Ask Deidre - Flash Harry

Deidre says...

Dear Flash Harry,

Accessorise, Accessorise! There are a variety of fun and funky ways to pep up your PDA life. First on a serious note, invest in some screen protectors. These are leaves of clear plastic that smooth on over your PDA screen. They cost £10-£15 for a set of 12. Each one is supposed to last a month, but I find that they last several months at a time. If your screen gets damaged you can pretty much kiss your PDA goodbye, so this is a worthwhile investment. You can buy own-brand ones on the high street, or order them from www.Belkin.com and other online sources.

The same can be said for cases. Choose plastic, sleek metal, or (my personal favourite) leather. They not only prevent damage from drops and spills, but some clip onto your belt, have pockets for cards etc, or just look darned sexy.

For attention grabbing, get a keyboard. You can get fabric ones that double as a PDA case, but the best by far are the foldaway design. Imagine the gasps as you whip out a black cassette no bigger than your PDA, then with a clunk-click produce a full size keyboard. Clip on your PDA and you have a laptop! You can buy them direct from your PDA manufacturer, or from www.Targus.co.uk. They range in price from £25-£100 or so.

Still not enough? Then jazz up your memory with cards and memory sticks. For ultimate posing clip on a digital camera, Global Positioning System (GPS), or Bluetooth. That way when you are late for work you can take a picture of the traffic jam, find out exactly how far you still have to go to get to the office, and email the lot to your boss as proof that you did not oversleep again.