HOT TIPS : Y2K CAN'T BUG US ANYMORE.

We have seen the Millennium Bug, and frankly it's not so scary.

We're talking stuffed animals here, not the dreaded Y2K computer glitch that supposedly will plunge our computer-driven society into the Dark Ages come Jan. 1, 2000. That still gives us the willies.

So, at 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 31, 1999, we'll be cuddled up in the bomb shelter with our Princess Y2K Bugs, a couple of too-cute stuffed animals that pose the inevitable question: ``Why didn't we think of this first?''

Kim Calkins, president of Princess Soft Toys Inc., beat us to the punch. She's the brains behind two Y2K ``Bean Bugs'' that put a happy - and oh, so collectible - face on America's Y2K worries. The 6-inch tall bugs retail for $6.95, and a smaller key chain versions sell for $3.95. Look for them at gift shops everywhere.

- Phil Davis 

Baby prop for be-bopping

While bunches of new mommies swear by a cushy baby prop-up pillow named Boppy, they'll be happy to discover two new add-ons to make their lives easier - and their babies' playtime more fun.

Camp Kazoo Ltd. of Denver, maker of the Boppy - a colorful, cotton-covered, polyfill pillow shaped like a doughnut with a bite out of it - is now marketing two Boppy-friendly products.

The Side Kick is a Velcro-attached cotton pocket to store an extra bottle or toy while using the Boppy as a lap pillow; the Play Around is a wrap-around fabric attachment with Velcro fittings that hold rattles, teething rings and other toys so baby won't bat them out of reach.

The Boppy pillow retails for under $25; both the Play Around and Side Kick sell for less than $8 each. All three products are available at Target, Toys R Us, Kids R Us and independent baby-goods stores nationwide. For more information on Camp Kazoo products, call [phone] or check out its Web site at www.campkazoo.com.

- Carol Bidwell

Want those pictures NOW?

Talk about instant gratification.

Polaroid has introduced the first one-time-use instant camera. Aim, click and a few seconds later, there's your photo.

Each compact Polaroid PopShots, which weighs less than 9 ounces, produces 10 4.4-by-2.5-inch color photos.

The new camera is available in photo, mass merchandise, drug and food stores nationwide at a suggested retail price of $19.99. Polaroid offers a $4 rebate for those who return the camera for recycling and provides a postage-free mailer to make sending it back easy.

Another new Polaroid product is the Greeting Card Variety Pack, which includes a roll of 10-exposure 600 Platinum instant film plus five stand-up photo greeting card photo frames: two for birthdays, one for thank yous and two for everyday occasions. Simply snap a photo, insert it into the frame, write a message and mail. The card-plus-film pack is available at Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and Target at a suggested retail price of $16.99.

For more information on both products, call Polaroid at [phone].

- Carol Bidwell

CAPTION(S):

5 Photos

Photo: (1--2--Color) Millennium Bug, far left, and Y2K Bug, above.

(3--4--Color) no caption (Boppy baby products)

Andy Holzman/Daily News

(5--Color) no caption (Polaroid PopShots)