The best have yet to come from 2009 version of CES
Two of the biggest hits at the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show don't even exist yet. Talk about optimism.
The Palm Pre smartphone, accompanied by a new Palm Web Operating System, was the center of attention of the show last week in Las Vegas. It also won the Best of CES award from CNET, a technology news Web site. There are many questions about the Pre, including the cost and when it will available.
What was unveiled at CES is an ultrasleek phone that many are calling closest thing to a serious iPhone competitor. We also know the Pre will first be available in "the first half of the year" on the Sprint network, meaning anyone with an iPhone would have to switch from AT&T. Or they could play the waiting game and hang in there until the Pre is available on other carriers.
Features of the Pre include the ability to run several applications simultaneously. Users can flip through open application screens as if they are leafing through a deck of cards. This means a Pre user can be on a call, checking and sending e-mail or text messages and using any other application.
The Pre also has a slide-down QWERTY keypad. The touchscreen uses "gestures," or swipes of the finger, to navigate between applications or while using programs. Users can use their forefinger and thumb to "pinch" in and out on images or Web pages, just like on the iPhone. There's also a 3-megapixel camera, but no video shooting capabilities yet.
The Palm Web site (www.palm.com/us) includes only a photo of the Pre and a place to register for more information via e-mail. CNET did a thorough first-glance review (http://tinyurl.com/7tvlea) of the Pre.
The Eye-Fi Video Card took top honors in the Last Gadget Standing (www.lastgadget standing.com) competition, but it isn't available yet, either.
The card, which looks like a standard SD media card, turns nearly any point-and-shoot camera with video capabilities into a wireless camera, easily transferring digital files to a computer or sharing Web site.
They managed to squeeze Wi-Fi technology into the card, which is the form of media used by most digital cameras. The company's wireless photo card took top honors in the competition last year, making it the first repeat winner.
Their live demonstration won over the audience, as video of a performer on stage was shown on YouTube just seconds after it was shot. No cables, no logging-in -- nothing was required to move the video from the camera to the popular video sharing site.
The Health Math emWave Personal Stress Reliever won the Last Gadget Standing online vote. I plan to review the unit in the near future.
I'll have more from CES in the weeks ahead and on my blog: (lvrj.com/blogs/onlineguy).
Share your Internet story with me at agibes@reviewjournal.com.
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