When it comes to kooky and often overpriced gadgets, Hammacher Schlemmer is the place you want to shop. These are the same fine folks that bought worthwhile gadgets like the snowball blaster and the clear canoe.

The company’s latest product is one that lets you spy on the driving habits of your spouse, kids or employees. The Driving Activity Reporter is a small device that looks like a flash drive with a magnet on the back of the case. The magnet holds the device to the undercarriage of a car, under the seat or in any other metal location.

I bet you have an old VCR lying around that you’ve been dying to dissect, but you just haven’t gotten to it yet. What are you waiting for? Do you not want another iPod Touch? Wait. Do you have marshmallows?

Or maybe it’s the thought of the little monster inside that has you scared. Just do it already. What’s the worst that could happen?

GPS devices are becoming very common for not only automotive use, but for those needing directions when walking or riding a bike. Garmin is one of the biggest names in GPS navigation and the company announced several new GPS models at CeBIT 2009 in Germany today.

The new models are in the nuvi 1200 and 1300 families and all offer thin profiles with the ability to give directions when driving or walking. One new feature of all the devices is optional CityXplorer maps that are available for select tourist destinations around the globe.

GPS devices re nice and many of the automotive GPS devices can be used when you are walking as well. The catch is that the typical automotive GPS device is far from rugged and one drop onto the driveway can kill the machine.

Getac has announced a new rugged GPS/PDA device that can withstand drops and more. The device is ruggedized to meet MIL-STD 810F and is IP54 certified. The machine offers 8-hour battery life and has a 3.5-inch touch-enabled screen with an option for a screen readable in full sunlight.

The Clarion MiND appears to be a GPS navigation device at heart, but expanded into a special type of mobile internet hybrid device packed with connectivity and applications bringing dangerously close to a mobile PC, but just not quite. The mobile device has many addition features such as an internet browser, YouTube viewer, media player, file storage, weather, news, maps and of course navigation but runs its own type of hard-wired OS that leaves little for customizations.

The MiND is basically a small mobile computer running on an 800 MHz Intel Atom processor with 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage (with an additional MicroSD card slot) and connects to the world via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and of course GPS. It also houses a couple of USB ports for connecting and transferring data, a headphone jack, speaker and docking port for an included dash mounting kit.

Enjoy this commercial, which should have been a Superbowl commercial by the way. Just don’t ask us to explain what goes on in the minds of advertising executives. I guess it could be considered a tad NSFW due to butt cheeks. I’m not sure this will sell many extra GPS devices for the company, but it is an entertaining 42 seconds. Not sure what else I could possibly say about it…

Has this ever happened to anyone? And if so, did you hear that popping sound?

Most of us will probably never need a GPS system outside of our car, but those who are more adventurous will find Lowrance’s new GPS units useful. The trio goes by the names of Outback, Safari, and Sierra.

Each features a 2.7-inch LCD and a microSD card slot, plus all of the usual outdoor-friendly GPS specs. Even a barometric altimeter and a 3D electronic compass on the more expensive models. The Sierra includes street maps using maps from NAVTEQ. They’ll be available in May for between $230 and $550.

Garmin added today a couple of new full function multi-function displays for those enjoying the light sport retrofit and experimental aircraft markets. The GDU 370 and GDU 375 are set to be available this March for around $3,300 and $4,000, respectively.

Garmin says these new seven-inch, portrait displays are designed to be viewable day or night. A variety of controls are built into these displays. For example, dedicated keys on the display’s right side have specific functions such as nearest, direct to, flight plan, zoom in/out and menu. The backs of these MFDs also have connection ports for external GPS and XM antennas, and a 50-pin connector for power/ground and interfaces.

Some people like having some spare change jingling around in their pockets. Some people hate coins. But a coin like this could bring out the Harvey Dent in all of us. It combines GPS with chance. It’s called the Inbi-Out and it’s a concept coin that can be flipped to add some spontaneity to your life.

Just like Two-face, flip the coin to decide your fate and where you should go next. Oh, looks like it’s Chinese food again. It gives you a 50/50 chance of where you should eat, drink, hang out, etc. It displays the final decision on a tiny embedded screen with GPS coordinates and directions.

Garmin has a new GPS unit for motorcyclists coming out in the first quarter of this year. It is called the zūmo 660 and it will price around $800.

The Garmin zūmo 660 is designed with motorcyclists in mind, said Garmin. It has a 4.3” sunlight-readable and customizable touchscreen display, “glove-friendly design” with left-handed controls and oversized touchscreen buttons. It comes loaded with street-level maps of the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico that have over six million points of interest.

TomTom announced today it is bringing one of its European GPS units to American shores sometime in the second quarter of the year. It is called the GO 740 LIVE.

The GO 740 LIVE, said TomTom, is a connected GPS device, meaning it automatic delivers content designed to help drivers navigate the roads. It wirelessly receives real-time traffic speed and incident reports every two to five minutes. Traffic delays can be heard audibly on the device as well as displayed on the screen. A built-in SIM card and GPRS modem also delivers to the 740 Google Local Search, local gas prices and weather forecasts among other things.

Garmin, in expanding its line of outdoor recreation GPS devices, feels now is the time to unveil a GPS unit for those among us who golf. It is called the Approach G5 and there is not yet any pricing information available.

The Garmin Approach G5 sports a three-inch touchscreen display and is designed specifically for the golf course. It is said to show golfers the precise distance to the center of green or other key course features, helping to improve a golfer’s score. It comes preloaded with thousands of courses in the United States.

Pharos’ new Windows Mobile-based offering features a 3.5-inch display with wide VGA, and 3.5G data. You’ll get 512MB of Flash, 256MB of RAM, AGPS, 7.2Mbps HSPA on T-Mobile USA and European bands, WiFi, 3-megapixel cam to round it all out.

Sounds like an X1 without a keyboard. The device weighs just 4.9 ounces and will hit retailers this quarter for $599.95. Ouch! That’s kinda expensive. I don’t think it will be replacing many iPhones. I think it may tank. Hard.

Lok8u has made the trek from the UK all the way to Vegas so they could show off their Nu•M8 GPS child locator at CES. It’s the “innovative new best friend for parents and children.” Yippee. Try telling your kid that after he’s been beat up for wearing such a hefty nerd watch.

The device is touted as the first of its kind, created specifically to be worn by children with the technology “cleverly concealed within a child’s digital watch.” Um, okay. I think everyone who sees this watch knows that something is up. The watch will also send an alert if it’s ever “forcibly removed,”, thereby forcing your child to wear their $218 watch.

The ViaMichelin X-970 arrived in the US around a year and a half ago. It comes fully loaded with 64MB of RAM, a 400-MHz processor, and a SiRFStarIII GPS receiver technology. On a 2GB SD card Navteq maps covering the U.S. and Canada are stored and supplied. The X-970 also includes 3.6 million points of interest, including the Michelin Green Guide, an aggregation of tourist information with everything from price ranges to hours of operation to historical context.

The X-970 also has Real time traffic capability, Bluetooth capabilities, and is compatible with many mobile devices for handling phone calls on the road, hands free. Despite what has been described as a difficult learning curve, and despite some of it’s less impressive, more frustrating features, the pros definitely counterbalance the cons. Also, for what it costs right now on Dillyeo, I can’t really find a better GPS value on the internet, though you might want to check that out for yourself.