My pick for the best technology currently available

Editors note:  Of course, I'm going to exempt smartphones (my current favorite is the iPhone 3G) because these are necessary to 21st century living.

Next to the smartphone, my vote for best technology currently available is the Digital Video Recorder (DVR). A DVR replaces the venerable VHS recorder for recording television programming. DVR's use hard drives to record the programming digitally and require about a tenth of the knowledge necessary to program a VCR. The hard drives can record from 40 HD hours to almost 200 hours of programming. With DVR's, there is never a tape to change or rewind, and the quality of the recording is flawless no matter how many times you watch it.

Another plus with DVR's is their advanced fast forward feature. All DVR's have a skip button on the remote that skips 30-60 seconds in one push. Does that time period sound familiar? Yes, it's the length of a commercial. When watching a sitcom, most commercial breaks last about 3 to 4 minutes...a few quick presses of the DVR's skip button and you are watching the next segment. A 30 minute program can be finished in about 19 minutes...I'll take 11 minutes wherever I can get them. And a one hour crime drama can be over in about 40 minutes!

Sorry Oprah and Dr. Phil fans, daytime talk shows cannot be recorded with a DVR.*

Right now my family is recording nearly 18 hours of Olympic programming every day, but we can watch all that in about 4 hours or so by using the variable speed of the DVR's fast forward feature. Very helpful to skip through boring soccer matches or 50 KM race walking at 300X speed. But because the recordings are digital, you can actually keep track of the action and score as the speed is increased and pause for the last 2 minutes of the Poland vs. Latvia women's water polo match.

The first commercially successful DVR was the TiVo. TiVo actually became the word associated with this technology used often as a verb like Google is as well. One might hear the phrase, "Did you TiVo the game last night?" at a water cooler or coffee shop. Today, DVR's are built into the set-top boxes of all major cable companies and satellite companies.

Do you currently own a DVR or have owned one? If so, leave a comment below with your opinions about DVR's or what you think the best current technology available is in your world.

 *Just kidding daytime talk show fans.

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