2008 CES Notebook: Monday's sampling (San Diego Transcript)

The crowds are huge, the aisles filled, making it impossible to make scheduled appointments on time. But that’s OK because everywhere you turn there’s something to see. Large screen images, blaring music and companies large and small vying for attention.

I’ve spent most of Monday just in part of the South Hall, a fraction of all the exhibits. I also attended the Digital Experience press event Sunday night in Caesar’s ballroom, where about 200 companies displayed their products in a more manageable environment. Between the two here’s some of the interesting products I’ve seen.

3M introduced a tiny LED-illuminated projection engine designed to be built into virtually any personal electronic device, even a cell phone. Roughly the size of a wireless earpiece and less than half an inch thick, the 3M mobile projection engine delivers VGA resolution images and is available today.

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Human Touch is showing its thin, portable and heated HT-1470 Back Massage Pad. Designed to be ultra-slim and ergonomic, the pad fits almost any chair or couch and features a smart strap for easy transfer from the home or office. $250. www.humantouch.com.

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SentrySafe launched the world's first fire-resistant/waterproof hard drive that protects data from fire and water disasters, as well as computer crashes and theft. SentrySafe partnered with Maxtor to develop the product. 80GB for $259.99 and 160GB for $339.99. One of those “why didn’t I think of that” ideas. www.sentrysafe.com.

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Celestron introduced new products for exploring the world of science, SkyScout Scope, SkyScout Connect, the LCD Digital Microscope and the Handheld Digital Microscope. One lets you identify stars and planets and another lets you magnify tiny objects onto a monitor.

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Hitachi created a new projector that can be positioned just 16 inches from the screen to create a 60-inch image. The CP-A100 3LCD projector eliminates the problem of presenters obstructing the projected image by standing in front of the screen. av.hitachi.com/

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Thomson and Google have partnered to save money on 411 business information calls by integrating a one-touch, auto-dial GOOG-411 button into many of its latest GE-branded phones to provide business directory assistance service. Of course you can program any phone’s memory to do the same.

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Splashpower is demonstrating its universal wireless charging system for powering mobile devices. The Splashpower charging base is a universal wireless charging base that enables consumers to recharge portable electronic devices from cell phones to iPods -- without the need for wires, contacts or connectors. www.cwseda.com.

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Lots of digital picture frames from Philips, HP, Kodak and many others. Smartparts Inc. unveiled the world's largest -- the 32-inch SP3200. It has a 16:9 widescreen LCD panel that displays photos in high-definition with a resolution of 1366-by-768.

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I had a chance to try some of the many GPS personal navigators, including models from Garmin, TomTom and HP.

The HP iPAQ 310 Travel Companion is a sleek pocket-size unit with a 4.3-inch display that provides a unique 3D display that actually shows buildings. $450.

TomTom’s latest and most advanced GPS is its GO920T, which comes preloaded with maps of the United States, Canada and Europe. It has a free one-year subscription for traffic, iPod compatibility, and a Help Me! feature that lets you push a button to access local emergency services such as hospitals or police.
There are even GPS devices for pet owners and motorcycle users. Zoombak was one of several companies showing GPS locators for dogs. It’s a device that hooks to the dog’s collar and sends out location signals retrievable on the Internet or through e-mail. $199 plus subscription.

San Diego-based DriveOK has introduced a GPS device for motorcycles that tracks the cycle and sends out a signal if the motorcycle is moved or if the driver experiences a fall. www.driveok.com/

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Texas Instruments, trying to stay relevant with its DLP projection TV technology in the face of LCD and plasma TV competition, is displaying something called DLP -- DualView technology that displays two different programs on the screen. Viewers are required to wear special glasses.

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San Diego-based Wireless Garden has unveiled a technologically-advanced antenna that lets you receive HD programming on your digital TV that’s better quality than you can get from cable or satellite. $20. wirelessgarden.com.

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There are a huge number of small portable devices that let you connect to the Internet, listen to music and watch TV. Comcast showed a pocket-sized digital video recorder to go.
Qualcomm is showing proof-of-concept products utilizing their advanced Snapdragon processor technology that received lots of interest.

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Also, many companies are showing devices that allow you to connect your computer, TV, and even cell phone together wirelessly at home. Sony is showing Bravia TVs with add-on wireless capability and Hewlett Packard displayed new flat panel TVs with built-in network adapters.

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Epson announced the release of the Epson Stylus Photo R1900, a 13-inch printer designed for advanced photographers and graphic designers that improves on the R180. The printer produces glossy color photographic prints using Epson UltraChrome Hi-Gloss 2 ink, featuring an improved gloss coating and new red and orange ink cartridges.

HP showed a new portable inkjet printer in a leather case, the H470. About $400.

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SanDisk introduced lots of new products, including a the Cruzer Titanium Plus, a 4GB USB flash drive that offers automatic online backup. Every file you save to the drive is backed up offline through Amazon. Available in March for $60.

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A new line of VideoHD cards were announced for use in the new HD movie cameras from Sony, Canon and Panasonic. They’re designed to permanently store movies and are supplied with cases and labels -- just like the old tape cassette format. Like tape cassettes they’re labeled by their capacity in minutes.