For those of us who know how to save a buck and more efficiently use technology, caller identification boxes seem like a mighty waste of money. After all, an answering machine allows you to screen calls without having to squint at a little box with a telephone number on it to figure out whether you want to pick up or not.

Nevertheless, the Olympia OL3000 InfoGlobe ($50) was such a neat gadget that I went ahead and sprang for Caller ID on my home telephone just to see it in action. With a brilliant floating LED display that shows telephone numbers, time and date of calls, current date and day, the Globe made Caller ID worthwhile for my middle-aged eyes. The InfoGlobe holds up to 76 caller ID numbers and will even display three personal greetings; just use the five buttons on the front to set the time and the greetings.

You plug your telephone and a telephone line from your phone jack into the Globe just as you would a regular Caller ID box. If the caller's telephone number is available, it is displayed on the box. Hit the select button and you can get a list of telephone numbers that have been used to call your home.

The InfoGlobe is relatively bright (even though Olympia recommends placing it so that its display is set against a dark background) - so bright in fact that I moved it away from the telephone in my bedroom out to the living room telephone. I no longer need a night light, so I found the display a bit too bright when I turned off the lights to go to sleep.

The InfoGlobe also gives off a light hum, a bit louder than my PC, because of the spinning arm that creates the floating LED display.

Information: 866-537-0384 or www.olympiaphones.com.

- Kevin Washington