In Brief

By Lev Grossman

HAUTE REMOTE If there is a king of the couch potatoes, the Sonica Voice Activated Universal Remote ($40) is his scepter. It controls up to four devices (TV, VCR, DVD player and stereo, for example), but you don't have to push any buttons. Just tell it to change the channel, and it will change the channel. It also has a built-in clock, a reading light and a voice recorder for storing toll-free numbers.

EARTH ANGEL Maybe Roma Downey really is watching over each and every one of us, but you will still feel a lot better with the Digital Angel strapped to your wrist. This device, which took best in show at last week's Internet Wireless World, has a sensor that monitors your vital signs--heart rate, blood pressure and so on--and a tiny satellite receiver that plots your exact location at all times. If anything goes awry, a transmitter alerts the medics and tells them where you are. And if you are really in trouble, it will page Roma.

WE'LL ALWAYS HAVE PARIS On Jan. 31, United Airlines posted on its website a surprisingly reasonable fare for a round-trip flight to Paris: $25. The airline pulled the offer--the result of a programming glitch--after 55 minutes, but not before 143 keen-eyed Web surfers saw fit to take United up on it. After initially refusing to honor the bargain rate, United gave in last week and announced that it would issue the tickets. Bon voyage!

--By Lev Grossman