The Gadgets We Bought in 2011

The year 2011 saw tons of really great products, most of which I ended up buying for review here at YugaTech. I look back at 2011 and share the top gadgets we bought and reviewed this year. And, hopefully, you will also share what you’ve purchased too.

The biggest movers and shakers of 2011 are smartphones, followed by tablets and then laptops.

Apple iPad 2. Unlike the first iPad, Apple released the iPad 2 in the Philippines just a month after it made the announcement. This is probably the first one we bought and review here.

Macbook Air 11.6″. The MBA got a huge bump in specs with options for Core i5 and Core i7 processors making my one-year old Core 2 Duo MBA utterly obsolete. I bought it the very day it was made available locally.

LG Optimus 2X. The very first dual-core Android smartphone was the Optimus 2X and I spared no time to grab one, especially when LG was offering a promo discount of Php5k back then.

Asus Transformer. This is my first Android tablet and was fortunate enough to get a special media discount from Asus PH (paid for the tablet in full and got the dock for free).

HP TouchPad. Bought it from the US for $399PHP 23,416INR 33,815EUR 380CNY 2,904 thinking the $100PHP 5,869INR 8,475EUR 95CNY 728 discount was already worth it. The day after it arrived in Manila, the price went down to $99PHP 5,810INR 8,390EUR 94CNY 721.

Sony-Ericsson Xperia Arc. Bought this one in Hong Kong after being frustrated of not getting the Galaxy S2 unlocked in several stores I visited (it was this or the Samsung Infuse 4G).

Samsung Galaxy Note. I so loved this handset after reviewing it that I bought it (thru a banner ad deal with the supplier).

Smart Rocket Plug-It. At Php3,995USD 68INR 5,771EUR 65CNY 496, I think this was the least used device I’ve bought.

iPhone 4S. I didn’t really wanted to buy the iPhone 4S but an opportunity came so I got one for Php38k, with the review just in time for the local launch.

Canon Powershot S100. My S95 was great but I wanted to get the S100 and finally found one in KL the other week. Cost me just under Php19k after sweeping all the floors of the Low Yat Mall.

Olympus PEN E-P3. One of the few products I really liked after making the review and ended up buying afterwards. The distributor gave me a discount I could not resist.

Asus Zenbook UX21. Already made the pre-order since last month but it hasn’t arrived yet so it looks like it’s going to go to the 2012 bin.

And if you count the two other smartphones I lost and eventually paid for, I’ll have to include the Motorola Droid Razr and the Samsung Galaxy Nexus in the list.

That’s an average of 1 purchased device per month all totaling north of Php300k. I just realize I’m spending way too much on devices just to do the reviews here in YugaTech. Perhaps, I need to slow down and cut it by 50% in 2012.

Was 2011 a great year for you too? I reckon most people got the Galaxy S2 and their year is already complete.

Do share what gadgets you got this year.