Top 5 Gadgets of CES 2008

This week was CES, the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas. Big name companies like Sony, Microsoft, Panasonic and so on gather to show you the newest stuff that you'll never be able to afford. It's open to the public but it doesn't have a lot of gaming related products. I have combed over the events coverage and found some pretty cool stuff, enjoy!

Top 5 Gadgets of CES 2008:

5. Intel Dual Quad Core Processing

That's 8 cores baby, maybe then crisis can run with all the sliders on high. I'm not a big PC Gamer but I felt this deserved number 5 because it is the sickest rig I've ever heard of. The image to the right is NOT the computer I'm talking about however, couldn't find a good pick of one so that one is just a room filler.


The stats:

• 4 Channel Memory
• 2 Graphic Card Slots
• "Blows Away Everything."
• Intel Rep

That last one isn't really a stat but it gets the point across, if your crazy enough to order, look out for it in Q1 this year.

4. Sharp Aquos Gaming Series TV

A gaming TV. You may be wondering what this baby actually is. All TV's can play games but the mad scientists at AQUOS have developed one specifically made for playing your favorite high-def games.

When one plays games in high def, it sends out a specific signal to the TV. The Engineers developed a circuit on the motherboard that takes this signal and processes it faster than any other. It's called the Viper Drive. The VD reduces high def lag even in 1080p to a unnoticeable time, making your playtime silky smooth.

On the remote, there is a GAME button. This button, when pushed, automatically kicks in the Viper Drive and shoots the signal on the TV to whichever one has a console hooked up to it. No messing with inputs, just one button. Very convenient and has gotten good feedback so far. They come in three colors: black, white and red. 37" 1080p for only $1599, AQUOS is the only manufacturer to offer 1080p in a tight 37" package. Should be available very soon.

3. Dual View Technology

This tech allows you and a buddy to play split screen, on the same screen and each one of you has a full screen. Mind blown yet? Anyway, the way this works is that you have to put on some funny looking goggle things and they isolate one eye from the other. You have to wear the goggles or the screen looks like a blurry mess. You both sit on the left or right side of the screen, not the middle, and it just works. This is only capable on DLP TV's right now because of their sheer speed handling high def content.


2. Alienware's Monster Wraparound Gaming Monitor

This unit is run by DLP rear projection technology and boasts a 2880x900 resolution. This set up is the equivalent of 4 LCD's all synced up together, except no gaps or lines. Granted the one on the show floor has very fine lines between the screens but those should be gone by the time they ship this product to stores. The whole point of this madness is total immersion.

Say your playing crisis, you are no longer limited to a twenty something inch screen, a foot away from you, now you have this mammoth that lets you see to the left and right slightly more than before. Playing a racing game, in cockpit view, you can see out the windows without fumbling keys. Something I'm sure PC racing fans will enjoy. The monitor has a slight curve to help this out, and makes it easier to read text if your sitting dead in the middle of the monitor. Should be available "in 2008" sometime.

1. OLED TV

Just when you thought you had the best of the best. Did ya pick up that new shiny Plasma or LCD during the holidays, well, it's old tech now. The new OLED TV's (Organic Light Emitting Diode) are the wave of the future. Completely different tech than LCD or Plasma, based on organic molecules. These are as thin as TV's get, a 11" they had on floor was only 3 millimeters thick. There is no back light in these TV's because the little phosphors in the TV create their own light, making this thickness possible.




That same 11" had some nice stats too:

• Over 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio
• $2500 Price tag
• "Blasting fast" response time
• 2x HDMI input
• Memory Stick photo Viewer
• 10 bit panel
• 960x540 resolution

The TV feels very solid and uses up little power. Will be commercialized in 2011-2012.

Hope that gives you a little insight on CES 2008. Be sure to check out the LittleBigPlanet Demonstration the Sony booth had. Along with some of the sweet ass chairs they had their too.