Goodbye From CES 2010

By Bill Hartnett, Mark Lukasiewicz

Another CES is over, and our well-fed, if not well-rested, NBC Universal team is headed to points East -- and West. Most of us are returning home to New York, but some members of the team are packing up the technical guts of our booth for the trek North, to the Vancouver Games. The Games were the main focus of our booth this year, as thousands of people stopped by to learn more about the extensive multi-platform coverage we'll be unveiling across NBCU's networks and platforms in just a few weeks. And in a few days we'll know the identity of our Olympics sweepstakes winners -- who will be taking a free trip to Vancouver to enjoy some of the Olympics action !

As always, the NBC Universal CES booth has been a massive undertaking -- but with such an awesome team at work it went incredibly smoothly. It's no easy task to design and build a booth that is appealing to show visitors AND functional for the broadcast, cable and digital producers who generate hours of programming in a matter of days.

We couldn't do it without our partners at Sharp -- whose gorgeous screens powered all the media in our booth, on our stages, and in the Sharp / NBC Universal Multimedia Lounge ... or the terrific team at Jack Morton and its Production Design Group, who come up with spectacular eye-catching designs for our booth every year (check out the BizBash top 10 at CES, including our booth) ... or the amazing team of engineers and technicians from the NBC Long Island City shop who assemble, run, and pack up an amazing broadcast and streaming operation here every year.

And we can't leave CES 2010 without a special word about Jay Linden - NBCU's EVP of strategic partnerships and one of the founding fathers of NBCU's presence at CES at the 2008 show. Jay retires from NBCU next month: we couldn't have done this without him and we'll miss him !! Good luck, Jay !!

It's been a great CES. See you in 2011 !!

CES 2010: Going, going, gone!

By Giacinta Pace, NBC Universal

I must be psychic. A few weeks ago on this very blog I predicted that CES 2010 would be over in a flash and here we are at the end of the road. It is the final hour of the show and Jon Accarrino and I are the last bloggers standing or sitting in the NBCU Sharp Multimedia Lounge.

I have seen so many great things, met countless amazing people, but most of all I am leaving here smarter, better and faster than when I arrived. Helping to host in the "blogger" lounge has been a great experience that I will never forget. I can't wait to get home and tell everyone that the NBCU lounge hosted some of the top bloggers in the world and I got to meet them all!

Most of my time was spent helping NBCU staff with show registrations, tending to catering issues in our double wide trailers and helping out in the booth's blogger lounge. This morning I was lucky enough to squeeze in a whole hour of looking at innovation at its best and it was a real treat. 3D TV (hey that rhymes) has been a big hit at CES this year, but I want to tell you all what MY 3 favorites have been.

I LOVE that there is technology that exists that allows me to paint my fingernails with a picture of myself. Thanks ArtPro Nail Printer for that fun advancement in technology. I also had a great time chatting with OrigAudio's Jason and Mike about their innovative speaker systems. They are friendly twenty-somethings with great vision and great products. Stick Clean has a cleaning cloth for phones, cameras, computers, etc. that can stick back on the device when you are done using it for quick and easy access.

Well that is it for me for now until CES 2011 when there will be more wonders to see. Thanks NBCU for giving me the opportunity to be here for my third year in a row, let's do it again next year.

Thank You Bloggers, Tweeters and Podcasters! #itwasfun

By Jon Accarrino & Giacinta Pace, NBC Universal

CES is always a whirlwind. After months of planning and preparation, the 4 days of CES always seem to fly by. We just wanted to thank all the podcasers, tweeters and bloggers who spent time on our broadcast stages and in the Sharp NBC Universal Multimedia Lounge. And a huge thank you to Sharp for sponsoring the lounge again this year!

We had a great time hanging out with everyone, reading your blogs and watching your podcasts. Be sure to check out all your photos on our Flickr page. Just think, CES 2011 is only a few hundred days away! See you all again soon. #itwasfun

• Tim Conneally, betanews
• Andrew Kippen, Boxee
• Peter Smith, Candella
• Carolyn Slater, CES
• Trevor Curwin, CNBC.com
  
• Wayne Karrfalt, Cynopsis Media
• Jay Adelson, digg
• Peter Pachal, DVICE.com
• Leslie Shapiro, DVICE.com
• Curtis Walker, DVICE.com
• Charlie White, DVICE.com
• Tom Newman, Fogview.com
• Troy Gayle, Gadget-T.com
• Jack Ellis, GeekNewsCentral.com
• Jeffrey Powers, Geekazine.com
• Todd Cochrane, GeekNewsCentral.com
• Rob Blatt, GeekNewsCentral.com
• Dan Woolsey, TheGrio.com
• Mike Bertolino, Hack College
• Chris Lesinski, Hack College
• Kelly Sutton, Hack College
• Darren Kitchen, Hak5
• Shannon Morse, Hak5
• Patrick Norton, HD Nation
• Robert Heron, HD Nation
• Dave Brown, Holiday Matinee
• Partick Larsen, Jack Morton
• Cori Weiss, Jack Morton
• Joseph Jaffe, Jaffe Juice
• Ken Graffeo, JAGTAG
• Antonietta Pace, New York City Department of Education
• Mark Milian, Los Angeles Times
• Chris Ariens, Mediabistro.com
• Jon Accarrino, NBC Universal
• Tausha Cowan, NBC Universal
• Carly Greenberg, NBC Universal
• Bill Hartnett, NBC Universal
• Brett Holey, NBC Universal
• Devin Johnson, NBC Universal
• Nick Johnson, NBC Universal
• Brett Joss, NBC Universal
• Melissa Kondak, NBC Universal
• Jay Linden, NBC Universal
• Mark Lukasiewicz, NBC Universal
• Dave MacKinnon, NBC Universal
• Molly McCaskill, NBC Universal
• Stacey Naggiar, NBC Universal
• Chris Nelson, NBC Universal
• Bonnie Optekman, NBC Universal
• Giacinta Pace, NBC Universal
• Tim Peek, NBC Universal
• Katie Primm, NBC Universal
• Darren Sherriff, NBC Universal
• Marc Siry, NBC Universal
• Mary Somers, NBC Universal
• Jim Starzynski, NBC Universal
• Brian Ford, newsvine.com
• Alex Lee, newsvine.com
• Calvin Tang, newsvine.com
• Rohit Bhargava, Ogilvy
• Christine Ngo, Ogilvy
• Jennifer Kavanagh, Oxygen
• Staci Kramer, paidContent.org
• Patrick Roanhouse, The Plan8 Podcast
• Ben Sedaghat, Radius Products
• Ted Schilowitz, Red Digital
• Serafina Kernberger, Revision3
• Jim Louderback, Revision3
• Ryan Vance, Revision3
• Roger Chang, Revision3
• Ryan Duame, Revision3
• Aaron Broder, Scholastic
• Andy McCaskey, SDRNews.com
• Ron Kenedi, Sharp
• Chris Loncto, Sharp
• Bruce Tripido, Sharp
• Rob Blatt, TechPodcasts.com
• Kara Karsten, TechPodcasts.com
• Scott Elliott, Techzecs.com
• Matt Cohen, Tekserve
• Veronica Belmont, Tekzilla
• Partick Norton, Tekzilla
• Ryan Osborn, TODAY Show
  
• Tim Street, 1TimStreet.com

Firsts and Fabulous Flatscreens

By Stacey Naggiar, NBC Universal

The longest five days of my life are coming to a close at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.  I'm exhausted, my feet hurt, my back hurts, and I lost a substantial amount of money for a 22 year old.  Nonetheless, I am smiling, thinking about all the exciting things I've done and the wonderful people I've met here, my first in time Las Vegas, and my first time at CES.

As an NBCU employee in Charlotte, NC I came to CES as an "outsider" among the majority of employees from NY.  I had apprehensions about being the odd-man-out and probably the most inexperienced, but I was met with overwhelming warmth and welcome from my NYC colleagues.  Never have I been made to feel a part of something so quickly.  Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who made my first experience as a NBCU brand ambassador a special one!

Wake up calls at 12am and 10 hour days on my feet... this wasn't quite the picture I had in my mind of what my first time in Vegas would be like.  Let's just say on my next trip to Vegas, there will be many many other "firsts" that I'll have to give a try.  But there is one first I am very proud of, and ... a little embarrassed about too.  My first shot at gambling and my first time at the craps tables.  After standing around for an hour trying to follow the dice, chips and lingo I finally picked up enough to put down some money. On my first roll I launched the die across the table only to hit the table attendants hands.  I was properly scolded for throwing too hard.  It didn't take too long before I crapped out.  Maybe I'll have better luck next time.... it was just so hard to walk away!

It would be insensitive to talk about my firsts in Vegas and not mention the awesomeness that is CES.  As a self-proclaimed movie nerd, this place is my heaven.  Surround-sound systems that can literally blow your mind, crystal clear HDTVs with gorgeous images, the new and exciting 3D TVs and my favorite, the fabulously thin flatscreens.  Flatscreens the thickness (or "thinness" rather) of a few pieces of paper.  All I can think is I want it, I want it, I want it, and I wouldn't complain if I could get one of the 3D TVs either!  But I suppose it just wasn't mean to be on my first trip to Vegas that I'd walk away from the craps tables with enough money to buy a new flatscreen.

Headed to the airport in a few hours for what I'm sure will be a "fabulous" five-hour-flight home in a middle seat... I am grateful more than anything for my first time in Las Vegas, my first time as a brand ambassador and my first time at CES.  Most of all I'm thankful for this lovely group of people I had the opportunity to work with and hope that we all stay in touch!

How the Sharp NBCU Blogger Lounge Saved My CES

Katie, Chris & Kelly on the broadcast stage in the 2010 NBCU CES booth

CES 2010: Broken iPhones and Ankles

By Mary J. Somers, NBC Universal

I had never been to Las Vegas until now, but I was convinced that Lady Luck would shine on me for some strange reason. Maybe it was all the great headlines I envisioned circling the globe: "First time gambler hits jackpot- Now richest woman in the universe!!" Or "CES first-timer helps make NBC the most popular and exciting booth at the show - network ratings soar!!" I admit, these were lofty dreams, and would've been lucky breaks for sure. What I didn't know is that I'd experience plenty of breaks... just not quite so lucky.

It's funny that at the Consumer Electronics Show, the first thing to break would BE my consumer electronics. Actually, it's not really funny at all when you look at this picture.

Did you cringe? Most do. The response I normally get when showing this pic is one of physical pain, sorrow, and sympathy - as if I lost a loved one. And really, I did. My iPhone was a trooper, and didn't deserve such an untimely death. But on the morning of January 7, Lady Luck shone her evil, evil eye on me, and forced my phone to fall out of my pocket while I entered a cab in front of Caesars. We hadn't even fully pulled away before it was runover by another cab. It was devastating, it was damaging, and it was the end of the road for my little computer phone. Even as I type this blog on my loaner iPhone, I can feel the loaner-ness of it, and I mourn my loss anew. Unlucky break #1 hit me where it hurt, and the aftershocks are still being felt as I prepare to fight the crowds at the Apple Store in the Caesar's Forum Shops.

I actually bounced back pretty quickly from this broken iPhone incident. I vowed not to lose my optimistic attitude and refused to let it ruin my Vegas/CES experience. This was offensive to cruel, petty, witchy Lady Luck, so the next break REALLY hit where it hurt. As in, I'm still in physical pain.

So maybe "bouncing back" was the wrong thing to do after the iPhone incident, because as I literally bounced around the NBC booth in an attempt to engage passerbys in our display, I rolled my ankle. Break #2. I guess it isn't an ACTUAL break - thank God- but it's close enough.

So now I type on this loaner phone with an elevated ankle, and I wonder what Lady Luck is really trying to break about me. I mean WHAT IS IT that she wants?? Then I realize it must be this: I might be broken in body and technology, but I just can't be broken in spirit.

This CES experience has been amazing, and nothing that happened or will happen can change that. Our booth is filled with people interested in what we do and how we do it. When we broadcast live, I see how excited the crowd is to watch TV magic and i remember why I got into this business in the first place. My fellow brand ambassadors are hysterical and helpful and make me proud to be one of them. I could go on and on. It's been an AWESOME experience Lady Luck, so HA. Take that.

Tonight, I'm taking this optimistic unbroken spirit to a casino with my friends- my coworkers- and Ill tempt that Goddess of Fortune one last time at the craps tables. And you know what? If I walk away empty handed, it'll definitely "break the bank" as they say. But honestly, that's not Lady Luck, that's just Vegas.

TheGrio at CES!

By Dan Woolsey, theGrio.com

This year the floor is covered with hot cool stuff that you need to keep an eye out for from cases for your BB that can protect you from the phone's radiation (from Pong Research) to a fully integrated nav/music/just plain cool system for your car (Panasonic AVIC X920 BT).

But the big thing this year has to be 3D. 3D TV, 3D video cameras, 3D video games, 3D, 3D, 3D!! You still need glasses for most of them, and the effect is good, but not great.  I don't want to bring anyone down, but it still messes with your eyes a bit and I can't see myself sitting at home with the glasses on for any serious amount of time.

3D video games may be another story. The naturally geek-friendly world of gaming lends itself to accepting gadgetry (including glasses) for hours at a time and the Sony OLED screen that had 3D game samples looked the best out of any of the 3D samplings. Granted, this may have been the incredible Sony OLED display.

So get ready for rich family members and friends to buy 3D TVs and invite you over, but wait at least a few years to run out and get your own. In the meantime, you have a great year of gadgets coming at you.

Be sure to look for our piece next week on our top picks from CES on thegrio.com.

Impressions from CES 2010

Brett Holey, NBC Nightly News

A SHRINKING GIANT IS STILL A GIANT

If the Jolly Green Giant lost 1/3 of his height... he'd still be able to kick your butt. But if you'd seen him grow up, you might not be quite as intimidated as you used to be.

I first came to CES over 20 years ago and I've seen it grow from huge, to unbelievably huge. But my first and clearest impression this year is that the recession has taken its pound of flesh and then some from the annual geek fest in Sin City.

Don't get me wrong It is still gargantuan and glitzy and more than any mortal can really cover in 4 days but it is somehow less over-the-top than years past. Now to some first-timers this may be hard to believe but it may be like a Vegas show girl appearing in just the sequined body suit, sans the 3-foot feathered head dress.

Other big impressions of CES 2010....

3D TV...(IF THEY BUILD IT, WILL THE AUDIENCE COME?) 

The industry's major television manufacturers have set aside their annual mine's bigger than yours contest and have joined in a common chorus..."You need 3D."

They are all showing they're own version of 3D; hoping to use "Avatar" as a giant lead-blocker into your living room. They all use some version of glasses, that create varying degrees of discomfort, or a lenticular screens that give varying degrees of headache. Yet it is a unison chorus that manufacturers and production companies seem to be singing. We'll see if the audience joins in.

The best 3D image I've seen here is on a 24" Sony OLED screen playing the video game "MLB 10 'The Show'" on a PS3. They were showing a Yankees, Phillies game and I felt like I was Jorge Posada catching the game. 

Panasonic's 152" plasma screen wins the biggest, coolest award TV AS COMPUTER / COMPUTER AS TV.

More and more TVs are including web access, widgets and apps to use right on your screen. There's Skype built in and all your handy web tools right there in your what is still known as your TV. Of course PCs have morphed into all manner of devices to provide video via the web and anyplace you want to get it. And in between are a plenty of new devices to bring the web right to your screen. Two of the more promising ones are from iOmega and the "Boxee" box from D-Link which won the "last gadget standing" competition... the CES equivalent of winning best in show at Westminster. (And a bit like a little dog beating the big beauties.) It has a simple yet clever remote and a good looking interface. WHERE HAVE YOU GONE PC? 

The major PC manufacturers have less presence than they have in years yet computers are part of everything. 

Of those PC makers here the biggest push seems to be netbooks, tablets and form factors combing both. 

Lenovo is showing (behind closed doors) a netbook that the screen pulls off to become a tablet.

A company called Entourage Edge was showing a dual-screen device that is half netbook, half eReader. (Promising but I would guess many buyers may be waiting to see what is coming from Apple and Google).

NEED A NEW WAY TO SPY ON YOUR NEIGHBORS AND HAVE FUN DOING IT? 

Far and away, my favorite toy at the show is the AR Drone from a French company called Parrot (www.parrot.com). It's a four-bladed, remote-control helicopter with a built in camera that you can control with your iPhone. It looks like something out of Avatar but could be very handy to see what your neighbor is doing on the other side of that big fence or maybe to get your own aerial coverage of junior's soccer game. That's all for now... back out for a last spin on the floor. Maybe more tomorrow.

Favorite thing at CES?

By Mark Lukasiewicz, NBC Universal

Favorite thing at CES? Hard to know since I've barely seen the show!! Keeping tabs on everything inside the NBCU booth keeps me pretty attached to "the fishbowl" a small office/control room where I sit with Tim Wong, Jack Morton's technical director, and monitor what's happening on our multiple stages and on the 70+ monitors around the booth.

Most fun? Having my kids at home use the controllable webcam suspended above the booth to find me - live. Every year at CES, I wear what I call my "where's waldo" red NBC baseball cap to make sure my team can find me in the crowd -- it makes it easy to spot me on the webcam, too.

Saturday is always a little quieter in the booth, though. The major news coverage from CES is over ... and after two days of non-stop television production for CNBC, along with MSNBC and the NBC Stations, the main stage at Central Hall #9836 has been taken over by some great web shows, such as Hack College, Tech Podcasts Network and Plan 8. And our Sharp / NBC Universal Multimedia Lounge remains busy with a steady stream of bloggers enjoying the comfortable chairs and the live broadcast of the Jets/Bengals game -- airing right now on NBC.

There's no question CES 2010 feels much different than 2009. The pessimism of a year ago has given way to some cautious optimism in the industry represented here ... and some genuine excitement about the products on display, especially 3D TV and the incredible array of interconnected mobile devices. The big debate among our own team here: will wearing glasses to watch 3D in your own home feel like too much of an impediment to make 3D really take off?

Well, in the meantime, there's always 3D TV -- Rachel Maddow style!!

Flat Panel Aesthetics @ CES 2010

By Bruce Tripido, Sharp USA

With each passing year of the Consumer Electronics Show, TV manufacturers up the ante on design, form factor and overall aesthetics of flat panel HDTV's.  The trend has been toward thinner (depth), new materials utilized in the manufacturing process (acrylics, lucite etc.), the integration of color (they're not all just black or silver any more) and an overall pushing of the envelope to make the appearance something to brag about in your home.  This year's show does not disappoint.  Since we achieved high definition resolution as the everyday standard, augmenting legacy specifications and performance metrics alone is not satisfactory.  Sure, the refresh rates are faster, the contrast ratios are higher and we are all adding web derived content (both streaming and static) at an exponential clip - but the product designs are more visually arresting than ever. 

At Sharp, we learned a valuable lesson last year, which was that having the best image quality in the industry is only part of the equation for success.  That technology needs to be housed in a thin and beautiful chassis.  So for 2010 we've responded by creating not one, not two, but three world-class edge-lit series of LED backlit LCD TV's.  The design direction includes a square acrylic base, a chrome "neck" and a sleek chassis with rounded corners and a "full flat" effect with the front glass running from edge to edge of the set - both vertically as well as horizontally.  The TV's are a svelte 1.5 inches thin.  The integration of the world's first "QUADPIXEL" four color technology into these awe-inspiring designs has us optimistic for a robust 2010. 

When it comes to design, we're in good company here at CES.  To be fair, their are many strong designs represented by our competition here at the show and we are collectively raising the bar each year.  For consumers and tech enthusiasts who care about appearances, the suite of LCD product offerings here on the show floor has something for everyone.  When you take one of these hot designs and integrate the world's first technology capable of a color palette of over a trillion colors (that's not a typo), you have a product solution that has created quite a stir here in Las Vegas.  Unlike 3D (we're all showcasing it) and web connectivity (we're all showcasing it), QUADPIXEL technology is a Sharp exclusive - it cannot be found on any other manufacturer's product in 2010.   

 At Sharp, our slogan for this year's CES is "Hello Yellow", and perhaps we should add "housed in an elegant and svelte chassis".   Check it out - the designs and this new technology from Sharp - they are collectively awe inspiring.