Good Housekeeping V.I.P. Awards

Good Housekeeping's Very Innovative Product Awards recognize new items that performed exceptionally well when evaluated by its research institute.

Scotch Fur Fighter: The Fur Fighter has a textured pad that grips and removes virtually every pet hair -- even ones deeply embedded in the fabric. Once a sheet is full, just dispose and replace. We found it safe to use on most upholstery, even silk, but spot-check your furniture first in a less visible area. $10; eight sheet refills, $5

Wii Fit: Exercise can be fun for the whole family. With Nintendo's Wii Fit, the most committed couch potatoes enjoy standing on the Balance Board and following on-screen instructions for yoga, aerobics, strength training -- even walking a tightrope and hula hooping. You earn points for good performance and get feedback on how you can improve. $90 plus $250 for the Wii basic console

Custom Creations Foundation: Each bottle of this smooth, lightweight SPF-15 makeup contains two hues: Turn the dial to one of the five shade settings, and some of each is dispensed in the right proportion to match your selection. This facial fine-tuner was especially loved by the beachgoers on the Good Housekeeping panel, who liked dialing up a darker color after a day in the sun. $14

Bissell Versus Bare Floor Vacuum: This slim vac's V-shaped head gets into hard-to-reach nooks and crannies, in the corners, under baseboards and around furniture legs, channeling the mess in. In tests, it picked up 98 percent of dirt from tight spots regular vacuums tend to miss. $80

Satellite GPS Messenger from Spot: For anyone who loves the great outdoors, this GPS rescue device can make a lifesaving difference. With near-total global coverage, it works where cell phones don't and has a 911 emergency signal that transmits every five minutes for up to 14 days until rescue. Other controls share trip progress and let you send messages to check in with folks at home. $170 plus $100 per year for service

Share SD Card: When relatives ask you to e-mail photos, you have no excuse. With Eye-Fi's Share memory card, each photo can be transmitted wirelessly to your computer and uploaded to an online photo site. Just change your current SD card with this Wi-Fi-enabled one, and goodbye cables. For $30 more, the Explore card uses geo-tagging to record the location where you snapped the picture. A 2GB card hold up to 1,000 2MB images. $100

Dole Portobello mushrooms: Most of us don't get enough vitamin D, a real concern because low levels are linked to cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. Plus, very few foods provide much of the nutrient. A package of Portobello mushroom caps and slices contains 800 IUs of vitamin D, the daily amount experts suggest. The secret is a simple flash of light during the growth process, which helps the mushrooms synthesize more D, without changing the taste. $3.50 for 6 ounces

Original Footless Pantyhose from Spanx: In 1988, Sara Blakely cut the feet off her pantyhose so she could get the benefits of shaping and an invisible panty line under slacks while wearing sandals. Two years later, the Atlanta resident introduced a comfortable, body-slimming, toeless garment to the market. The line now consists of over 100 figure-enhancing garments.

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Good Housekeeping's Very Innovative Product Awards recognize new items that performed exceptionally well when evaluated by its research institute. Among them were the Kindle e-Reader. This paperback-size, 10-ounce tablet lets you make an electronic library from 28 daily papers and 200,000 books by wireless downloads from Amazon.com. The size-adjustable type is easy to read, and you can bookmark your page, use the dictionary and read the first chapter of a book before deciding to buy. $359

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