Finally, something good from a corporate merger: Dymo Rhino cable labeler

Corporate mergers and acquisitions seem to accomplish a lot less than expected. The often-touted synergy seldom occurs, and the most common results of a combination are waste, disappointment and unemployment.

We're pleased to note one corporate combo that accomplished something useful:

Dymo -- a company long-known for hand-operated label makers, and CoStar -- a company that has made great desk-top electronic label printers, and Sanford -- a company that makes terrific Sharpie permanent marking pens, are all parts of Newell Rubbermaid.

Newell's other adopted children make everything from Rubbermaid waste baskets and garage cabinets to Paper Mate pens, BernzOmatic torches, ViseGrip pliers, Calphalon cook's tools, Graco baby strollers and Goody hair styling gadgets. Next year they'll probably be making Hebrew National hotdogs and Sony TVs.

Anyway, one result of this mega-conglomeration is the Rhino 101, a compact label maker/dispenser that lets you write whatever you want on a flexible, durable white nylon label, that's perfect for identifying wires, cables, and almost anything else. The easy to load, drop-in cartridge holds split-back (easy-peel) Rhino labels with high-strength adhesive that resists moisture, heat, chemicals, farts and bad breath. You can run the label along the length of a thick cable, or wrap it around, flag-style, with thinner wires. It also works well in wiring cabinets, on circuit breaker panels, parts drawers, and 1001 other things.

The pen in the package is a black "Sharpie" permanent marker, in a new retractable point style. The writing surface integrated into the Rhino 101 makes it easy to write labels anywhere (even standing on a ladder with your head above ceiling tiles), and the built-in cutter, belt clip and lanyard hook provide additional convenience. Additionally, the Rhino 101 includes a thumb advance for easy tape dispensing (without smearing), a viewing window to align the label prior to cutting, and even a holster to hold the Sharpie.

Rhino makes some great pro-style label printers with keyboards, but if you are not trying to impress anyone with your choice of fonts, this hand-powered Rhino does the basic tasks quite well, at a very reasonable price. CLICK to order from PhoneGeeks.com