It was the most successful CES ever - over 150,000 attendees, 3100 exhibitors, 1.861 million square feet of exhibit space, and apparently over 20,000 new products announced, though I think that last figure might be overstated - someone announcing 100 new iPod cases is an easy way to get to 20,000 new products.
But for those going for the PMA portion of CES, your faithful writer among them, the show was a disappointment. Very few photo products were announced, and a lot of the usual suspects at the old PMA shows didn't show up this time, or if they did, they didn't bring much photo gear, thinking it was a consumer electronic show. So I know I"m not alone in the PMA contingent in being disappointed in the lack of a larger photo presence. Certainly there was some, but not what one is used to for a photography trade show.
What there was a lot of, an insane amount, an amount beyond any human comprehension, was iPhone, iPod and iPad cases. In fact, it became the joke of the floor whenever I'd talk to other people - no one could believe there are so many companies making cases. Of that 3100 exhibitors, it felt like half of them were case companies. I'm not exaggerating. It may have been called CES, but really it should have been called Apple Case Show With Some Other Stuff Too.
The other insanity was headphones. There were slightly less number of headphone companies than case companies. Again, it was beyond comprehension. Does the world really need 58,000 headphone companies? These lovely Sennheiser headphones, in the photo above, only cost $1200.
But enough complaining. Here are some random observations:
3D Is Not Dead Yet
While 3D has not caught on with customers, the TV companies are not giving up - in fact, they are doubling down. There is an excellent chance the next TV you buy will be 3D capable, whether you use it or not. Some prototype glasses-free 3D sets were shown - they worked, but their field of view is very narrow.
4K Is Coming - Everyone Get Busy
JVC showed a 4K camera, Sony and JVC showed 4K home projectors, and I'm sure there was a lot more 4K stuff if I looked for it (I'm sure NAB is going to have a ton of 4K stuff). I sat through a JVC demo, and have to say it was impressive. Their new 4K projector on a 150" screen looked amazing. Heavy sigh - here we go again.
Dials Are Cool Again
After the Japenese got rid of all the dials on cameras, they are coming back thanks to Fuji and Canon.
TVs Are Thinner Than Angelina Jolie
It is amazing how thin the next generation of TVs coming this spring are - razor thin thin thin.
Zombie Companies
Two classic names have come back from the dead - Polaroid and Vivitar. Both are shipping new products that they are picking up out of China, and putting their names on them. You will be able to get Polaroid TVs and other CE products soon.
Elevator Music
Discovered that the Venetian Hotel plays the music from Phantom of the Opera in all its elevators. No one would join me in a sing-a-long though.
In the week ahead I will detail some cool stuff I saw on this blog. The photo stuff has been covered very well by others, so I won't concentrate on that so much. Instead, I wll showcase some neat new stuff, and some ... interesting ... things as well, that the mainstream web universe ignores.
