Business Link

When times are tough, really tough decisions have to be made – such as what gadgets are “must haves,” and which are “nice to have”.

Business people will know there is only one way to make such a decision – look at the return on investment (ROI). This theory can be applied to gadgets – or toys for both girls and boys. When it comes to gadgets, theory and practice are often pretty distant.

This writer, for example, just bought a GPS because it was heavily discounted and would save both time and rental car mileage when in Gauteng and Cape Town on business. Plus the cost of map books. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it).

But, even if it was a little extravagant, the ROI principle was applied. GPS’s, as those who have felt a similar need will know, range widely in price. All do basically the same job, so the decision was to buy the cheapest known make with all the basics such as preloaded maps (not always a given), a touch screen and voice commands – plus a car charger.

Then there is the television set, which may well still be one of those old things which take up space, what with having a generator or something in the background frantically shooting out ions. You know, the one that was your pride and joy two years ago.

You are, naturally, concerned that come 2012 or thereabouts, it will not work because the country will have gone digital. And you are confused about the different systems on offer. Well, there’s your answer. Unless it’s broken, it is very difficult to justify replacing it with a nice plasma or LCD screen in terms of ROI.

The same goes for your cellphone. Tempting as an iPhone or Blackberry may be, ask yourself whether you are really going to listen to music on your cellphone.

For this writer, a phone should do just that – phone, with simple controls. If you need something portable that can write letters, answer e-mail, and ru spreadsheets, then get a laptop. They’ve gone really small and are about the cost of a fancy phone for those on the move.

There are those who run their lives and businesses from their mobile devices, and for them the ROI calculations probably justify the expense. And no, “makes me look cool” does not fit onto any spreadsheet.

Which brings us to that shiny new car, which is being discounted so
heavily. Right now, just about the only justification for trading in your trusty steed for a new (or preferably partly used) model would be if you are driving something fancy that has a motor plan which is about to expire.

For many individuals and smaller businesses, the risk of something very expensive going wrong is simply too high.

Manufacturers have done their own calculations, and have cut off points on the motor plans for the simple reason that they don’t want to carry the risk of expensive repairs.

So, what is a fellow (or lady) to do for fun? We can still play with gadgets, but they needn’t break the bank.

Whittling is a pastime largely ignored in South Africa. The gadget you need is a pocket knife (a cheap Okapi is fine) and a stack of alien wood sticks. Then you sit on your stoep, sip home-made beer (another nice hobby) and make birthday and Christmas presents.

For inspiration go to www.whittling.com.

Another useful gadget is a pair of binoculars – for watching birds while sitting on the stoep, sipping beer and whittling quietly. You probably have them already.

In fact, we could be sitting on a brilliant business idea – designing and manufacturing affordable, eco-friendly, fair trade, recyclable, must-have gadgets for the world.