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TDR @ CES 2012

I'm not the schmuck in the photo

The bags are packed , the dogs are at the vet, and I’ve had my rabies vaccination. I’m ready for CES. This will be my third year at the trade show, and I’m really looking forward to it. I have a long list of booth to visit and people to meet.

I’ll be flying in on Sunday, and the show formally opens on Tuesday. But there are other events in the days before so I’ll definitely have something to keep me busy. I’m flying out on Friday, so I’m somehow going to have to squeeze all the booth visits into just the 3 of the days of the show.

To be perfectly honest, I think there are fewer ebook topics at CES this year than last year, and nothing can compare to 2 years ago ( when ebook readers were the hot new niche, not tablets). Oh yes, CES 2010 was the heyday of ereaders. Samsung and PlasticLogic debuted their ebook readers, and it was such a hot niche that even RCA had an ebook reader in their booth. Now that was a crazy time.

In fact, ereaders were so hot in 2010 that Marvell and Freescale each had a second booth in the ebook zone. (And they were so hot that CES had an ebook zone.) Each of the CPU makers  had a collection of 5 to 8 ebook readers on display that ran on their respective CPUs. Some very pretty devices were shown off, and most died in 2010. And then there was the one stolen from CES. I recall going to the Freescale booth on Saturday and finding out that someone had stolen the txtr Reader demo unit. It’s not me, I swear.

But this year is still going to be interesting. I’ve got an appointment with Nintendo to see the WiiU (because of the ereader rumors), and I’m planning to crash  a keynote given by Qualcomm’s CEO (and ask piercing questions about Mirasol). And I have a few other events up my sleeve, which i won’t share here (spies are watching).

But this year is also interesting for its absences. Pocketbook, for example, isn’t exhibiting. Bebook just died, so I don’t expect to bump into Peter Zieleman. And iriver bailed on their new announcements. There are other holes, but there’s enough to keep me hopping.

How To Reach Me

If you catch a bit of news that you’d like to share with me, you can find me on Twitter. Email is also good, or you could leave a comment on the blog. This will be the first year where I will try to be online at all times, even on the show floor.

While last year I was dependent on a 3G dongle, this year I’ll be carrying around a 4G Mifi in my bag along with backup batteries. My 7″ Galaxy Tab will be in hand, and I’ve already installed the necessary apps. I should be able to get online from my tablet no matter where I am – at least, that’s the plan.

image by PrimeImageMedia.com

 

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Comments


Amber Neff January 6, 2012 um 7:25 pm

I got a black pdn last month and so far love it, but is there potential that I am not aware of? I will be in Vegas as well next week, however not for CES. Thanks to CES my usual room rates more than doubled UGH…I dont suppose you dont have time for a fan? Show me what i am missing?

Nate Hoffelder January 7, 2012 um 9:19 pm

Sorry, but I’m rather shy.


charlie dulin January 6, 2012 um 9:32 pm

im not going this year but im glad you are. i have just seen something that id like you to check in with Eink about


cookie January 6, 2012 um 10:43 pm

"4G Mifi"

Mind specifying brand and model?

I have been thinking about getting something like this

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001212ELY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=A2L77EE7U53NWQ

Nate Hoffelder January 6, 2012 um 10:51 pm

Clearwire (aka CLear). It won’t work in my area, but it does work in most US cities.

I got the more expensive hotspot ($99). Data rates are pay as you go and they’re cheaper than my Virgin Mobile 3G dongle.


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