ces 2008
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CES 2008: The best of LCD HDTVs
Whether plasma is back, or never left is up for argument, but don't think LCD took CES 2008 sitting down. Vizio upgraded the specs on its bargain LCDs, and even Panasonic showed some love. PDP prototypes might have been bigger and skinnier, but 2008 is the year we'll actually be able to buy a 108-inch LCD from Sharp, a 1.5-inch thin screen from Hitachi, or even a Quad HD panel from Westinghouse.Sharp pushes out more Aquos LCDsSony refreshes Bravia line with 17 new models, Digital Media ExtenderPhilips' new LCD lineup continues to not impressSharp promises to bring its 108-inch LCD to market in '08Samsung intros new 1080p LCD HDTVs, Ethernet / interactivity includedPanasonic reveals five new LCD HDTVs at CESSharp launches 32-inch LC-32GP3U LCD at gamersLG takes thin to the next level with the 1.7-inch LGX LCD HDTVToshiba announces slew of LCDs for 2008: hands-on and videoVizio's new Evolution Series LCD HDTVsVizio announces stylish Envy LCD HDTV lineupVizio intros Black Tie LCD lineup with 120Hz, MEMC technologyVizio intros Jive surround for LCDsJVC P-Series LCD line rocks iPod docksJVC intros 42-inch LT-42SL89 / 46-inch LT-46SL89 LCD HDTVsHitachi Ultra Thin 1.5 LCD lineup headed for CESEyes-on with Westinghouse's Quad HD displays
CES 2008: The best of Blu-ray players
It was a blowout CES for Blu-ray, and it all started even before the first day of the show with Warner's announcement. With manufacturer and studio support, the format was primed, and the addition of BD Live brought feature parity to Blu-ray and HD DVD. There was a definite feeling that it's okay to come into the water now, and we expect 2008 will see more expansion of the format still. On the high end, we saw Marantz's entry to the Blu-ray market, complete with a gaggle of drool-worthy specs and outputs. For the more modest budget (which is to say, anyone who even has a budget), skip past Denon's Blu-ray transport and check out the Samsung BD-1500 and Panasonic DMP-BD50. Marantz BD8002Denon DVD-2500BDTCISamsung BD-UP5500Samsung intros BD-P1500 Blu-ray player, BD-UP5500 combo playerPanasonic DMP-BD50Philips BDP7200Sharp BD-HP50U
Transystem's i-Tracker keeps tabs on whatever you'd like
Ah, the wonderful world of personal GPS trackers. Upon gazing at the i-Tracker, visions of Cheaters arise in our minds, but we'll try to keep the nostalgia at a minimum here. Transystem's latest -- which was proudly displayed at CES -- reportedly houses both a GPS and GSM module which enables it to transmit tracking information to one's PC or mobile in real-time. As expected, it can be controlled with a predetermined handset or internet-connected PC, and there's even an SOS button that instantly beams out one's current location. Mum's the word on pricing / availability, but make sure you clear that history after scouring the net in search of one.
CES 2008: The best of Plasma HDTVs
Based on what we saw at CES, the future is promising indeed for LCD. But don't think for a minute that plasma is done in the eyes of manufacturers or consumers -- PDPs have a rosy outlook as well. The Pioneer extreme contrast demo left all of our jaws on the floor, and we can't wait to see this technology trickle out of the labs and onto the shelves. The Panasonic 150-inch plasma had a similar effect on passers-by. Pioneer also showed off the 9-mm thick Kuro concept just to show that plasma can do the beauty thing, too.Panasonic revamps its plasma lineupVizio cranks out new plasma lineupHands-on with Pioneer's extreme contrast concept plasmaHands-off with Panasonic's 150-inch behemothHands-on with the Pioneer 9mm-thick Kuro plasmaSamsung reveals PN58A750T, PN42A450P and PN50A550S plasma lineupsThe 2008 LG Plasma lineup
Gear and loathing in Las Vegas - Engadget has left the building
Hard to believe, but the 150,000 some-odd people that flooded into Vegas for CES have all gone home -- including your Engadget editors. Sure, it wasn't the most exciting CES in recent memory, but it wasn't without merit, either. Why, just think of the eight thousand HDTVs announced, blockbuster format war news, or iriver's unexpectedly show-stealing lineup. One thing's certainly for sure: you demanded we give wall-to-wall coverage of CES, and we'd like to hope we did you right. See you at CES 2009 -- and every day in between!%Gallery-13514%
Seen at CES: Warlock vehicle security is overpowered
We knew there wouldn't be much of anything Warcraft-related at CES 2008 worthy of coverage here on WoW Insider, but we kept our eyes open as we scoured the show floor and had a chuckle to stumble upon the Warlock vehicle security systems booth. We don't even want to know what it does to any intruders it detects. If more gratuitous gadgetry is your thing, hit up our sister site Engadget for a literal metric ton of CES news (including the best of the worst).
Keepin' it real fake, CES edition: Sony's NW-A800 has a secret admirer
Sony's been certainly making strides in its DAP lineup this year, and this here is just further proof of its success: a cheap knockoff version of the NW-A800. We've got nothing in the way of specs, other than the "Digital MP4 Player" title, which we're guessing means exactly what it says. Look how convenient that record button is, folks! Another shot (which we spotted at an entirely different distributor) is after the break.
Crapgadget CES finale, round 18: Tole Pure really is a crapgadget
The Tole Pure is alright, but the live demo was pretty awkward.
Crapgadget CES edition, round 17: the non-existent digital photo frame
All we have to do now, is take these lies, and make them true somehow.
CES 2008: HD booth tours
There aren't many thing more exciting to a geek, then walking around the show floor at the largest electronics show in the US of A, but unfortunately the consumer electronics show isn't for consumers. So we took the time to snap up as many pics as we could of every booth that we thought was interesting. While many of the booths are reused each year, the devices are not. Some of the booths are backed to the point that it's hard to walk around, while others are desolate. So if you want to live vicariously through us, click through and check out all the coolness.DISH Network's CES 2008 Booth tourNBC Universal's CES 2008 booth tourBlu-ray's CES 2008 booth tourHD DVD's CES 2008 booth tourSamsung's CES 2008 booth tourHP's CES 2008 booth tourSling Media's CES 2008 booth tourXStreamHD's CES 2008 booth tourMicrosoft's CES 2008 booth tourSony's CES 2008 booth tourPhilips's CES 2008 booth tourPioneer's CES 2008 booth tourLG's CES 2008 booth tourHitachi's CES 2008 booth tour
CES 2008: The best of set-top boxes
At this year's CES we saw what might be the end of set-top boxes, -- at least for cable boxes -- but there will always be some extra feature that isn't built into your HDTV that you want. The most exciting new set-top box at this year's CES is the Slingbox PRO HD, which means we can finally watch any HD content in our house wherever we want -- including via our high-speed internet connection. The new Moto boxes promise an MPEG-4 future for cable and the new Dish DVR should help bring their HD DVR prices down. Last up, was the VUDU LX, and while we weren't sure who'd pay $400 for such a device, we just can't imagine someone would pay $1000, but hey, at least it has an IR port now.Hands-on with the EchoStar TR-40 and TR-50 converter boxesSling Media's Slingbox PRO HD, SlingPlayer for BlackBerry announcedSling announces SlingCatcher (again), SlingPlayer 2.0 with Clip+Sling, and Sling Cable modemDish's new ViP612 - like the ViP622, but now with lessDirecTV intros dual ATSC tuner AM21 to piggyback HR21Hands-on with Motorola DCX series MPEG-4 cable STBHands-on with the pricey VUDU XL
Goodbye CES, hello Macworld
Our CES coverage is winding down and we're dribble out the last of our stories from the biggest consumer tech trade show of the year, which must mean it's time to get ready for Macworld Expo. It all goes down next week, so mark your calendars and warm up that F5 / Cmd+R key.Where you need to be:Live Steve Jobs Macworld keynoteAll Macworld 2008 coverage [RSS]What time to post the GO AWAY note on your door on Tuesday, the 15th:07:00AM - Hawaii09:00AM - Pacific10:00AM - Mountain11:00AM - Central12:00PM - Eastern05:00PM - GMT / London06:00PM - Paris02:00AM - Tokyo (January 16th)Leave more time zones in comments!
VIEVU PVR-PRO: the clip-on portable PVR
Sure, clip-on PVRs aren't exactly revolutionary, but the vast majority of 'em require you to don some pretty fugly headgear. The VIEVU PVR-PRO, however, can be placed most anywhere on your person, so long as you're satisfied with the angle at which it records. This little bugger isn't much larger than a traditional pager (remember those?) and can reportedly capture video at 640 x 480 (30 frames-per-second), and while we're not told how much internal capacity is housed, it can store some four hours of content before needing to be emptied. As expected, the rechargeable battery also provides around four hours of usage, and it's not scared to get thrown around / wet either. 'Course, this gem wasn't designed for the casual lifeblogger, as the vanilla model will run you some $500 while the "encrypted police version" goes for two bills more.
Crapgadget CES edition, round 16: Music Player Sunglasses
The "Most Newest" concept of MUSIC PLAYER... for when Oakley's Thumps are just too classy.Coming soonest.
Crapgadget CES edition, round 15: Shredmaster Jr.
Smells like cheap knockoff spirit.
PMP51 "MP4 MP3 super game" does it all
While a bit vague in the whole naming department, this new no-name OEM PMP51 PMP is actually packing a quite a spec sheet. The primary focus of the handheld is supposedly 32 bit gaming, but sadly SNES is nowhere to be found. But lucky for us there's Game Boy Advance play, in addition to Game Boy, Game Boy Color and NES. The 3-inch screen should show off that emulated Advance Wars just nicely, and the addition of a 1.3 megapixel camera and support for plenty of audio and video formats round out the piece nicely. You can also add memory with miniSD and play your ROMs on the big screen with video out. No word on price or availability.%Gallery-13478%
Crapgadget CES edition, round 14: Hello Kitty with human debris
Hello Kitty meets hair.
The swappable GSM radio
While wandering around the "International" wing of this year's CES, we stumbled upon a number of questionable (and familiar) items. One line of products that stood out, however, was a company offering a modular solution for adding GSM capability to a wide variety of devices. Using what appears to be a proprietary type of connector, the SIM-ready card can imbue an assortment of gadgets (phone, e-book reader, GPS... teddy bear) with GSM functionality. It's unclear whether this technology is being deployed overseas (or at all), and whether or not we'll see it Stateside (doubtful), but it does take a novel approach to cell-ing up your gear.%Gallery-13481%
Hands-on with the Amtek U560 / Aigo UMPC
We got a chance to fondle the non-Menlow Amtek U560 / Aigo UMPC on the floor of this year's CES, and we've got the pictures to prove it. The XP-running portable had a solid build, though the mechanism for sliding the screen felt a bit janky, and the overall size is possibly more than you want, especially with all the Menlow hotness coming our way this year. Perhaps a gallery of photos might help? Yeah, we thought so.%Gallery-13479%
Crapgadget CES edition, round 13: e-paper display actually paper
Real screws, real buttons, real paper "screen" affixed to the face with real scotch tape. We ordered 1,000 -- for us and everyone we know.
