5 travel gifts

If all you remember from school is "Hola! Que tal?" then the Franklin 12-Language Global Translator is for you. It has more than 450,000 words and 12,000 phrases in 12 different languages. And if you're not quite sure how to pronounce the words it prints on the screen, it has more than 115,000 words in recorded human speech. It translates to and from Chinese (Mandarin), Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish, and has a currency converter, world clock, five games, and an MP3 player. ($199.99 at www.franklin.com/tga-490)

   - Philippa J. Chaplin

Do your own driving? The Roadside Assistant battery jump pack's sealed 18 amp-hour battery pumps 600 amps through heavy No. 4-gauge copper cables to bring a dead battery back to life. It also has a 260 psi air compressor to inflate tires; a built-in emergency light for late-night repairs; dual 12-volt DC sockets to power portable appliances, and a 400-watt AC power inverter that gives you two grounded sockets to run AC-powered devices. ($159.95 at www.herringtoncatalog.com/r148.html)   - P.J.C.

Just in time for the holiday wait - er, wish - list comes the Kindle Fire from Amazon Digital Services. The popular e-reader has grown up, added movies, apps, games and music, and uses Amazon's cloud-based Web browser for keeping up with the world. At half the price of the iPad, it promises to be a contender. ($199 at www.amazon.com)    - P.J.C.

It's a lap desk, it's an easel, it's a carryall. It's Crayola's Color Wonder Table Top Easel for tots, which is all three in one compact 13-by-10-inch package. Just unlatch and open the top of the lap desk and it forms a pyramid with the inside finger-paint tray - did we mention the desk/easel comes with six pots of finger-paints? The paints - in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple - show up in color only on special Color Wonder treated paper (a pad of the paper is included), so spills won't make a mess on any other surface. The flat drawing surface has two stay-put clips to hold paper in place, and there's storage space for your artist's creations. ($19.99; additional pad, $5.49; at www.crayolastore.com)    - Judi Dash

The Ballistic JetCart Carry On is designed to hold not only the clothes or gear you stash inside it, but also you. The wheeled bag has a fold-down seat built into its back so you can plop down for a rest whenever need be (weight limit is 300 pounds). The wide, sturdy, curved telescoping handle provides support for legs and back when you lean on it. The 22-by-12-by-8-inch zippered bag is loaded with internal pockets for stashing documents, electronics and accessories, and a change of clothes. Yet it weighs only 6.5 pounds, and fits under most airline seats or in the overhead compartment. Comes in red or black ballistic nylon. ($170 at www.walkinbag.com)    - J.D.