This week I had one minute to cover CES 2012 on Chicagonista Live!, a live Internet TV show, based in Chicago. A year ago, I covered CES live in Las Vegas, as a member of the Sears Blue Blogger Crew, for three days. Here’s a quick recap of my UltraLight “Barbed Wired” report. Did you cover the show? Please add a link to your coverage in the comments section – I’d love to hear your take.
As I watched the CES12 news coming in, I’ll admit it: I kind of missed being on the floor of the world’s largest trade show. As a member of Sears Blue Blogger Crew last year, all five of us were treated to individual attention at the Sony, Samsung and Panasonic booths. It was entertaining, exciting and exhausting.
As one who’s been there, I can tell you CES live is a head spinner. Even though I am not there in person, I am on the CES press list. Announcements flooded into my email box touting the latest, the best, the newest. All of this promotion makes me want to buy more gear. And, I’m not alone. According to a LinkedIn survey about consumer buying habits, 41% of business people surveyed plan to spend over $1,000 on electronics this year.
What’s amazing to me to about the CES 2012 media outreach?
In over 240 releases, no one’s reached out beyond my inbox to find me on twitter, Facebook, Google+ or LinkedIn. For the most part, the releases are pretty basic. Here’s a quick round up of what’s hot this year. Check out Sarah Evans’s CES12 coverage, too.
CES 2012 Trends
CES is about prototypes and what’s coming next. What you see, you probably won’t be able to buy – yet. That’s why Microsoft is pulling out of CES. They announce their new products in the fall. By the time CES rolls around, they’re recapping, not revealing. Apple’s not there, either. But Sony is. Here are a few highlights from their press conference.
CES 2012 Announcements from Sony
Special thanks to my high school junior for watching Sony’s live press conference with me. It’s so cool to get his take on what these announcements mean to teens and gamers. And, it was fun to wear our 3D glasses and watch Sony’s 3D sports clip together – all while two batches of cookies baked away in the oven. This is my kind of bonding!! A few of the highlights . . .
- Sony Ericsson is now Sony Mobile Communications. Sony’s new phone will have a 12 mega pixel camera.
- Sony Blogger will come with build in wi-fi so you can live stream from anywhere.
- Sony Walkman will be Android based, wi-fi enabled and will come with a touchscreen.
- 4K is a new resolution standard than increases HD video quality by up to four times. 4K projectors are installed in 10,000 theaters now. A 4K home projector is in the works.
- Sports goes 3D. Sony will be broadcasting more sports events in 3D. The clip showed several sports, but not football.
- Sony earned $6 billion on 3D releases in 2011
6 CES12 Trends
1. Ultrabooks
Tablets took over the stage in 2011. At CES 2012, Ultrabooks are all the rage. According to PC Magazine, to be an ultrabook, a laptop must be less than an inch thick, use Flash storage, and come with both HDMI and a USB 3.0 port.
“Ultrabooks are light, powerful and svelte. What they are not is cheap: expect prices to air-kiss $1,000.” Source
What’s your number one portable business device?
2. Digital Wearable Devices
Expect to see a bevy of wearable devices, including a bandage-like patch from BodyMedia, that will monitor approximately 5,000 data points on its wearer. Using technology developed by I.B.M., the patch can determine things like calories burned, steps taken, sleep patterns and much more. Source
Who do you know that could use one of these?
3. Connected Cars
There are two trends to watch here: The rise of the “connected car,” which can take the various apps and content off your smartphone and redistribute them around the dashboard, and the growth of automatic safety systems that can keep you from rear-ending someone, drifting out of your lane or missing a car in your blind spot — presumably because, in part, you have apps and content all over your dashboard. Source
When do you use apps in your car?
4. More Likeable Laptops
“Laptops are about to change…later this year laptops coming later this year featuring Windows 8 and Ivy Bridge will bend over backward to wow with new design elements. The redesigning of what’s currently a pretty boring landscape of laptops may start soon enough.” Source
5. Smarter TVs
Samsung’s 2012 line of smart TVs includes a built-in HD camera and dual microphones to support voice controls, motion controls and face recognition. The Smart Hub adds three new services: Family Story for users to share photos and messages, Fitness for customized workouts and a Kids option to help parents find educational programming. Samsung Smart TVs will add a slot on the back for “Evolution Kits.” These kits allow owners to make quick TV upgrades. Source
6. MySpace Comes Back – on TV
Specific Media-owned social network Myspace on Monday unveiled Myspace TV, a social TV service that it will launch on Panasonic Viera Connect-enabled HD TV sets during the first half of the year. Myspace co-owner and singer/actor Justin Timberlake: “We’re ready to take television and entertainment to the next step by upgrading it to the social networking experience. Why text or email your friends to talk about your favorite programs after they’ve aired when you could be sharing the experience with real-time interactivity from anywhere across the globe?” Source
Want to watch my Barbed Wired report for Chicagonista Live? Fast-forward to the 54 minute mark. Thanks the show’s co-hosts for including me: MJ Tam, Nancy Loo, Beth Rosen and Duong Sheahan.
Image: CES 2011 press conference by Barbara Rozgonyi.
What’s on your 2012 must-have gear acquisition list?
