The winners are:

L. McDonald, 6288; C. Woods, 2518; J. Watt, 4212; B. Read, 4731; S. Stilianos, 3174; S. Melonas, 2617; K. McNaughton, 3936; F. Koning, 6162; S. Clarke, 4036; K. Wong, 2021; K. Knox, 2103, S. Hall, 2506; M. Butler, 2484. K. Blunt, 5037; L. Smith, 2567.

The dust has barely settled on the original Samsung Omnia and already the manufacturer has announced its successor.

The Samsung HD Icon (released overseas as the Omnia HD) will be released in Q2 of this year, Samsung says, and will feature a better screen and various other improvements and upgrades.

The screen appears to be the main focus of the new and improved Omnia HD Icon. It’s a 3.7-inch display that uses AMOLED technology for better colour and contrast, as well as improved battery life.

The other significant change is that the Samsung Omnia HD Icon will use the Nokia Symbian operating system. The original Omnia uses Windows Mobile.

Other features and specifications of the HD Icon to be released so far include HSDPA and Wi-Fit, DLNA media streaming, GPS and an 8-megapixel camera. It will be available in 8GB and 16GB versions.

Click here to find offers on Samsung mobile phones from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

I first mentioned the Karen Walker Owl Ring over a year ago (here) and yesterday I finally bit the bullet and bought it.

I figure that if you’ve been thinking about buying something for almost 18 months, then that doesn’t really count as an impulse purchase and may, in fact, constitute a considered and informed decision.

The ring was released several years ago and unlike many cocktail rings, has proved its popularity for more than one collection and is still seen on many middle fingers today.

It’s made from sterling silver (great for sensitive skin) and is encrusted with biron emeralds and citrines for the eyes. Plus, how cool are owls?

I picked up the ring for $260 from Pitbull Mansion (after a discount code) here, but this was the last one. Do a Google search on “Karen Walker Owl Ring” and you’ll find lots of other sites that are selling it, although for slightly more.

By Caroline Warnes

Canon will release another model in its super zoom SX series in April, combining a huge zoom, wide-angle lens and HD movie recording in a compact body.

The Canon PowerShot SX200 IS - scheduled to be released locally in April - features a 28mm wide-angle, 12x optical zoom lens and 12.1-megapixel resolution, which Canon expects to prove popular with a range of compact digital camera users, including travellers.

The lens allows you to capture detail from a distance as well as panoramic landscapes. The quality of your shots will also be improved by the inclusion of optical image stabilisation. Movie recording is in high-definition 1280×720 format.

The PowerShot SX200 IS also includes Intelligent Auto, a new technology from Canon. Intelligent Auto combines scene detection, face detection, motion detection and noise reduction into one automatic mode.

Also new is Blink Detection, which flashes a warning for three seconds after the user captures a photo in which one of the subjects was blinking.

Pricing will be released closer to April, but given that the camera is positioned between the SX10 IS and SX110 IS models in the PowerShot range, it is expected to fall somewhere between $400 and $650.

Click here to find offers on Canon digital cameras from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

After all the kerfuffle of the launch campaign, Witchery Man has finally launched online, with few surprises.

The collection (view it here) is, as you would expect, the slightly dull boyfriend of the Witchery womenswear collection (you know, like the boyfriend who is always the designated driver). The collection is packed with basic separates in muted tones and classic cuts. (No word on quality yet as the collection isn’t due in-store until next month.)

While the t-shirts, pants, shirts and jeans aren’t really anything earth-shattering, for me I think the accessories section is the highlight of the collection. There are some really gorgeous looking leather man-bags here - loving the Everyday Satchel. And let’s face it, $300-plus is pretty standard for leather.

And am I the only one who would wear the Plate Metal Trim Cuff? It would be a good look for the girls if you’re going man-style for the evening, or are featuring on a float in the upcomin Mardi Gras.

One thing I’m not too sure about is the men’s necklaces. Let’s call them mecklaces for short. Actually, let’s not, because men should never, ever wear necklaces of any description, and giving men’s necklaces a cute nickname will only legitimise the practice.

By Caroline Warnes

It was originally the colour of this dress from Alibi that caught my attention - I am a sucker for anything this shade of blue.

But then when I read that the dress can apparently be worn up to 20 different ways, then I thought “for $98, it would be uneconomical of me not to buy it”.

But all specious rationalisation of purchases aside, the dress is gorgeous and also comes in basic black. It can apparently be worn “Grecian, 40s style, backless 50s halter” style and even as a skirt.

The material itself is soft and stretchy, which is great for concealing those fat days that we all have from time to time, or in my case every second day.

This item can only be bought online - view it here.

By Caroline Warnes

We have 10 in-season double passes to the new film Last Chance Harvey to give away, starring Academy Award winners Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman.

Last Chance Harvey is a heartfelt romance that celebrates new beginnings at any age.

Harvey (Hoffman) is about to lose his dead-end job when he is given one last chance to keep his job. He goes to London for the weekend for his daughter’s wedding, promising to return by Monday morning for an important meeting.

While in London he meets Kate (Thompson), whose life is limited to work and the occasional humiliating blind date. The pair meet at an airport bar and develop a connection.

To be in the running to win a double movie pass, email competitions@lasoo.com.au with the words LAST CHANCE HARVEY in the subject line and tell us in 25 words or less why you want to see this film. Entries close next Thursday.

You can view the trailer below.

Competition terms and conditions

HTC has announced it will release an updated version of its popular HTC Touch Diamond smartphone, imaginatively called the Touch Diamond2.

The announcement was made at the GSM Mobile World Congress 2009 overnight, with the Touch Diamond2 tentatively scheduled to ship locally around the middle of this year.

There appears to be some significant upgrades with the Touch Diamond2. For starters, the screen has been upgraded to a 3.2-inch LCD touchscreen. The camera has also undergone an upgrade (up to 5-megapixels) and there is also a second camera (VGA CMOS colour). In terms of the more technical specifications, battery life has been improved and there is more RAM and ROM (288MB and 512MB respectively).

As on the HTC Touch Diamond, the TouchFlo 3D interface has also been included. Although this isn’t a new feature, it’s worth mentioning simply because it’s still an outstanding user interface.

Another nice inclusion of the Touch Diamond2 is Push Internet. This lets you set your favourite websites and the phone will automatically download and store the information, so when you go to visit these pre-defined sites they will load quickly.

Click here to find offers on mobile phones from retailers near you.

By Caroline Warnes

It seems to be baby season at the moment, with just about every woman and her cat apparently about to give birth.

Not being the most maternal person on the face of the earth (understatement of the year), I can’t help but think “better them than me”, but I’ve still managed to gather that finding stylish but affordable maternity wear can be something of a difficult task for soon-to-be mums.

Queen Bee is an online shop that specialises in maternity gear and they’ve just included the Trimester range on the site.

According to the write-up, Trimester “brings classic maternity fashion basics back into fashion in trend colours and quality fabrics”. That translates to some comfy-looking wrap dresses, tank tops, capri pants and more, as well as the Modern Love Bow Dress pictured here, which is my pick of the collection (RRP $139.95).

You can view more of the Trimester collection at Queen Bee here.

By Caroline Warnes

I was wandering around a shoe trade show on Friday (it’s a tough life) and one trend seemed to keep popping up - hidden platforms.

Unlike visible platforms, which I can’t stand, hidden platforms give you some extra height without being too obvious as they are sit underneath the shoe’s exterior material.

Platforms also tend to be more comfortable than regular pumps as the balls of your feet aren’t in such direct contact to the ground.

I love this gorgeous pair from Wittner, which comes in black leather, black patent, purple croc and white croc, which is my favourite. They will set you back $189.95.

Some other options include this style from Mollini for $138 and this style from Scooter for $119.95.

By Caroline Warnes