Innovations From SanDisk, Palm and Audiovox Should Impact Their Bottom Line (SNDK, PALM, VOXX)

Apple's iPod tumbled over a tipping point and became the hottest consumer electronics device for the past decade by combining two key elements: (1) fantastic design and (2) functionality that truly helps the user accomplish something in a more efficient manner. Even a small new function, if it aids usability, can trigger a large wave of consumer interest and sales. And from a branding perspective, the smarter idea differentiates the company from its competitors in a powerful manner.

In today's New York Times, ever-insightful tech columnist David Pogue highlights the 10 Greatest Gadget Ideas of the Year. Among them are three innovative devices that are so good, they could carry significant revenue gain and stock price implications for these companies through 2006:

● SanDisk (SNDK) Ultra II SD Plus "After taking a few digital photos, the next step, for most people, is getting them onto the computer. That usually involves a USB cable, which is one more thing to carry and avoid misplacing.

"SanDisk's better idea is to take the memory card out of the camera and stick it directly into your computer's U.S.B. port. That's possible with the SanDisk Ultra II SD Plus card. It looks just like any other SD memory card, except that it folds on tiny hinges. When you fold it back on itself, you reveal a set of metal contacts that slide directly into the U.S.B. jack of your Mac or PC. The computer sees the card as an external drive, and you can download the photos as you always do - except that you've eliminated the need to carry around a cable."

● Palm (PALM) Treo 700W "Voice mail is a delightful invention. But trying to remember which keys to press - for replay, skip, delete and so on - is not so delightful, especially if you have more than one voice mail system to learn. Thanks to Palm, then, for adding VCR-style buttons on the touch screen of its coming Treo 700W cellphone. You just tap Skip, Play, Delete, or whatever. The phone remembers which touch tones to play so you don't have to."

● Audiovox (VOXX) Shuttle DVD player "If you tallied up the amount of money you've spent on L.C.D. screens, you'd probably go white-haired in horror. One on your laptop, one on your digital camera, plus screens on your Game Boy, camcorder, portable DVD player, car dashboard and so on.

"Audiovox has taken a small step toward reducing that redundancy with its Shuttle DVD player. It's a portable, battery-powered DVD player (available in three screen sizes) that hangs from the driver's-side headrest, for the benefit of the young audience in the back seat of the car. But the beauty of the Shuttle is that you can also buy docking stations for it: a car-ceiling mount, for a more permanent and central position; an under-cabinet mount, complete with AM-FM radio, for the kitchen; a cable-ready tabletop stand, with stereo speakers, for the home; and so on. The player and screen move with you from place to place, so your investment isn't sitting wasted every time you leave the minivan. "