By Peter Wolchak

Creative Travelsound Notebook 500 And Live! Ultra Web cam For Notebooks

Notebooks do many things well, but playing music is not one of them, so augment that little computer speaker with this clip-on unit from Creative. The two-speaker set attaches to a portable’s monitor and draws power from the USB port or from batteries, and can also be plugged in. The sound is still not quite living-room-stereo, but it’s not notebook-speaker either.

Also from Creative is its ultra WebCam, an improved version of the company’s earlier offerings. It’s a stylish little unit that also clips to a notebook’s monitor and it captures images that are sharper than those of many competitors. The camera also has a fairly wide field of vision, so more than one person can be in the frame during a video conference.

The speakers go for approximately $110, the WebCam for $129.99.