For those immune to the charms of the latest gadgets, they are expensive, infuriating and fragile devices that are destined to be lost or stolen or end up languishing in the back of a drawer.

But for gadget-lovers there is nothing better than getting their hands on a covetable new toy that promises to make life easier or more fun.

Readers of Stuff magazine, who are more likely to fall into the second category, are voting for their favourite gadget of the last 12 months.

Here’s the shortlist: Apple’s iPhone, Sony’s PlayStation 3, Nintendo’s Wii Fit, Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Asus Eee PC and the B&W Zeppelin.

Nominees in the other categories include the BlackBerry Bold, Nokia N96, Creative Zen X-Fi and TomTom GO 730.

Do you constantly upgrade your mobile/iPod/television in a quest for the latest features? Or are you quite happy still using your basic phone and full-size TV?

What was your favourite gadget of the last year and why do you love it so much?

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 The first reviews of Google’s new web browser, Chrome, praise its sleek looks and superfast downloads, but can’t agree on whether it is good enough to persuade people to switch from Explorer or Firefox.

Mike Harvey, of the Times, gives it three out of five stars and says it should spark a “browser war” on the Internet.

“It is already an improvement on Internet Explorer, but does not go much beyond the functionality of Firefox,” he writes.

Chrome has an “intuitive and friendly” system of tabs to allow users to switch between web pages or email, he says. The browser also loads pages “very swiftly”.

The Guardian’s technology writer Jack Schofield says it makes Explorer look dated.

“While it’s a bit like driving a Noddy car, I quite like the look-and-feel that Google has borrowed from Office 2007,” he writes in an early blog.

One major gripe, however, is the location of the icon that allows you to manipulate the menu bar that gives you access to your favourites, he adds.

The Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg has been using the new browser for over a week.

His verdict: “Chrome is a smart, innovative browser that, in many common scenarios, will make using the Web faster, easier and less frustrating.”

The Los Angeles Times likens Chrome to a “shiny new sports car”, saying: “It’s streamlined, has some great new features and is very, very fast.

“If Explorer and Firefox are the Toyotas of browsers, Chrome is the sporty Mini Cooper,” write David Colker and Michelle Maltais.

But not everyone is sure that the company best known for its search engine has done enough to convince people to switch from the market leader, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

The San Francisco Chronicle’s Verne Kopytoff says the browser could have been better.

Downloads speeds are fast, but some graphics and pictures load in the wrong place, he says.

Privacy features designed to protect your browsing history fall short of those offered on Explorer, he adds.

“What I discovered was a product that has some clear advantages over Microsoft’s, but also some shortcomings that, overall, hardly make it a killer - at least today,” he writes.

Have you tried using Chome? What are your first impressions? If not, are you tempted to make the switch to Google’s new baby?