ces-2008
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iriver says iPhone-like interface just proof of concept
We hit the show floor excitedly looking for iriver's GSM phone which they showed off earlier in the week, but when we got to their booth, the little guy was nowhere to be found. We managed to wrangle a chat out of some of the company's product designers and marketing people, and they explained their hesitation at continuing to show the W7-cum-GSM-phone due to the similarities of the phones UI to an all-too-familiar device. According to the iriver people, the iPhone-like interface which was showcased originally was only meant to demonstrate what the phone was capable of, not a finalized version of the OS. Of course, it's little consolation to us, having seen a brief snippet of the phone, though we're assured that some new hotness -- or hot newness -- is on the way from the cats in Korea.
Video: iriver's Unit 2 hands-on
If you've been wondering how a portable media center, speaker dock, VoIP phone, and folding keyboard work together then you're in luck. We've got the elevator speech from iriver on what the Unit 2 is and how it works. Hitting the US in early 2009 for about $700. We ask you, can you wait? Video after the break.
Hands-on with a few Otterbox phone cases
We wandered past OtterBox during our aimless CES march and they had a couple fine cases on display so we just had to pop in for a look see. From BlackBerry cases to iPhone -- we're looking at those here -- cases, Otterbox brings the goods to wrap your dearly-loved nerd gear. We were particularly interested in a couple hard cases, one rugged, the other waterproof and looking bulletproof, too. Follow the link to the goodies.%Gallery-13412%
Envive announces simplified media server: The TheaterStation
Because you'll need somewhere to download/install those 1080p flicks from VideoGiants, Envive has announced its TheaterStation Media Server. Light on hardware details, Envive's focused on its Spin interface to ease content browsing via remote. The base model's hard drive reportedly holds at least 200 hours of DVD quality movies, and can be upgraded to hold ten times as much although that'll drive up the $2,495.99 starting price. Equipped with HDMI, component and DVI outs its available for preorder now, [Vie eHomeUpgrade]
CES 2008 Adwatch: Best of the worst
From the weird to the shameless, from the unintentionally funny to the downright questionable, we've rounded up some of the best of the worst ad campaigns seen around the show floor at CES 2008.%Gallery-13418% More Best of the Worst CES 2008 booth gimmickery: Best of the worst CES 2008 product names: Best of the worst CES 2008 Crapgadget The fugliest laptop you'll see all day CES 2008: Fugliest headphones awards
RIM's CES 2008 booth tour
No matter where we go, RIM seems to have this same booth style where all the good stuff (the phones, that is) are stuffed in a central nucleus, causing massive crowding. Don't get us wrong, it's entirely possible that's the effect RIM is shooting for, but heaven help us poor journalists try to get a shot of the goods contained within. The Canadian manufacturer didn't have any earth-shattering announcements for the show -- just a couple of new 8130 colors -- so the highlight has to be the giant Pearl that was harassing passers-by. Click on!%Gallery-13411%
New WiDRIVE line includes 2.5-inch support, BitTorrent
We spotted these guys hiding out in a teensy booth at CeBIT back in 2006, but EDS Lab has resurfaced with its WiDRIVE line -- and it's just getting better. The WiFi drive enclosures now come in 1.8-inch (PX-100) and 2.5-inch (DX-225) versions, but now also support a BitTorrent client, RSS podcast subscriptions and a built-in web server. You can connect to the drive using a number of networking standards, including DHCP, WebDav UPnP and Bonjour, but if 802.11b/g speeds aren't good enough for you, you're out of luck: the USB port is for charging only.%Gallery-13421%
MSI brings first Soleus handset to CES
MSI brought the 5608 to CES, a pretty nifty and well specced-out handset that as an added bonus is the first handset we've seen that features the Intrinsyc Soleus OS. While this won't be ready for prime time on our shores for quite some time -- think end of year -- MSI promises GPS, gesture-based touch interface, quad-band GSM / EDGE, 2 megapixel camera, and all driven by a 400 MHz Samsung SC3 CPU. They've got months to finalize thing, so here's hoping they cram some 3G in it by then.
Runco intros ultra-pricey 1080p VX-22i DLP projector
Runco and expensive tend to go hand in hand, so we'd expect nothing less than a five-figure price tag accompanying the firm's new Video Xtreme VX-22i. This 1080p monster features a three-chip DLP design, O-Path technology, CinOptx premium grade lenses, Vivix II video processing, a 4,000:1 contrast ratio, 2,850 ANSI lumens and comes calibrated to ISF standards. As expected, users with a completely stuffed bank account can opt for the CineWide with Autoscope edition ($54,995), but even those who go without the aforementioned option will be forking out $39,995 for the vanilla model. If you've managed to get over the shock, you can place your order now (or pick up a totally more useful BMW / college education / etc.) and expect it to arrive lickety split.
Mustek's CES 2008 'booth tour'
We'll be honest, Mustek -- you're not exactly giving us a lot to work with. First you don't release any PR on your new products, then when we get to the booth, you seem unsure if you've even got new products. Of course, we did manage to find your suspiciously-Sharp-ish Blu-ray player, a new widgetified photo frame, and that lovely iPod dock. Check out our "tour" and see for yourself.%Gallery-13386%
CES 2008 ultimate swag bag giveaway: like a Xmas stocking in January
As you're probably well aware, CES is ground zero for free stuff -- most of which is crappy swag. But there's some good stuff to be had as well, and this year we're proud to present you with the ultimate CES swag bag. Literally bursting at the seams, this bag contains every single free item we've collected throughout the entire show. All in all over 100 items stuffed inside a courtesy HD DVD press backpack (which itself may be a collector's item some day soon), including a Jawbone Bluetooth headset, CoPilot Navigator 9, Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray disc, Tooth Tunes toothbrush, and an iriver Mplayer.All you have to do to throw your hat into the ring is to leave a comment in this post listing your favorite new product introduced in the past few days. Since we want to ship this thing out before we take off tomorrow, entires for this contest will be closed at exactly 12:00PM PT (noon, Pacific) on Friday, January 11th. Make sure you read all the points below before entering, 'cause we'd hate to disqualify anyone from winning this one-of-a-kind CES 2008 souvenir. Leave a comment below. Tell us your favorite new CES gadget. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine. Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad. Winner will be chosen randomly. That winner will get a bag full of stuff whose value is impossible to determine, but which we doubt is more than $300. Entries can be submitted until Friday, January 11th, 12:00PM PT. Good luck! Full rules can be found here.
Hands-on with Amtek's iTablet T221
While Amtek is a bit short on history in the tablet and UMPC scene, the company seems to be making some pretty sweet moves. The latest from Amtek is this iTablet T221, which we found just as stylish in person as it looks in pictures. The version with the flush display is digitizer (pen) input only, while the white version adds a highly responsive and accurate capacitive touch capability (fingers) -- if sacrificing a bit of the sexy in the process.%Gallery-13392%
No joke: Qualcomm's Snapdragon prototypes don't use Snapdragon
We seriously have no idea what Qualcomm was thinking here, but it turns out that those two so-called "Snapdragon prototypes" being shown at CES this year... wait for it... don't use the Snapdragon platform. Now, that would've been just fine with us had Qualcomm made it clear that they were built using its existing chipsets, but they didn't. Here's the best part: Qualcomm actually contacted us with a minor correction on our original story (they wanted us to point out that their ARM-based cores are highly customized) without bothering to mention that our "Snapdragon-powered" statement was not accurate. Anyway, it turns out that the Anchorage and Fairbanks prototypes are merely meant to demonstrate "examples of what Snapdragon-enabled devices will feature," which begs the question: if the current MSM series chipsets are capable of the same functionality, aren't those probably the wrong features to be demonstrating? That behavior walks a fine line between poorly executed PR and outright deception, Qualcomm, and we'd ask that you not let it happen again.[Thanks, Sascha]
Tru2way TVs at CES 2008
We took a stroll around the CES floor, taking a straw poll on the state of tru2way among TV manufacturers. Our results were mixed -- three exhibitors had tru2way displays and four did not. Follow us after the break on our tour.
Hands-on with the latest TV Guide software (Comcast DVR)
CES is officially over and on the last day we went on the hunt for things we missed, and we got a chance to catch the latest TV Guide tru2way software. TV Guide is the company that makes the user interface for Comcast's -- among others -- set-top boxes. Not only is the latest software designed for tru2way devices, but overall it was really slick. We especially liked the all the new configuration options such as, custom channel lists, custom menus, and different font sizes; -- fit even more data on your 60-inch TV -- but the other new features were cool as well. Like the list of recorded shows with images next to them, or being able to turn off the video preview, different grids, StartOver, and the much improved VOD menus. While we didn't spend enough time with it to know if it stands up to your favorite, (TiVo) we have to say it's a step up from what we've seen from them in the past. But what's really cool is that this software will run on any tru2way HDTV, -- obviously the TV would have to have an integrated DVR for all the functionality -- which we should see hit the streets by the end of 2008. Also, while we were there we asked them about all those old analog TVs that depend on analog signals for TV Guide data, and they explained that they've deployed a solution to this problem years ago and everyone with a digital to analog converter box will have no problem continuing to receive guide data after the analog shutoff.More pics after the break.
Peavey's Riffmaster Guitar is more expensive than your Guitar Hero guitar
Peavey is gutting its regular guitars and inserting Guitar Hero components for its new "Riffmaster" series. In addition including a guitar that probably sounds better than a regular Peavey, the $2,000 kit includes a complete PA system and a floor monitor. Unfortunately, we found the guitar to be a bit heavy for Guitar Hero use, particularly when activating star power, and since the buttons are spaced the distance of regular guitar frets it was pretty hard to play. Not much info on a release, but it's coming soon.
Microsoft CES fashion show flaunts (some) good looking gear
Not content with Apple's design team running circles around the PC world, Microsoft has created a team dedicated to helping OEM manufacturers make their boxes less beige and boring. Ingredients may include: aluminum, leather, carbon fiber and, uhh, cow fur. Microsoft held a fashion show at CES this year to show off the fruits of the PC world's collective efforts, and luckily betanews was there to nab some shots (like the one above). While we're not quite ready to say we're looking forward to more cow fur laptops, recent PC designs like the XPS One give us hope for the future of the beige box.[Thanks, Shyamal]
Pioneer's 9mm-thick KURO plasma caught on video
Just in case an elaborate hands-on with Pioneer's 9mm-thick KURO plasma wasn't enough to satisfy, why not check out a video clip of it wowing crowds at CES? 'Course, we should mention that it looked infinitely better in person, but we're dealing with YouTube here, people. Click on through!
Hands-on with Samsung and Bang & Olufsen's svelte Serenata
We bumped into the Bang & Olufsen Seranata at Samsung and were sure you'd all love it's crazy design. This has been around for a while now, but it was our first opportunity to get our hands on it. First impressions? Impressive! The feel of the handset is total money, hefty, amazing material choices, and that wheel is almost addictive when you spin it. We popped it open and blasted some tunes and the quality really was good for such a small set, though it is definitely form over function here. We want, right now.%Gallery-13385%
PC Gizmo fills IM alerts with rainbows, unicorns, chocolate covered teddy bears
Meet PC Gizmo. Sure, it's a cheapo, USB-interfacing Nabaztag knock-off... but it loves you. Don't make PC Gizmo cry -- let it alert you to IMs, emails, VoIP calls, and its insatiable need for hugs. See PC Gizmo do its thing in the video after the break.