Even in the run up to the New Year - with myriad places to go and people to see  - there's no escaping the Consumer Electronics Show . We're looking forward to swapping the cold of a UK winter for the desert warmth of Las Vegas at the end of the first week of the new year.

Without the benefit of clairvoyance we can't predict what this year's gadget-fest will bring, but the initial signs are that we're in for an exciting trip, with flat screen TVs and displays, entertainment PCs, innovative, and huge, storage devices, not to mention voice recognition technologies.

We know we can't afford to take our eye off the ball at this huge show, which is expected to attract 130,000 attendees and 2,400 exhibitors. Indeed, just our colleagues from the fourth estate will number a whopping 4,000.

One thing's for sure: the Consumer Electronics Show definitely beats the January sales in London. Happy new year!

December 31, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Downloading music for your portable media player from the internet is something for your father's generation. The consumer who is truly focused on ease of use and wants to have the latest music on his player rips off a radio station.

Enters the SP-103 by Sumitronics of Singapore. The device records music to your mp3 player from the radio at night while filtering out commercials and the DJ-chatter. The device will be launched at CES in Las Vegas in January.

The idea of getting songs from your favourite radio station on your mp3 player seems appealing. The consumer gets fresh content without much effort, with the device filling up while the owner is sleeping. And although I have my doubts about the legality of the music you record, there is hardly any risk of running in to the copyright police because there is no internet connection involved.

The SP-103 has some setbacks however. The device's design for starters reminds of the post World War II era of zero percent appeal, 100 percent functionality. And at a price of $299 you can buy a lot of music from the iTunes music store before this device is worth the investment.

December 29, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Media in the coming days can expect a load of press releases from companies that have received one of the 27 "Innovations 2005 Design and Engineering Showcase" awards that are being handed out at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in the first week of January. The awards are sponsored by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) and endorsed by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA).

The reasoning behind the judging for prices like these is shrouded by politics and pay-for-play scams. I'm not saying that's the case at CES, but just to stay on the safe side, most media simply ignore the "best of show" award ceremonies, and so is the Silicon Valley Sleuth.

Read the press release to see the honourees (link pasted above). I won't burn my fingers on this one.

December 29, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

As the UK based Gizmondo is contemplating to invade the US with its wireless gaming device, it might very well pick CES in Las Vegas in early January as its venue of choice, argues The Register.

Gizmondo is one of those devices that we'd all like to own until we take a closer look. The gadget combines portable gaming with things like GPS navigation and mobile messaging. The main item inside the Gizmondo software portfolio however is some tumbleweed that rolls around freely between the four gaming titles that are currently available.

Running Windows CE, the relation between the Farnborough based company and Microsoft is close and getting closer. Microsoft has promised to port over a few of its software titles to the portable platform. And as a thank you gift for its commitment to the Win CE platform, Gizmondo has been awarded a spot in the Microsoft booth at CES to show off the device to the masses.

Connect the dots and the next logical step, argues El Reg, would be an acquisition by the software juggernaut, after which the Gizmondo device should be rebranded Xbox Portable.

Such a deal makes sense on a higher level. It would give Gizmondo some much required credibility and Microsoft an entry into the mobile gaming market where it (once again) is trailing Nintendo and Sony. There is however as much proof for this acquisition as there is for a takeover of Apple by IBM.

December 27, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sakar International claims to have found the solution every consumer who owns a digital camera has been dying for: a NiMH battery charger that recharges in a mere 8.5 minutes.

The new battery uses high currents to accelerate the charging process. Getting the 8.5 minute charging time however requires you to use Sakar's batteries. Third party models will take 1 hour to recharge, which is still significantly faster than current chargers.

The new battery will be officially unveiled at CES in Las Vegas early January. A set of two batteries retails at $59.99.

December 23, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Predicting an exhausting experience for the 120,000 delegates that will flock to Las Vegas in January for CES, IDG News compares the event with the now defunct Comdex show.

Comdex of course used to be the show for anything tech during the years of the internet boom. As the bubble deflated, so did Comdex. The 2004 edition of the show was cancelled and the organiser Key3Media filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year, from which it has since emerged.

Just like Comdex during the internet boom years, CES has outgrown the Las Vegas Convention Centre, although last year's 130,000 CES attendees still are outnumbered by the 200,000 Comdex attracted at its height.

CES however is careful not to repeat Comdex' mistakes. The show is actually qualifying attendees to make sure they have a legitimate attachment to the consumer electronics industry and keep out the tire kickers and crowds that are primarily interested in expanding they collection of free T-Shirts and crappy notepads, pens and yo-yos.

December 23, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (1)

Kodak is planning to have an investor relations event during CES, the company announced in a press release.

It might seem unusual to talk about finances at an event that focuses on products and gadgets. Kodak however has plenty to explain. The company operates at a embarrassing 1.5 pct profit margin after the rise of digital photography evaporated the demand for old fashioned film based cameras.

Kodak was late to the digital party, but at least seems to have been able to catch up in terms of market share. The company however isn't known as an innovator in the digital imaging market.

Kodak must feel it makes sense to reassure its investors after they have been gazing at the amazing innovations of the competition.

December 22, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

In one of the more odd products to be unveiled at CES, Philips Electronics plans to launch eUnderpants, suggests Engadget.

The garment will monitor the wearer's hearth rhythm, blood pressure and is even said to be able to detect a loss of consciousness. The clothing item can even call emergency services and inform aid workers about the exact location of the patient through a GPS device.

SV Sleuth has send an email to the product development team at Philips, suggesting that the company adds a peer to peer tracking service that allows spouses to monitor where the underwear goes and to scrutinise what other e-knickers come in its vicinity

We were however unable to answer the most important question: what colours will the garment come in?

December 22, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Having failed to make much (if any) of an impact in the laptop market, Transmeta is expected to launch a line of media products at CES in January, sources told the Silion Valley Sleuth.

Transmeta, you might remember, once promised to bring low power processing to a lap near you. The company however missed product deadlines, ruined its relation with OEM and recently lost the only thing that made it a slightly interesting company: Linux Torvards, who started working for the Open Source Development Labs instead.

The Transmeta media boxes mark a move by the company into devices. But we seriously doubt the company will have much of an impact. Consumers don't know the brand, and both established players and start-ups have littered the market with their 'perfect' and 'one of a kind' solutions.

December 22, 2004 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Welcome to the Consumer Electronics (CES) Blog from VNU business publications.

This year we will have roving reporters filing stories and blogging on what's hot and what's not live from the exhibition floors and hotels of fabulous Las Vegas.

As well as VNUnet's Silicon Valley Sleuth, reporters from PCW and Computeractive will also be covering the show and blogging to this central area.

Before the show starts we will be looking to provide tips and tricks for all of you thinking about going including things like where to download conference guides

and other useful bits of information that hopefully will help make your trip as productive as possible.

And for all of us who have to go back to work in the rain and cold of winter, we will be providing some hot exclusives straight from the show that is bound to heat things up.

Keep checking back to get the inside track on one of the the worlds biggest IT shows.

December 17, 2004 in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)