Spy Gadgets

Remote Monitoring

What do these household items have in common? They're bugged! The Small B/W Wall Clock Camera, model C1390B24(lower left, $276) has a black-and-white camera hidden inside, while the Air Freshener 3G Camera, model CX300MC-A (lower middle, $720) has a color camera inside plus a SIM card that lets you watch the live video feed on a 3G phone. The Power Strip Hidden Audio Monitoring Device (upper left, $1209) is also rigged with a SIM card and a microphone, so you can dial in and listen to conversations. For $100 more, you can get a version that calls you when it detects voices in the room.

Spy Cams
Tiny cameras that record on the sly can be hidden in all sorts of objects. Here we see (left to right) we seethe Spy Pen Camera($30), which lets you download 640-by-480 video and audio recorded on the built-in 4GB memory straight onto your computer; the Button Camera ($129), featuring three styles of button covers with matching real buttons for the rest of your jacket or shirt; theKey Ring Spy Camera ($102) with built-in microphone; and the dressy Tie Camera ($252), which can share a power supply with the optional Covert Video Recorder ($389).

Cellular Jammer
Need to scramble a cellular signal and thereby render nearby cellphones' calling capabilities useless, so your evil-empire nemesis can't deliver his latest intelligence update to the homeland at the appointed hour? The High Power Portable Jammer (left, $205) isn't covert, but it can scramble signals at distances of up to 60 feet away. The 3G Mini Cell Jammer (right, $199) promises to scramble cell signals for 3G, UMTS, CDMA, and GSM networks within a range of up to 32 feet.

Document Scanner
PlanOn's handy document scanners do the job quickly and covertly--assuming that no one considers moving an unopened ballpoint pen rapidly across every line of text on a page to be odd. The DocuPen Xtreme X05 (top, $300) comes with 64MB of internal memory, takes MicroSD cards for expansion, and can perform Bluetooth transfers as well. The DocuPen RC810(bottom, $170) has 8MB of memory and takes about 4 to 8 seconds to scan a full page of text.

Night Vision
If you're after some night vision gear for your mission, you can choose between monoculars and binoculars. The Night Own 3x50 monocular (upper left, $450) is suitable for camping, boating or wildlife observation, as well as for espionage, while the Patrol 2X24 monocular (right, $360) is a sound entry-level model that you can attach to a tripod. If you want to go pro, consider the Ranger Digital Night Vision 5x42 binoculars (lower left, $760), with 5X magnification, a built-in LCD screen, and a rubberized body.