It is very easy to get distracted while driving. Whether it be the rowdy kids in the backseat or the cell phone in your hand, it’s too easy to take your eyes off the road, if only for a moment. In that moment, a split second decision can mean the difference between an avoided accident and possibly catastrophic results.

GPS portable navigation devices are certainly handy, because you can maps of just about anywhere in the country and they are able to provide you with the best possible route to your destination. Unfortunately, in order to enter the address of your destination, you inevitably take your eyes off the road to focus on the GPS display. It’s not good to be staring at that LCD instead of the traffic in front, behind, and beside you.

The recently announced Garmin nuvi 860 addresses this very issue, because in addition to providing you with voiced directions, it is also able to understand your voice commands. Navigate through the menu by simply speaking to your portable GPS navigator. According to Garmin, the nuvi 860 is the first with full voice-activated menu navigation. This way, you can just tell the GPS that you need to find the closest gas station rather than fumbling through the touchscreen interface (which also works).

You’ve already got a handsfree Bluetooth speaker for your cell phone. Getting a handsfree GPS is the next natural step.

While Canadians may have been really excited about getting the Apple iPhone 3G on July 11, many have been turned off by the pricey voice and data plans. For those of you who are still interested in getting a hot new touchscreen cell phone but will live with nothing less than unlimited data, it turns out that you can may want to take a look at what Telus and Bell will counter the pending arrival of the iPhone with Rogers Wireless.

Set to be available through both Telus Mobility and Bell Mobility is the Samsung Instinct, a full face touchscreen cell phone that launched a short while ago in the United States through Sprint. No, it is not made by Apple and it does not have multitouch, but the Instinct does bring quite a bit to the table. The 3G side of things is taken care of through EVDO Rev.A, a technology that is about the same speed as the HSDPA network offered by Rogers and AT&T.

Other features include a 3.1-inch touchscreen with vibration feedback, 2.0 megapixel camera with video recording, music player, web browser, stereo Bluetooth, GPS, Windows Live, and more. The Samsung Instinct won Best in Show at CTIA Wireless 2008, got rated as Best Cell Phone by CNET, and was awarded Most Innovative Product at CTIA Wireless 2008 by Laptop Magazine. Best of all, unlimited data on the Instinct is just $10 a month through Bell.

It may not be quite the same as having an iPhone, but the Instinct could prove to a suitable alternative. More information can be found through Bell and Telus.

A lot of people have July 11th marked on their calendars, because that’s the date when the new Apple iPhone 3G will make its debut in Canada. The form factor is much the same as the first iPhone, but the new model does come with a few significant upgrades. Even so, it may or may not be suitable for business use. Some of us just can’t live without a physical QWERTY keyboard.

Well, it just so happens that another major mobile phone is getting released around the same time. The dates are still a little murky at this point, but we fully expect the BlackBerry Bold (also known as the BlackBerry 9000) to launch before the end of the summer. With the Bold, Research in Motion — the Canadian company that designs and manufactures BlackBerry devices — is combining enterprise-level functionality with the attractiveness of a consumer-level phone. There’s no denying it: the Bold the looks great!

Some of the key features that you will find on the BlackBerry Bold 9000 include quad-band GSM, tri-band HSDPA (3G), integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, trackball navigation, full QWERTY keyboard, HVGA color display, microSD memory expansion, 2 megapixel camera, GPS, media player, and all the BlackBerry smartphone applications that you’ve come to expect from Research in Motion.

For more information, check out the official BlackBerry Bold webpage. The phone should be available through Rogers Wireless in Canada and AT&T in the United States soon.

In previous editions of Great Gadgets, we’ve covered everything from fantastic laptops to useful accessories. These are all meant to help you be a little more productive in some way, making your daily routine just a little easier. A new smartphone can help you stay connected to the office and a handy portable hard drive is a great way to back up your data.

Today, we’re taking a slightly different approach. Summer is definitely upon us and it can be pretty hard trying to stay cool during these hot summer months. You can try sipping on some iced tea or relaxing by the pool, but what do you do when you need to put on that monkey suit each day for work? For many offices, the standard attire would involve a necktie and this fashion accessory can make for quite the stuffy experience. That is, unless you get this USB Tie from Thanko Japan.

There is a fan built into the knot of the necktie and this fan is powered via a USB cable. It may not exactly be discrete, but it’s nice having that constant stream of cool air blowing toward you. There are two versions of the USB necktie. One costs about $30 and the other about $37. If there are any readers out there that understand Japanese, it would be great if you translate the difference between the two units for us.

If you send a lot of emails while away from the office, having a full QWERTY keyboard on your cell phone is an absolute must. You can get this mobile email fix from a myriad of different handhelds including the BlackBerry Curve and the Motorola Q9h. One company that many North Americans neglect when it comes to Windows Mobile smartphones is Asus. Yes, you may know Asus better for its Eee PC line of subnotebooks, but they’ve got smartphones too.

The Asus M930 smartphone is perhaps one of the best equipped to tackle the needs of mobile professionals. That’s because this business-minded device comes with both a standard numeric keypad and a full QWERTY keyboard. It opens up like a book. When in its closed position, you get the experience of a standard bar-style cell phone. Open it up and you get a secondary display and a full keyboard. This makes sending emails and text messages, as well as tracking tasks and appointments, a whole lot easier.

Other features include tri-band GSM/EDGE, HSDPA, Windows Mobile 6 Standard, integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, 2 megapixel camera, and memory expansion via the microSDHC slot.

Given the digital lifestyle that most of us lead these days, it can get pretty easy to acquire a wide assortment of consumer electronics. This applies both to our personal and business lives, because we literally surround ourselves with devices like MP3 player, cell phones, PDAs, and other digital equipment. Many of these devices come with internal batteries that can be charged over a USB connection.

What can you do when there isn’t a computer available? Seeing how some items, like the Apple iPod and certain smartphones, do not come with conventional wall chargers, you could find yourself out of luck if you’re not near a computer. This can be the case when you are traveling, in the car, or just out on the town. To address this very concern, Griffin has bundled together two of its popular products to create the PowerDuo Universal.

The first of the items in this package is the PowerBlock Dual AC Charger. This adapter plugs into a conventional wall outlet and then it translates that electricity into two powered USB ports. You can then use those ports to top up the battery on your Microsoft Zune or just about any other USB-powered device. If you’d like, you can even use these ports for something like a USB-powered fan, great for those hot summer days.

The second item included in the Griffin PowerDuo Universal is the PowerJolt Car Charger. This adapter functions in much the same way as the PowerBlock Dual, except it is meant for use in the car and it only has one USB port. Power is drawn from a car’s 12V outlet (also known as the cigarette jack) and then you can use the PowerJolt to charge your iPod or cell phone. Pretty handy.

The Griffin PowerDuo Universal retails for $35.