Don't pretend you haven't heard of Hello Kitty. So what if you're the manliest man who ever strode bow-legged on God's sweet earth? That's no excuse for not being up on your Japanese cutesy cartoon cat characters. Especially not ones that have become squillion-dollar brands in their own right.

Besides, as a brand, Hello Kitty is gadgety to the extreme. Sanrio, the firm behind the brand, has slapped Hello Kitty on all manner of consumer electronics, from laptops and digital cameras ...