We see a swag of product come through the PC Authority labs each year - including netbooks, cameras, phones and more.
For some lucky people, a tax return puts many of those items you've been gazing at longingly all year within reach. Maybe it's time to upgrade your old laptop, with a speedy and light netbook, or perhaps it's time to finally step up from a point and shoot camera to something that gives you more creative freedom.
Our list below includes our pick of the best tax-return buys - from gadgets to smartphones, to laptops and accessories.
Laptops and PCs
Netbook or laptop? How to make the decision
If you're wondering if a netbook is the perfect laptop for you, ask yourself this: will you want to work or play on your new laptop for hours at a time whilst viewing a screen 10 inches in size? With high-end netbooks creeping up to the $1000 mark - and in the case of Sony's Vaio P series, well beyond it - the bigger question is whether you should be buying a netbook at all.
HP EliteBook 6930p
Starting from the outside, the HP Elite-Book 6930p, like others in the EliteBook range, has a brushed aluminium finish and slim-line look that oozes class. It's solid and withstands force applied to the lid or chassis admirably. It meets MIL-STD 810F for ruggedness against dust or humidity.
HP HDX X16-1040
This laptop boasts a 16.4in screen with a native resolution of 1920 x 1080, which is better than those on either the Toshiba Qosmio or Sony VAIO. There's a Blu-ray reader, TV tuner, Altec Lansing speakers and Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics make sure that HD footage runs smoothly.
MSI X-Slim X340
MSI's laptops haven't traditionally tended to be the most stylish members of the portable pack, but the X340 sets the record straight. If it weren't for the glowing white MSI logo adorning the X340's lid, we might have been convinced that we were looking at a new version of Apple's MacBook Air.
HP Compaq CQ2000AN
The chassis is one of the most stylish efforts we've seen so far from a nettop: the glossy black finish and gently curving facade look far better than most. It's versatile too, with plenty of sockets and ports available: you get a pair of USB ports, a card reader and two audio jacks adorning the front of the machine.
Benq Joybook Lite U101
It weighs in at 1.3kg, compared to the 1.1kg of the EeePC 901, and it comes only with Windows XP - with the EeePC 901 you can choose between Windows XP or Linux. But given the increased usability and excellent battery life, the BenQ JoyBook comes out just ahead and is the best performing 10.2in netbook we've seen so far.
It's a system that we wouldn't be unhappy to take home and spend the weekend gaming on, and for that reason, as well as the great-value price, we're awarding it the A-list.
Cameras
Panasonic LUMIX DMC-G1
The 12.1 Megapixel LUMIX DMC-G1 aims to break the DSLR mold. For one thing, there's no mirror, the camera relying on an electronic viewfinder (with 100% field of vision). Full Live View is also standard. The end result is a camera smaller than some standard DSLRs. The LUMIX DMC-G1 weighs 385g, compared to 720g for the Canon 450D (our current A-List DSLR).
Nikon D700
Forget budget DSLR, this is for serious photography. Extravagant in almost every way, the D700 is superbly responsive and produces stunning images. It's overkill for those looking to upgrade from a compact digital to a DSLR, and even those upgrading from a low-end DSLR such as the Nikon D40 should ask themselves if they'd be better off with a mid-range model such as the Canon 40D or Nikon D300. But those who decide to splash out won't be disappointed.
Nikon D90
At the top of Nikon's consumer-level DSLR range, the enthusiast D80 has been due a replacement for a while now. Enter the D90, a camera that adds a raft of features while keeping the basic D80 design intact.
Canon EOS 450D
The 450D's superb sensor makes it the best choice if quality is your priority. It doesn't beat the Sony A200 for value, but for the best quality below $1500 the 450D has the edge.
Phones
Nokia E75 mobile offers A-list flair and functionality. This is a great-looking phone. The form factor is candy bar with the bonus of a horizontal sliding Qwerty keyboard - reminiscent of the HTC S7. Thankfully, Nokia has solved the issue of bulk that affects most similar slide-out keyboard phones: the E75 is a svelte 14.4mm thick, so it's very pocket-friendly.
HTC Touch Diamond2 / HTC TouchPro2
HTC yesterday announced three new Windows Mobile-based smartphones, and we got hands-on time with them. Two of the new phones are updates for existing phones - the HTC Touch Diamond2 brings a new design and better battery life to the iconic Diamond range, and the HTC TouchPro2 has a natty slide-out keyboard smartphone.
Nokia N97
While Apple sails into one million iPhone 3G S sales-territory, Nokia has been busily honing its line of do-it-all Internet phones, with interesting results. Nokia's new hero, the N97, is an impressive feature set including touchscreen and slide-out QWERTY keyboard, Exchange compatibility, 32GB of onboard storage, WiFi, and a large 3.5" touchscreen that makes this a solid contender as a portable video screen for the bus or train.
iPhone 3GS
With Australia's fastest 3G network, Telstra is also claiming the crown for the fastest iPhone 3GS. Telstra is billing its iPhone service as the fastest, with "twice the speed" of the previous iPhone on its NextG network. The iPhone 3GS comes with 7.2Mbps downlink capability, allowing iPhone 3GS users to download an MP3 audio track in around ten seconds, enjoy faster page loads when surfing the mobile net and stream content like YouTube clips with less buffering.
Accessories
Logitech G-19 keyboard
It's got an LED panel on the top, backlight colours, and enough functions to make WOW and Crysis players happy. An impressive gaming keyboard
ATI Radeon HD 4890
ATI hasn't been resting on its laurels. Instead, the AMD-owned firm has released the Radeon HD 4890, a card that promises to be even more powerful than our A List favourite, the HD 4870.
The Maxtor Blackarmor
The Maxtor Blackarmor has one thing that other USB hard drives don't - military grade data security in a very stylish package.
LG BD370 YouTube-enabled Blu-ray player
This player will handle pretty much anything you throw at. Firstly it's a respectable Blu-ray player, handling 24/50 frames per second playback, BD Live compatibility for playing extra content from the web and 7.1 channel audio decoding including DTS HD and Dolby True HD sound tracks. It also upscales DVDs to 1080p and plays audio CDs.
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