Aim for the Stars

Admit it: Sometimes, when you gaze into the summer sky and see the abundance of stars, planets and other shiny things that drift along up there, you wish you'd paid more attention during your fourth-grade science class.

But it's never too late to learn about the heavens, and the SkyScout Personal Planetarium sounds like the perfect teacher.

SkyScout uses GPS technology and an internal database to identify, its manufacturer says, nearly any object in the sky. Just point the hand-held unit at a star, planet or celestial object -- even the Hubble space telescope -- press the button, and SkyScout will tell you what it is. Or, if you're looking for a particular object, SkyScout will direct you to it via directional locator lights in its viewfinder.

In either case, SkyScout then can tell you about whatever it is you find via audio and text tutorials.

SkyScout retails for $399 at Brookstone, which has stores at the Fashion Show and Boulevard malls, The Venetian, the Forum Shops at Caesars and McCarran International Airport.

Story by John Przybys. What's New is a weekly column about new products on the market.