The best of CES 2010
Another year and another CES is over, but what were the best gadgets shown in Las Vegas? What should you look forward to and what should you be putting on your Christmas list for 2010 right now?
Here are Stuart Miles' top five gadgets of the show:
Lenovo Slate
I really like the Lenovo Slate because it was a design that tried to have both its cake and eat it. A fully-fledged Windows 7 laptop by day, but by night you can rip the screen off and use it as a tablet/slate PC for surfing the Internet, watching movies and viewing pictures. Very clever.
Wireless power
There were two companies that we spotted touting the benefits of wireless power. Powermat and Fulton innovations. The news that Powermat has worked out how to put their technology directly into batteries rather than you having to have a separate battery cover should make the technology considerably more acceptable. Fulton innovations - burying it into tables, kitchen worktops and cars means you'll be able to charge stuff wherever you go. The only problem is that wireless power really needs to be an open standard to succeed.
Mophie iPhone credit card reader
Making virtual payments with your credit card just looks so wonderfully futuristic and is likely to transform the Sunday car boot sale. Granted you can use the Mophie offering in the UK thanks to Chip and PIN, but it still looks like the kind of thing societies of tomorrow will do.
Razer Xbox controller
This is one for gamers. Xbox 360 gamers that really care in fact. Not designed for the average casual gamer, it's a new move for Razer into the consumer space. We love the attention to detail that allows you to set programmable shoulder buttons as well as the ability to stiffen the joysticks for racing games and loosen them for first person shooters.
Android-powered microwave
Okay, this is a silly one, but we love the idea that Touch Revolution believes our cooking gadgets could become clever with Android. Whether it's getting the microwave to ping us a tweet when it's done or downloading new cooking settings, it shows what is possible in the future. Who said Android was just for your phone?
The Pocket-lint team
But it's not just about Stuart, although he would like to think so. What about the Pocket-lint team, what did they think was Best of Show? Here are their favourites:
"It has everything you could ever need for the V part of your AV set up and it does it all with just one box and no wires. Wi-Fi, 3D-upscaling, Internet movies...just go and read about it if you haven't already". - Dan Sung, Pocket-lint.com
"The device that gets the top slot in my personal best of CES list is the Lenovo Skylight smartbook. I love its glossy design and the functionality it offers - refreshingly free from the Wintel stranglehold - it's just what I'd be looking for in a portable package if I was the average connected consumer". - Amy-Mae Elliott, Pocket-lint.com
"Imagine the most insanely over-specced gaming mouse you can think of, then add in ridiculous customization options that are controlled by an Allen key built into the frame, which you can pull out any time and fiddle around with. Even the most monstrous of claws will be happy playing Left 4 Dead 2 with this mouse". - Duncan Geere, Pocket-lint.com
"The Samsung NX10 has my attention. The emerging Micro Four Thirds market was really exciting in 2009 and Samsung will potentially bring the benefits of a compact APS-C system camera to more people at a more affordable price point. Let’s hope the performance doesn’t disappoint". - Chris Hall, Pocket-lint.com
"My favourite launch at CES was the fuel cell power station, the Hydrofill, that - although costly - extracts hydrogen from water to charge gadgets. Although not the finished article the tech appears to have potential, meaning its impact on the industry will perhaps be in the long term. However, it gets my vote for effort alone". - Ben Crompton, Pocket-lint.com
The tech industry
So what have been the best gadgets for the rest of the industry? We asked leading gadget experts from around the globe what their favourite gadgets from CES 2010 were:
"It looks great and I think Dell can bring high-end tablets to the masses at an affordable price". - Andy Lim, Recombu.com
"Because it made the most traffic on the site, indicating reader interest. I honestly don't care much about CES. I guess I liked 3D, in theory". - Brian Lam, Gizmodo.com
To me it's the first and hopefully the last great e-ink-based e-book reader. It has a really perfected touchscreen interface, beautiful hardware and a lot of great functionality you can't find elsewhere". - Paul Miller, Engadget.com
"For reminding netbooks of what they were meant to be". - Gordon Kelly, Trustedreviews.com
Clickfree's backup range
"For its usefulness, flexibility and simplicity. Although Lenovo's U1 looked good although I'd like to see how it stands up, physically, to the constant removal of the tablet section". - Paul Allen, Computeractive.co.uk
"In the world of things that actually exist, the Panasonic 3D TVs are nice enough to make me want one". - Nigel Kendall, The Times
Nexus One & IdeaPad U1 (Lenovo Slate)
"To be honest, my favourite thing from CES wasn't actually announced there - the Nexus One. It's finally an Android phone with iPhone level hardware - the screen is amazing and not plastic like other models. In terms of proper CES stuff, probably the IdeaPad U1. It's bonkers and a bit impractical, but at least it's something new and different." - Will Head, FixationVideo.
Ford Sync
"My favourite gadget at the show....such a tough call, but I think at least for now at least I'd have to go with Ford's integration of iPhone apps -- specifically Pandora, OpenBeak (for Twitter), and Stitcher -- into its Sync service. I've been waiting for years for dashboard-controllable Internet radio to be available in my car, so I can finally turn off the overwhelming bore that is satellite radio. Whether I want tweets read to me as I drive is another matter, but it's still more entertaining than most FM radio stations." - Tom Samiljan, Freelance
Samsung NX40
‘Apart from the 3D gaming – which unfortunately falls outside of my coverage area – the product that got most of my attention was Samsung’s NX10. It looks like a real camera, it handles like a real camera and, from our first tests, it has image quality to match. BUT it is smaller, lighter and more portable than the DSLRs we have become used to. Micro system cameras, such as the Micro Four Thirds models, are set for a boom year, and the NX10 is just the beginning.’ - Damien Demolder, Amateur Photographer
Your say...
What do you think are the best gadgets from this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas? Better still what do you think will launch next year. Let us know what you are looking for in the comments below.