A STRONG 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck off Japan's southern Bonin Islands today.

The US Geological Survey said no tsunami was expected.

The quake caused the swaying of large buildings in the centre of Tokyo.

There are no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

At this stage there is no danger of a tsunami.

ALONG WITH horrendous traffic, overeating and guilt, Christmas is a time for rekindling family ties and friendships and—above all—it’s a time for giving. We’ve put together a grab bag of gift ideas, ranging from quite practical to the extravagant:


For kids and the young at heart, we found a unique-looking set of automotive building blocks. Automoblox is a wooden construction toy that allows one to mix and match different automotive bodies, cockpits and wheels. The original set are about 250mm long and come with plastic figures, while the mini line cars are palm-sized. Designed by Patrick Calello, the toys have wooden car body sections with plastic interconnects, polycarbonate wheels and screens and rubber tires. With names like the C9 Sports Coupe, T9 Pickup Truck and S9 Sedan, the vehicles follow a clean retro-futuristic design theme.

It’s a good way to teach young kids fine motor skills and demonstrate how cars are assembled. (Of course, a better way would be to arrange a field trip at one of our local car plants, but that is another story.) For grownups, it’s a good way to relieve stress after a hard day at the office. The mini vehicles are priced from P600 and up, with a boxed set of three at around P1100. Available at Powerbooks.

Reading up on cars is always an excellent way to spend some leisure or bathroom time, both of which should be plentiful during the holidays. There’s the excellent Car Design Yearbook series by Stephen Newbury. Made for the armchair Randy Rodriguez in all of us, Car Design Yearbook compiles all the production and concept cars released that year. (Mr. Rodriguez is the Filipino designer of the Nissan 370Z.) Plenty of photos are coupled with the fascinating stories behind individual models as well as automotive design trends.

For rabid motorsports fans, you can’t do much better than giving them a (very heavy) copy of Ferrari Formula One or McLaren Formula One. Rainer Schlegelmilch is the man behind the lens, and no one has captured the unforgettable spectacle of the sport, and the quiet moments when drivers think that no one’s looking, as well as he has. For non-Ferrari and McLaren fans, Mr. Schlegelmilch has also published the amazing Grand Prix de Monaco and several roadcar brand histories. Car Design Yearbook and the Schlegelmilch books are available at National Bookstore, from P500 and up.

Actually, one gift can easily trump an F1 book, and that’s a trip to one of the 2011 races. 2010 has been one of the most suspenseful seasons in recent memory, but indications are 2011 will be even better, with stronger Mercedes and McLaren teams. The Australian Grand Prix (March 27) is closer than it seems. Red Rock Travel has packages starting at USD668 for the Malaysian GP to USD1,860 for Melbourne. Visit www.redrocktravel.net

For those who want to give something practical, as well as obsessive owners who want to consider their car a worthy recipient, Bosch has a multitude of products to improve performance, safety and convenience. From long-life platinum spark plugs to quality headlamp bulbs which maintain their performance, Bosch has the right product for nearly all car models. Horn-y drivers may appreciate a set of Bosch Europa Horns, which reportedly emit a strong and clear tone for safety. Available at various Bosch dealers around the country.

Motoring-branded watches (e.g., Breitling for Bentley) may be a mixed bag where prestige and ultimate value is concerned, but watches with a strong relationship to motoring or racing can be among the ultimate gifts. One of the most desirable is new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked, featuring a skeletonized movement. A certain Michael Schumacher, who recently changed allegiances from Omega, certainly agrees. Prices will begin at around USD30,000. Available from Lucerne.

Speaking of giving, Christmas is an occasion for giving some thought to the less fortunate. Time is certainly the best gift; otherwise, you can surely find some charities or charitable friends who will gladly accept your donations. Help given to those in need are the gifts that will last beyond the holidays.

It is never too early to start thinking about setting a budget for Christmas shopping. As much as we would like to be able to purchase anything we want for our friends and relatives, it is an unfortunate reality, that many of us have to budget carefully to be able to purchase Christmas gifts for all of our friends and relatives during the holiday season. With this in mind it is very important to set a budget for Christmas shopping and to try to really stick to that budget.


Some people take an interesting approach to setting a budget for Christmas shopping by waiting until they are ready to start shopping to set the actual budget. These individuals usually do this because they are saving specifically for the purpose of Christmas shopping. Whether they open up a bank account specifically for Christmas shopping, set aside money for this purpose in an envelop each week or plan on using a percentage of their income from the month of November for Christmas shopping it is important to set a budget and determine a plan for purchasing all of your Christmas gifts without exceeding this budget.

Other people take a different approach to setting a budget for Christmas shopping by shopping throughout the year and incorporating their spending for Christmas presents into their monthly budgets. These individuals may allot a portion of their monthly income to gift giving and either purchase the gifts on a monthly basis or simply set aside the money for a Christmas shopping spree at a later date. Those who spread out the Christmas shopping by doing a little bit of shopping each month not only keep their budget in control but also eliminate a great deal of the stress which often accompanies last minute Christmas shopping.

Still others take a more interesting approach to setting a budget for Christmas shopping. Those who typically receive a financial bonus at work around Christmas time may base their budget on the amount of money they are awarded in this bonus. This strategy may work out well for some as it does not allow them to alter their normal monthly spending strategy because these bonuses are typically not considered in the regular monthly budgeting. However, unless these bonuses are guaranteed annually, there is some risk involved in this strategy. Often annual bonuses are awarded based on criteria such as the company’s earnings and the individual employee’s contributions to the success of the company. The company may not enjoy financial success or the contributions of the employee may not be highly valued and therefore there may be either no bonus or a bonus much lower than expected. When this happens, those who count on bonuses for Christmas shopping may find themselves in a difficult situation.

Budgeting for Christmas shopping is particularly important for those who plan to use credit cards to make their purchases. In the case of credit card purchases it might be worthwhile to spread the Christmas shopping out over the entire year and repay the debts associated with the shopping monthly. This will help to prevent carrying a balance and being charged interest on the balance each month. However, if it is necessary to do all of the Christmas shopping at one time, it is wise to save up during the year for these purchases. Before you begin shopping, evaluate the amount of money you have saved and set a budget for your Christmas shopping. This way even though you are using a credit card and will receive a large bill the following month, you should have enough money to repay the bill in its entirety and avoid paying interest on the debt.

Even those with the best of intentions may find themselves going over their budget when Christmas shopping. When this happens it is important to keep things in perspective and avoid going too far over budget. You may spend too much on one or two people on your Christmas list but you can recover from this by purchasing less expensive gifts than planned for a few other people to compensate.

“He’s making a list, he’s checking it twice.” This may be a line from one of the most recognized Christmas carol. Almost everyone who celebrates Christmas knows all about Santa’s good list as well as his naughty list and most people do their best to avoid being placed on Santa’s naughty list. While the concept of Santa’s good list and naughty list is a fun way to convince children to be on their best behavior during the Christmas season, the concept of a list should one that all Christmas shoppers adhere to while they are doing their Christmas shopping. In fact Christmas shopping should be filled with all sorts of lists. You can create lists of everyone you plan to give gifts to this year, lists of potential gift ideas and even lists of the actual gifts you select. All of this list making may sound tedious but this article will explain how all of these lists can be very helpful.


Making a list of everyone you plan to give a Christmas gift to should be the first step in any Christmas shopping expedition. This list is so important because it gives you a handy reference to all the people you should keep in mind while you are shopping and also gives you an indication of the total number of people on your Christmas list. Knowing how many people are on your list is important for setting a budget. Consider how much money you have to spend and divide this amount by the number of people on your list and this will give you an idea of how much you can spend on each person on your Christmas list.

After you make this list and set your budget, it is a good idea to make another list of potential gift ideas for each person on your Christmas gift list. It is a good idea to brainstorm and try to come up with a few good gift ideas for each person on your list. This is helpful because when you are out Christmas shopping you know where to start your search and will have a few choices if you are having difficulty finding one of the items on your list of suggestions. You may find items which are not on your list but are perfect for the person you are shopping for and it is acceptable to buy these items. It is important to remember your list of suggestions is just a starting point and if you find a more appropriate gift that is not on your list it is a good idea to purchase this gift instead.

When Christmas shopping you should also keep a list of the items you actually purchase as Christmas gifts for those on your list. This is a good idea because if you have a particularly long list, you may have difficulty remembering all the items you already bought. Keeping an updated list of whom you have already purchased Christmas gifts for and what you bought them will minimize this problem. This list also comes in handy when it is time to start wrapping all the Christmas gifts you purchased. You may have a closet full of gifts but you may have trouble remembers which gift goes to which recipient. However, if you kept an accurate list as you made your purchases this should not be a problem.

iPhone 4 Technical Specifications
Size and weight1
Height:
4.5 inches (115.2 mm)
Width:
2.31 inches (58.6 mm)
Depth:
0.37 inch (9.3 mm)
Weight:
4.8 ounces (137 grams)

Cellular and wireless
UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz)
GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi (802.11n 2.4GHz only)
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR wireless technology
Location
Assisted GPS
Digital compass
Wi-Fi
Cellular
Power and battery2
Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery
Charging via USB to computer system or power adapter
Talk time:
Up to 7 hours on 3G
Up to 14 hours on 2G
Standby time: Up to 300 hours
Internet use:
Up to 6 hours on 3G
Up to 10 hours on Wi-Fi

Video playback: Up to 10 hours
Audio playback: Up to 40 hours
Mac system requirements
Mac computer with USB 2.0 port
Mac OS X v10.5.8 or later
iTunes 9.2 or later (free download from www.itunes.com/download)
iTunes Store account
Internet access
Windows system requirements
PC with USB 2.0 port
Windows 7; Windows Vista; or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 3 or later
iTunes 9.2 or later (free download from www.itunes.com/download)
iTunes Store account
Internet access
Environmental requirements
Operating temperature: 32° to 95° F
(0° to 35° C)
Nonoperating temperature: -4° to 113° F
(-20° to 45° C)
Relative humidity: 5% to 95% noncondensing
Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)

Capacity3
16GB or 32GB flash drive
Color
White or black

Display
Retina display
3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display
960-by-640-pixel resolution at 326 ppi
800:1 contrast ratio (typical)
500 cd/m2 max brightness (typical)
Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating on front and back
Support for display of multiple languages and characters simultaneously

Audio playback
Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz
Audio formats supported: AAC (8 to 320 Kbps), Protected AAC (from iTunes Store), HE-AAC, MP3 (8 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, 4, Audible Enhanced Audio, AAX, and AAX+), Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV
User-configurable maximum volume limit
TV and video
Video formats supported: H.264 video up to 720p, 30 frames per second, Main Profile level 3.1 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps per channel, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; Motion JPEG (M-JPEG) up to 35 Mbps, 1280 by 720 pixels, 30 frames per second, audio in ulaw, PCM stereo audio in .avi file format
Support for 1024 by 768 pixels with Dock Connector to VGA Adapter; 576p and 480p with Apple Component AV Cable; 576i and 480i with Apple Composite AV Cable (cables sold separately)

Nikon D90 DSLR Camera
SLR – 12.3 Megapixel – 5.8 x optical zoom with Zoom-Nikkor Zoom lens -18mm-200mm
EN-EL3e Rechargeable Battery
MH-18a Quick Charger
DK-5 Eyepiece Cap1 DK-2
Rubber Eyecup
UC-E4 USB Cable
EG-D2 Audio Video Cable
AN-DC1 Camera Strap
BM-10 LCD Monitor Cover
Body Cap
BS-1 Accessory Shoe Cover
Software Suite CD-ROM

The PlayStation Move 320 GB console bundle is the ultimate way for players to discover the extreme power, versatility and sensitivity of both the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Move motion controlled gaming system. The bundle consists of a slim designed PlayStation 3 console, with the massive 320 GB hard drive configuration, a DualShock 3 wireless controller, a PlayStation Eye camera peripheral, a PlayStation Move motion controller and a copy of the PlayStation Move game, Sports Champions. Together these components provide all the pieces necessary to fully experience the advanced motion controlled gaming only possible with the Move system, as well as the wider world of digital entertainment available with the PlayStation 3.


Features:

The PlayStation Move places you in the game through ultra-sensory precision.
PlayStation Move gaming is accessible and characters are easy to control
Challenge friends online, download games, movies, and more, with PlayStation Network
Watch high-definition movies via the included Blu-ray player

What you will receive if you win this auction:

PlayStation 3 320 GB system
DualShock 3 wireless controller
PlayStation Move motion controller (wireless)
PlayStation Eye camera
Sports Champions Blu-ray game
PlayStation Move game demos disc
AC power cord, AV cable, USB cable

Contents of package may vary from those pictured.