and cameras, the British have traditionally been reticent about revealing their gadgets. Things are changing, though, and come June or July -- or whenever we finally shed our winter overcoats -- we're expecting to see a lot of tech around British necks. -ML