Highlights of CES 2009

This year's CES was a little different that last year's HDTV dominated show. It was more diverse, although I felt that most of the interesting technologies shown were not quite ready for mainstream consumers.

Here are some highlights of the show.

• 3D technology

Now that we're reaching the limits of the sizes of displays we can practically use, manufacturers seem to be moving towards 3D technologies. Several companies introduced new TVs/monitors that support 3D, the most known of them being Samsung. Sony teased its 3D technology for the PS3. And Nvidia announced some 3D goggles to go with all the new TVs/monitors.


• Portable computers

Ultraportables (or netbooks) were everywhere this year. Sony revealed its highly anticipated VAIO P. Asus announced many products including an all-in-one PC, a couple of tablets, and couple of interesting concepts. Dell announced a Mini laptop and the ultra-thin Adamo.


• Internet TVs

Yahoo announced their new Widget Engine. A platform that will allow developers to release online widgets on TVs without the need for external boxes. Many content providers are already developing TV widgets for the platform. So far, Sony and Samsung revealed TVs that will use the technology.


• Windows 7

Windows 7 has been generating a lot of buzz for the last 3 weeks with the leak of the Beta on some torrent trackers. With the official announcement of the Windows 7 Beta at CES, everyone is trying to get a hold of it; so much that the Microsoft servers crashed soon after the downloads were available. I installed Windows 7 a couple of weeks ago and used it for few hours and was very impressed; the interface is easier to use and feels more organized. It's also fast and smooth. What I'm most looking forward to is the new task bar that combines launch shortcuts and running applications.

Windows 7 Beta can be downloaded from here: 32-bit, 64-bit.

These are just some of the things that caught my eye this year. You can get more info at http://ces.engadget.com/.