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International CES 2009: Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas
By Bruce Wildstein
The International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) bills itself as the largest consumer electronics trade show in the world, and the recently held 4 day convention in Las Vegas was true to form. With a recession at hand, almost without exception every press conference started with a statement by the speaker that we are going through challenging economic times. Even so, everyone from Microsoft to the smallest startups had booths or suites in nearby hotels. To "do" CES, one must be focused on an area of interest; otherwise the huge scope of the show and extensive amount of walking required will wear you out in no time.
With no major products to announce, this was a year of refinements. High definition video continues to advance, with TV makers Samsung, Sharp, LG, and Sony showing their newest lines with the latest improvements in screen lighting and refresh rates. Many TV makers were showing sets that bring the web to your screen with new networking capabilities. Camera maker Casio showed off their new line of EXILIM cameras that can take 60 shots per second and also significantly reduce camera movement blur which is common when using zoom and telephoto lenses. Palm, the makers of the Pilot PDA's, gave a very well received demonstration of their amazing new "Pre" cell phone. With a sophisticated operating system and ease of use, they have teamed with Sprint and hope to make a big splash later in the year.
At CES, the media can learn about many new products and gadgets in one place by attending two large press events. Pepcom hosts one event, with over 100 companies displaying their goods in a large hotel ballroom. A company called Magicjack was showing their long distance telephone product that allows unlimited calling to anywhere in the world for only $19.95 a year. Unlike other similar services, they use a combination of telephone land lines and the Internet to achieve a higher quality of service. You just plug the USB device into your computer and phone. It's been so successful they sold almost 2 million units in 2008 and is now available at Radio Shack, Target, and soon Best Buy. Another company, Clickfree from Canada, was showcasing their new Clickfree Transformer. This small USB device is used with an external computer hard drive to allow easy backup of important data files. You plug one side of the device into your PC and the other into the hard drive. Without the need of installing any software, a dialog window appears on your computer. It then searches for pictures, sound files; video files, etc, and copies them to the external drive. It retails for $59.95.
Many consumers know the name Vtech as a company that makes cordless telephones. Now they have introduced their new IS9181 Internet radio receiver. With over 11,000 mostly free radio stations now on the Internet, this classy looking box boasts hi-fi sound, wireless capability, and playback for most any sound or music file. It also acts as an entertainment music "hub" for the entire home. Retail price is $199.
Showstoppers hosts another large event where you can learn about new and updated products. Many people are familiar with networking specialists D-Link and use their routers at home and in the office. They were showing their newest device, the "Xtreme N Storage Router." This box combines a wireless N router, 4 1Gigabyte Ethernet ports, an SATA hard drive, 2 USB ports (for hard drive and printer sharing), plus a digital picture frame. Users on the network can easily share their picture, sound, and other media files with others as well as backing up important files to the drive. Retail price is about $299. Pogoplug showed an interesting gadget which allows the user to essentially put their hard drive on the Web. By doing this, anyone who is given access can then use the drive from another computer at any location. They claim ease of use in that you setup the Pogoplug just by going to their website and entering its unique code, thus putting it online without having to configure your network. Retail price is $99 and it will be available later this year. Are your fingernails too long to easily use an IPod, IPhone, or Macbook? Those screens use a capacitive touch technology that requires your finger's touch to work properly. Ten One Designs has launched the Pogo Stylus and the Pogo Sketch that you hold and use like a pencil, no need to touch a screen with your fingers. They're available online for about $14.95 at www.tenonedesign.com.