I have somewhat of a bias when it comes to technology. As much of a gadget fan as I am, I am most excited about those products that really address some of the basic needs that people have and make life just a little bit simpler and more organized. And frankly, the home is where the sweet spot is. The refrigerator is not a very sexy product and digital frames (like iPod docks) are now ubiquitous and a dime a dozen. But the combination of a refrigerator with a digital frame is one of those simple mashed-up ideas that are inspired.
The kitchen is the centerpoint of the modern home, still much more so than the family room with that enormous flat screen. The Westinghouse refrigerator elegantly answers a few problems: (1) What do I do with all those digital photos that never see the light of day on my computer, (2) How do I get those stupid magnets off my expensive stainless steel appliances, and (3) How do I engage my family in the place that they spend the most time without turning on another TV?
I know it’s an unusual choice for a top pick with all this other cool stuff around, but in terms of practical use and ready to market availability, this is on a short list of the things I came away wanting immediately.
Who won the race for best gadget at CES? Al Gore, that’s who. Well, not specifically, but there was a decidedly “Green” tint to this year’s judges’ choice for ultimate winner.
The Phillips Eco TV, a 42″ fat panel that lets you adjust the amount of power that you use is a nice nod to the idea that many of the products that we saw at CES 2008 will not only cost you big money for wanting have the biggest and the fanciest, but they’ll also eat up your power bills. Not eco-friendly at all. To emphasize this point, The New York Times Magazine ran an article Sunday on where old cellphone go to die, and the vast amounts of valuable minerals mined and then discarded when we throw away one phone to get the coolest new thing. According to the piece, some 220 pounds of earth must be manipulated to gather the materials needed for every one cellphone. The Phillips product smartly plays to the audience that is legitimately concerned about the impact of technology on the environment.
But is the Eco-TV really the Best Product of CES? In my opinion, not really. So in these next few items, my personal best of CES….
The Clix: An MP4 Video Player, Music Player, FM Tuner, Voice Recorder and Text Viewer that comes in 2BG, 4GB and 8GB versions.
The M Player: A super tiny, cute for your kids 1GB MP3 player with a Mickey Mouse theme done in concert with Disney.
Hard to explain, but let’s give it a try:
Panasonic’s Living Wall projects a customizable living room/mural onto your wall space (complete with virtual fireplace, aquarium and flat panel TV. The mural is actually an interface with which you can control through motion detection your music, movies, home security and (if you have complimentary cameras for the system) call up live pictures from any room in the house and lets you, for example, watch the baby while doing the dishes or entertaining.
The virtual TV and aquarium are linked into multimedia, so when you kids want to have fun they can wave at the aquarium on the wall and it turn the entire wall into a virtual Great Barrier Reef that they can navigate around. Ditto for the TV, which will be linked to travel documentaries that will take to the top of mountains or let you explore Beijing streets.
In a word, remarkable. Will it ever come to market? And does anybody even have a wall big and bare enough for it to make sense. No telling, but you can dream…
Talked about for years but now come to fruition in a greatly improved state is the XO laptop, the tool touted as the single best opportunity to bring information to children and families in the developing world, with a major focus on Africa.
While Microsoft and Intel jumped out of famed One Laptop Per Child launched by Nicholas Negroponte at MIT, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has taken over the chip-based role in the project and aggresively moved the concept further.
The devices share a “mesh network” that connects the devices to one another without the need for Wi-Fi. The laptops also address the uniqueness of weather and usage conditions, with a design that limits dust prevention, holds up under heat and is resistant to water. In locations without power, a crank system that operates similar to emergency radios, can power the PC for infinitely sustainable battery usage.
Better still, the program has launched a fundraising program that allows individuals to not only donate but choose which country you want to the computer to go to.
The Argo Cinema 2 3D Private Viewer, billed as the world’s first private entertainment system, takes the idea of tuning out to a new level. An inspired mesh of 3D glasses meets earphones meets DVD player, the Argo’s screen can only be seen by you, letting you watch R-rated movies on the airplane without getting dirty looks from the person sitting next to you. From company 22moo International. The set will retail at $549.00.
Not everything has to have a major world-shaking purpose. Sometimes it’s cool to just be cool because you can. That said, these were some of the cooler things in the innovation court…
Aside from the ability to watch Thelma on Good Times in lifesize, there are other practical applications of 108″ of TV screen: The Aquos Wall. With the Wall technology, Sharp comes up with about the closest thing to actual interactive television, by turning the screen into a widget-based interface, similar to the dashboard on a Mac. In this formation, the TV monitor function shrinks to 52″ while web-connected screen widgets pull down news, weather, calendars, photos, maps and other useful content from the web.
*A clear Contender for My Coolest Things at CES
