CES Overview
I spent a day wandering the floor at the Consumer Electronics Show. There are a variety of other sites and blogs that go into all sorts of detail about the show, and with over 2,000 exhibitors and 100,000 attendees, it would take a lot of web pages to cover, so I will just post some quick impressions here.

Coolest New Product - For me, it was the new "Multimedia Players" that were introduced from Creative Labs and Archos. These are going to be the Next Big Thing for consumers, essentially adding video and pictures to MP3 players.



These products essentially add an LCD screen to an Apple iPod (Apple, where is yours?), so you can download movies, pictures and the like to enjoy with your music. The Creative guy in the booth claimed if you download movies using the Windows standard, you could get three full-length movies on the 80GB drive, so this could become THE thing to have for long-distance travelers. When queried about battery life, he admitted that it would be a little weak, so you would want an extra. Estimated retail price is ~$600-700. These products are not yet ready, but are being slated for mass production in the middle of the year.

These products must have the Motion Picture industry sweating. I believe swapping/downloading of movies hasn't been a big deal since most people don't watch movies on their PC, but with the introduction of a small portable device with a small, low-quality screen, I think on-line movie swapping will take off.


Most Unique Products

TV Mirror - It's a TV! It's a Mirror! It's Two Things in One! If turned off, an ordinary mirror is displayed by the LCD display (you can't tell it's an LCD), but if turned on, it becomes a TV. The main market is going to be hotel rooms and the like, although it will probably make it into a small share of people's homes.




3D, No Glasses - Sharp's 3D displays were also pretty neat (no pics). You get a 3D view without the need for special glasses, although, for me, it only worked with still pictures and not video. The main market seems to be technical and scientific, although Sharp hopes to get it into consumers' hands with PC games and the like.

A Real, Virtual Keyboard - I had the chance to play with a virtual keyboard in the Panasonic booth. It is REALLY neat. The "feedback" I wondered about in this post is provided by a soft "clicking" noise. Typing on the countertop, I found I could type nearly as fast as on a keyboard. No commitment to when this will be on the market.




Man's New Best Friend - Sony's QRIO robot is only a demo for trade shows (they call him their "ambassador"), but it is quite impressive. He walks on two feet and has very fluid motion of his arms and legs, thanks to the help of 38 motors (he's about 18" high). Obviously this could eventually become a product, but with their AIBO robot dogs currently $1500, I don't think we will see the QRIO on the market any time soon since it is much more advanced (meaning MUCH more expensive).





Trends

The main overlying themes I noticed at the show could be grouped as follows:

The Usual: More Capacity, Smaller, Cheaper, Faster - This is the main drive of this industry and a part of my Immutable Laws of Consumer Electronics. One specific item I will point out is the move to replace the red laser in your CD and DVD players with a blue laser. Several of the major OEMs are getting their Blue Light products out of the lab, and these will hold 4x-10x the capacity of existing CDs and DVDs. Expect these to hit the market in the next year.

Flat Panel - EVERYTHING was flat panel. The tubed TV will be going the way of the black-and-white TV in the next decade. LCD's still haven't made it to the size of Plasma, but hopefully will get there soon.

Digital Broadcasting and HDTV - There was a big push by both cable and satellite providers for direct digital broadcast. And if you do that, you will need a (flat panel) High Definition TV (HDTV). And if you do that, your DVD will need to be upgraded to a High Definition DVD (HD-DVD). And if you do that, you might as well upgrade your camcorder to HD format as well. So this whole movement goes with the strategy of changing format so consumers will need to upgrade everything they have (similar things happened with tapes to CD, VHS to DVD, etc.).

Wireless Connectivity - WIFI for your PC is old news. Connecting your TV set-top box and stereo wirelessly to your PC is relatively new. I thought this would be a big push of this year's show, and while present, it was not as big as I thought it would be, so wireless consumer products are going get a slow roll-out rather than a big one.

Automotive Electronics - I am sure there were some new items in this area, but this area of the show had other man-made silicon silicone items on display. (There were about 8 automotive "models" signing posters all around this area, so it was a bit distracting).




Update: Master of None has a link to a video of the QRIO robot dancing, giving a good idea of its capabilities.

posted by Director_Mitch @ 3:20 PM (Permalink)
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Off to CES
The Consumer Electronics Show starts tomorrow in Vegas (yeah, baby!) and I will be there to check out new products and trends, so no blogging again until Friday when I will give my views from the show.

posted by Director_Mitch @ 4:52 PM (Permalink)
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Merry Christmas!
What, you say it was a couple of weeks ago? WRONG, if you are Orthodox, or "Old Calendar" Catholic.

When the calendar was updated from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar in the sixteenth century, many didn't recognize the Papal edict (such as the Orthodox Catholics, who don't recognize the Pope), and Catholic Bishops in certain areas didn't want to change the time Christmas was celebrated since they felt it was "more important to be spiritually correct than astronomically correct" (Ukrainian Catholics are an example, but are now split, with some being "old calendar" and some being "new calendar").

The move from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar was originally 10 days in 1528, but in the continuing centuries, the lag between the two calendars increased to 13 days, placing Christmas on Jan 7.

I know several people celebrating Christmas today, and calling them last night to wish them a Merry Christmas, I asked "Isn't it WEIRD celebrating Christmas this late?"

They responded that they grew up that way, so it isn't "weird". In addition, they always benefited from the "after Christmas" sales since they could buy at the end of December and open presents in January.

So I guess they also have an excuse to celebrate "New Years" next week, although the ball won't be dropping on Times Square again.

posted by Director_Mitch @ 9:51 AM (Permalink)
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How Well Do YOU Know Your Communist Genocides?
Commies killed tens of millions more than the Nazis during the 20th century, but people who praise Communism in the U.S. keep their jobs (usually in acting and media) compared to those who praise fascism, who are (rightfully) drummed out of whatever public position they hold. School children are drilled about the 15+ million murdered during the Nazi holocaust but are taught nothing of the 30+ million killed under Mao or the 30+ million killed under Stalin.

This is a long test, but very educational and worth your time.

Hat Tip: Dean's World

posted by Director_Mitch @ 3:22 PM (Permalink)
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Kewel - but $100 too Expensive
Jobs (head of Apple, not two of the guy from the Old Testament) announced the new "mini-iPod". This could be a real killer to the MP3 players down in the $100 range, like the Rio, but at $250, this is barely less than the "full sized" iPod. Hopefully Apple will slide the price down over time.

The "Old" iPod on the left, new one on the right




The pic links to Apple's site, or see more at Gizmodo.


posted by Director_Mitch @ 2:42 PM (Permalink)
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Finally, Democracy in Texas
It seems that a court has held up the Texas redistricting plan, which will likely send more Republicans to congress.

As someone who grew up in Texas and voted in my first six or so elections in that state, I remember quite clearly the games the democrats played in order to stay in power. At one point I was gerrymandered into a democratic district with a street-wide "tendril" that came out of North Houston and then enclosed my neighborhood. In other words, two neighborhoods in two different parts of the city were connected by a line stretching through the city, but it was one "district".

So now that EVERY state-wide office is held by Republicans, both senate seats have been Republican for some time, and the fact that Texas voted Republican in presidential elections for nearly a quarter century (2000-Bush, 1996-Dole, 1992-Bush, 1988-Bush, 1984-Reagan, 1980-Reagan), I think the new plan is closer to the will of the people.

After all, shouldn't a state that is majority-Republican send a majority of Republicans to congress?


posted by Director_Mitch @ 1:50 PM (Permalink)
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Managing Your Digital Trail
The site Techdirt links over to an article over at Fast Company about your "digital trail", what it means for job applicants, and expands the thought to companies and service industries.

It's an interesting article, but I think he is mixing two separate issues: a personal digital trail, which is somewhat manageable, and a business digital trail, which isn't. He also misses the point of a "reference" - a reference is someone who you worked with (usually a boss) who can talk specifically about your work history - not past comments on some web site or a random comment from your blog.

But the idea of a "digital footprint", however, IS a valid issue for job applicants and is something people should manage.

It is now common practice now for hiring managers to "Google" job applicants, and most career counselors tell you to Google yourself every so often to see what shows up. For this reason, it is advisable to be careful where/what you post since you never know when your words my come back to haunt you. If you must post in a non-professional capacity, it is advisable to do it under an assumed name.

A Google search under my own (real) name turns up professional articles I have written and press interviews where I have been quoted, but it certainly doesn't turn up this blog, or my dozens of comments scattered around the blogosphere. While I probably wouldn't WANT to work for some left-wing wacko who would disqualify me because of this site, I would rather manage what hiring managers and others know about me and when they know it. I can easily tell someone about this blog directly during an interview if I want to, but if it is under my own name, I lose control of my personal data and don't know if the person I am talking to knows about it or not.

This is similar to my earlier advise not to post your full resume out on the internet. The most important thing you can do is manage what people know about you since it gives you an advantage. If you don't, people with the power to hire you could come up with the wrong impression of what you are really like before even meeting you.

Are there exceptions? I know lots of people who post political, religious and social commentary under their own names and simply see it as a way of advertising (I want to work for/with people/companies that I fit with and this blog is a way of advertising who I am), or they simply don't care or worry about what others may think. And of course journalists, professional pundits, business owners (don't have to worry about hiring managers), and those whose blogs are a sort of advertising (lawyers, for example) don't have to worry.

But for the average worker planning to work at a "typical" company, the best bet for career management is to get your name out there in a professional capacity, but otherwise avoid publishing it.


posted by Director_Mitch @ 10:03 AM (Permalink)
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Since I Am Busy Today...
And can't blog much, go check out the Bear Flag League Roundup over at the SoCal Law Review.

posted by Director_Mitch @ 3:46 PM (Permalink)
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Mmmmmmm.....Beeeeeef.....
The Mrs. and I last night went to Flemings, a local steak house. You go here if you want to eat beef since there isn't much else on the menu. A vegetarian would go away hungry.

It was Sunday night and the place was packed. No concern of mad cows going on here, which sort of corresponds to the latest polling data that Americans are by and large unconcerned about mad cow (funny, 75% of Americans are unconcerned, but the lead is always that "One in Four Concerned").

Of course, more people died eating vegetables in 2003 than from mad cows.


posted by Director_Mitch @ 9:10 AM (Permalink)
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