Closing Thoughts on CES 2008

Another CES has come and gone, and like the whirlwind that CES always is, it’s taken us a few days to gather our thoughts together. That and we needed to get some sleep.

Did we see any break through products this year, nah, not really. But we can’t remember the last CES in which we saw some jaw-dropping inventions. However, what we did notice is that companies are getting smarter when it comes to subtle yet important features. Oh, and we definitely have seen enough ipod docks, digital picture frames and cell phone cases to last us a good while. At least a week. Really, the show floor had them everywhere.

And now for a few short tirades. This happens every year. We see some obscure cool product hiding in someone’s booth and as soon as we start snapping photos we are attacked, or we are politely asked to not take the photos because the product isn’t available yet or something to that effect. Umm, you put this product on display at CES and you don’t want media peeps to snap photos? If you’re not ready to share it with the world yet, leave it at home. [Read more]

CES 2008: icon Steals the Show with their Line of Stylish Laptop & Electronics Cases

We saw MANY, MANY iPod Cases, Laptop Cases, Camera Cases and iPhone Cases this year. Practically, you name it we saw a case for it on our trip through the CES playground. But out of all of them, the best company we stumbled upon is icon cases. They offer a wide range of cases that are both stylish and well made. Their attention to detail is astounding from their metal clasps to their stitching. We were also impressed by the thinking that went in to them. These cases are truly made for all types of people - the busy, athletic, or classy man or woman and they don’t lack in style or design. [Read more]

CES 2008: Snapshots from the Samsung Booth

The Samsung booth was probably the most crowded booth at CES this year. But we managed to brave it and grab some snapshots of some cool phones and upcoming accessories. We noticed that a special emphasis on portable speakers designed to connect to your cell phone for music playback. Which is really a much needed mobile accessory that no other phone manufacturers have really been producing until now. [Read more]

CES 2008: Kingston Data Traveler Style USB Key with Custom Skins

Ah, yes USB keys - we saw plenty of them at CES too. Half of the press releases seemed to be about one USB key or another. But Not all USB’s have to look the same. Kingston in fact agrees with that philosophy and just released the Data Traveler Style. Not your typical USB key - you can customize a 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB with different skins and statements. To name a few there are “redhead mosaic, bamboo, sunflower, lace, retro and tangerine dream.” or you can upload your own skin. If you’re fond of cows, and really, who isn’t, you can create a USB key with a cow design and write the words “moo”. Kingston has teamed up with Amazon to offer this exclusively when they become available, so check it out. The body of the key itself is available in black or white. [Read more]

CES 2008: iTouchless Automatic Flushing Toilet for the Home

I like to think I’m a clean person but when I go to the bathroom in public places - hotels, restaurants, or my mother’s house. I really don’t like having to touch the handle to flush the toilet. I prefer those automatic sensor flushing systems like they have in casino bathrooms… whatever call me OCD…I think I have been in Las Vegas for too long…anyway, iTouchless came out with the Sensor Flush Automatic Sensor Tank Toilet Flushing System which you can install inside your home toilet bowl. So when you rise after you are done with the thrown, the toilet will automatically flush for you. [Read more]

CES 2008: Printstik Prints Emails and Images from your Smartphone

It almost seems like when I travel I take my whole house with me. This or that gadget and just random other needs plus all my chargers…. My bags seems to get bigger and bigger every time. Well now I have another thing to add to them. Planon has developed a printer on the go called the PRINTSTIK PS910. It will print any document without having to be connected to a computer. Just bought tickets for a Las Vegas show and need to print them out without having to go to a Kinkos - there you go! [Read more]

CES 2008: TASER Zaps Your Enemies Stylishly & Plays Mp3s Too

Like any woman I like to feel safe and secure. One of my favorite shows that was canceled of course, was Veronica Mars and given any chance she would make any jerk reel with pain from her taser. Well like Veronica you can do it too, and in style! Specifically marketed towards woman is the new TASER C2 line. Which features many different designs and colors ranging from leopard, pink, red blue, light pink and more. In addition there is a C2 Holster that can be purchased which converts your TASER into a 1 GB Mp3 Player. You can control the volume and what song plays next by pushing buttons that are on the TASER C2 Holster. [Read more]

CES 2008: The Only Digital Picture Frame Worth Mentioning at CES, Doubles as an iPod Dock

I have to say this year at CES 2008 there was an ABUNDANCE of digital picture frames and iPod docking stations. So why not smash them together and make atleast an interesting docking station or digital picture frame. Well Mustek did just that with the just anounced Mustek PF- i700 . A 7 inch digital photo frame with an an iPod docking station which enables images or files off of the iPod to be played. Mustek is well known for their digital pictures frames. We did get a chance to see it on display and it looked very nice in person with a sharp image. The unit also has built in speakers for sound and a headphone jack. [Read more]

CES 2008: iRobot Talks About the Secret to Making Women Happy

Pretty much everyone is familiar with the Roomba, the intelligent vacuum cleaner that does all of the work for you. We can’t say that we’ve ever been very interested in Robotics in the past, but that is because we’ve been skeptical about whether or not the performance is really there yet. Yesterday, we got to meet with iRobot and hear about their goals and inspirations. iRobot understands the plight of the modern day woman. We’re busy, busy as heck. More so usually than our male counterparts. Between raising a family, careers and other important things, the average American woman is constantly working and isn’t getting enough personal downtime to keep her happy. That is where iRobot’s products come in. Their goal is simple - to take away some of the routine grunt work that is a part of life. The result is that you are left with more personal time for yourself. [Read more]

CES 2008: Kensington’s LiquidAUX for iPhone & iPod Kills the Radio Star

FM Transmitters work like this - you can’t live without them, but it’s hard to live with them. However until now using an FM transmitter has been the only way you could play music from your ipod on your car stereo, unless for some reason you still have a cassette in your car in which case you could use a cassette adapter. Either way, both methods tend to produce a not so great audio experience, especially because FM transmitters have to battle the airwaves to get you a clear/empty channel, which is no easy task in most populated areas.
Finally there is another way to play your ipod in the car, and it’s not only more reliable, but it will produce a better listening experience Kensington’s new LiquidAUX products takes advantage of your cars Auxiliary port. The kit connects your iPhone or pod to the Auxiiary port for a superior listening experience. A smart remote control that is designed to fit on your steering wheel is also included so that you can safely control your iPod without having to fumble around for it. [Read more]

CES 2008: Monster Teams up to Produce Beats by Dr. Dre Premium Headphones

At CES, Monster announced that they have teamed up with Dr. Dre to release a pair of premium headphones in the Spring. The high-performance headphones were designed together in partnership between Monster and Dr. Dre, with Dr. Dre’s goal being to produce a pair of headphones that are not only hip, but that they are so good that they can accurately reproduce today’s pop music. Taking two years to develop, the headphones promise to deliver true rich deep bass. The product will also come in a stylish carrying case with anti-microbial cleaning cloths, a special monster headphone cable, a mini-stereo to ¼-inch stereo cable adapter and finally, to ensure iPhone compatibility, Monster’s iSonitalk, a microphone/headphone adapter for iPhones will also be included.

CES 2008: AUDIOVOX Homebase Interactive Refridgerator Message Board

One of the most innovative and interesting things we came across at CES this year so far is the AUDIOVOX homebase unit. Truly innovative and smart, and a finally a gadget that is not an iPod case or dock to charge one! Instead this will help those moms and dads who are always on the run. Homebase will allow you to stay up to date with other family members and just day to day routine things that may come up that slip your mind. The homebase system is a new twist on the digital frame. They took a 7 inch LCD digital frame that can hold up to 125 high resolution pics and put it inside an erasable white board with a magnetic border that you can put post-it notes on or magnets. You can write on the board with erasable markers and quickly jot notes down or a message. But that’s not all, the homebase also has a built-in microphone to record messages and also an indicator light that denotes a message is waiting to be listened too. [Read more]

CES 2008: Case-Mate Gives Away 20K Diamond Studded Blackberry Case at CES

Even on BlackBerry cases diamonds are a girl’s best friend. Well that’s what Case-Mate seems to think anyway. Exclusively on display at CES is this diamond encrusted case with 3.5 carats and 15 grams of gold that will give your BlackBerry Curve that pimping look. It’s valued at $20,000 and will be given away to one randomly selected winner tomorrow at CES. So if you are there check out booth #9104 in the Central Hall you may get lucky. I know if I win - I’ll be off to the pawn shop for gambling money! [Read more]

CES 2008: Get Your Groove on with the Lava Lamp & Plasma Ball iPod Speakers

If there was one thing we certainly have seen enough of so far at CES, it’s definitely ipod speakers. Regardless we have spotted a couple of ones that are pretty unique despite the fact that we had assumed everything had been thought of already. Excalibur Electronics has three groovy ipod docks on display, each with a retro centerpiece such as a lava lamp, plasma ball and some furry thing we don’t know the name of. The speakers/docks are expected to retail for about $119 which we think is way too much, but we still dig the concept. Can you dig it. [Read more]

CES 2008: Memorex’s Fashion Portable DVD Players

We can honestly say that this is one gadget we’d buy based on looks alone, practically regardless of the specs. Memorex’s new Fashion DVD players are a bring a breath of fresh air to boring old DVD players and portable DVD players just by adding a funky multi-color design splash. The new DVD players will be available in black or pink and will most likely be available to purchase at Wal Mart, thus you can expect them to be affordable as well. [Read more]

CES 2008: Sandisk’s Slew of Hip USB Keys

Sandisk had some funky and some stylish, USB keys on display. As a matter of fact this is the most design innovation with USB keys that we’ve seen outside of the Asian market. Here comes the bummer - Sandisk said that a lot of these purty USB keys are not yet being released in the U.S.A. and they might not ever make it here at all. The designs range from a classic aesthetic with faux croc leather in pink, red or black, to more hip USB keys with iconic characters. [Read more]

CES 2008: Seagate Shows Off New Software Interface for Shared Storage Hard Drives

Seagate has a new portable hard drive to show off that is looking good enough to make its way down the cat walk, if there ever was a cat walk for hard drives. The Maxtor BlackArmor has been designed for users looking to carry around their important documents while having the piece of mind to know that they are safe and secure. Available in a 160GB capacity, the BlackArmor keeps your data locked up and private using hardware-based encryption so that there is no need to set up and install software (they must know about how lazy we are). The drive is expected to retail for $149.99. [Read more]

CES 2008: Griffin Technology Brings More Toys for your iPhone and iPod

Griffin Technology had loads of new goodies to share and one of many of them that caught our eye was the PowerDock Charging Base. Many of us own more than one ipod, and with so many Apple toys to charge, it can get kinda unruly with wires around the home or office so the PowerDock is there to keep things neat and organized. The PowerDock will charge 4 iPod models at the same time, including an iPhone. There are 8 Universal Dock inserts included to fit your iPod which should certainly handle most generations. After all, the family that plays music together charges together. No pricing is available yet but we’re thinking this will be one hot item once it hits shelves. [Read more]

CES 2008: Belkin Unveils Slew of Unique Home & Play Accessories

In 2008 Belkin continues to wow us with their simplicity in design as they continuously offer up products that are creative and different then the rest of the pack. The Rockstar is one such device that looks like a starfish but will quickly turn into an Octopus. The Rockstar is an MP3 hub which will allow friends and family to plug in their headphones and listen to up to two MP3 players attached to the hub. Five ports allow for five headphones to be plugged in and one connection is for the MP3 player while another extension cable is included to add another MP3 player. You can mix and fade-in songs by each MP3 player’s controls which can lead to a big mixing session amongst friends. This is a great way for folks to share music without having to share your one ear bud to hear that great song that is playing. Available in March 2008 and will retail for $19.99 this will definitely will be the hit of the school yard. [Read more]

CES 2008: Mobile Edge Adds More Pulp Themed Maddie Powers Laptop Bags

A while ago we posted about the Mobile Edge’s collaboration with Chicago based design firm Maddie Powers, Inc. to create the really cool and sexy CuteBug line of laptop bags. Well for 2008 they have upped the ante and have added several more pulp imagery style bags to their collection. There are new additions to the The CuteBug Messenger line and CuteBug Sheba line pulp-esque bags, one sporting a similar likeness to Grace Kelly and the other a very “Giant” looking image of Elizabeth Taylor. There is also the brand new line of CuteBug Hipster bags, which I have to say I was extremely taken with the minute I saw them. Colors range from Black, Pink, and Green and are versatile for lugging around laptops and other work or school needs or they can just used as a fun bag to carry along with you. Who says a handbag only has to be a Zac Posen Bag. [Read more]

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