The annual International Consumer Electronics Show is all about trends, as opposed to actual product announcements complete with pricing, model numbers, and "click here to buy!" buttons.
This year we're sure to see a few new trends join those old standbys from yesteryear -- and the year before that and the year before that -- so here's a quick rundown of what to expect from CES 2008.
Ultra-thin OLED screens.
Larger OLED
TV manufacturers have to find some way to shave profits from ever-more-commoditized products, and one of the best ways is to introduce a whole new technology. OLED is one of those new techs, promising super-thin housing (is 5 inches too thick?), super-high contrast ratios, and correspondingly "super" profits. Expect medium screen sizes and very high prices for the first generation due to hit the market soon.
Frickin' laser TV
After an abortive Australian launch of laser TV last year, we first heard about Mitsubishi's own laser-powered DLP in March -- and you'll hear more about it at CES this year. The real question is, with big flat panels falling in price, how long before rear-projection HDTVs, especially high-end ones, become extinct? For example, after halting sale of RPTVs in Australia earlier this year, Sony last week announced it would end production of units worldwide.
LED backlights are back
Been there, done that, but in 2008 you'll see more LCD models that use LED backlights, probably led by Samsung, which has a generation under its belt already.
Antijudder everywhere
Sure 100/120Hz provides some other esoteric benefits, but its real impact among 2007 HDTVs with the technology was in smoothing out motion by removing judder. Expect it to on nearly every mid- to high-end HDTV in 2008.
Gee, is that 3D?
A smattering of DLP-based HDTVs in 2007 supported 3D addon kits, which included glasses that gave an extra dimension to PC sources. At the 2008 show, more manufacturers might jump onboard and migrate the technology to flat panels, and maybe some more compelling 3D content will become available.
Powerful energy savings
People are starting to care about how much energy their HDTVs use. In 2008 we expect more marketing and features aimed at green-conscious HDTV buyers.
"Mine's even bigger than yours!"
The custom-built, major-media-attracting, triple-digit-size plasma and LCD television has become a staple at many TV makers' booths in the past. We're laying Vegas odds that somebody breaks the 150-inch barrier this year.
Of course, we're always hoping for surprises at the show to keep the HDTV category interesting and give us something else to write about. Check out our full coverage of HDTV developments for all the latest buzz.
Where are they now?
CNET US chose Samsung's wireless plasma as the best HDTV of CES 2007, and the thing finally came out overseas the end of the year. We haven't had the chance to review it yet, but we're confident the "wireless" (hey, you still have to plug in the power) trend for HDTVs will grow in the future -- at least one other manufacturer is offering a wireless model at this year's show. Notably, most of the year's top HDTVs, including the Pioneer PDP-508XDA, the Sony KDL46XBR, were not announced at CES. The closest the show came to any actual "announcement" of an eventual top 2007 HDTV was the sneak preview we got from Pioneer, and unlike many such previews we've attended, that one presaged a real breakthrough.
Pity the audiophile. Home audio was once the centerpiece of the consumer electronics experience, but it's been completely subsumed in recent years, with HDTV squeezing in on one side and the ubiquitous iPod on the other. Even what's left is generally referred to as "home theatre," stressing that video is just as important -- if not more so -- than the audio experience. If they even want surround sound -- most seem perfectly happy with their tinny TV speakers -- the majority of consumers will opt for a cheap home-theatre-in-a-box, grumbling at the AU$500 price tag even as they gladly shell out five times as much for a flat-screen TV.
OK, maybe it's not quite that bleak. But home audio aficionados (and manufacturers) seem to be constantly lamenting the fact that the number of people who care about -- and are willing to pay for -- a superior audio experience seems to be an ever-shrinking minority. That discriminating crowd can check out the dozens of hotel suites away from the main show, where mid-, high-, and ultrahigh-end audio companies will be demoing everything from US$10,000 speaker setups, monoblock amplifiers, preamp/processors, and luxury turntables. Meanwhile, major audio names such as Denon, Onkyo, and Yamaha have a minimal CES presence, or skip the show altogether, opting instead for the more focused US CEDIA show in September.
Expect more iPod-compatible devices at CES.
That leaves the mainstream manufacturers on the CES floor to carry the home audio torch for the masses. These companies -- the Sonys, Samsungs, and the Panasonics, as well as hundreds of smaller companies -- will continue emphasizing the convenience and aesthetic improvements in the audio realm. In practice that will mean cheaper, more widespread, and more convenient iterations of trends from previous years:
Wireless audio
In 2007, two big trends that began to show fruit were Bluetooth wireless transmission and wireless speakers. Look for Bluetooth streaming to become much more mainstream as more Bluetooth-enabled audio sources (music phones, portable audio players) continue to appear. And with the exception of the power cord, more and more speakers will be marketed as "wireless" (be it semiwireless, or something closer to truly wireless).
Virtual surround
Even better than losing the speaker wires criss-crossing your living room is getting rid of those extra speakers altogether. Manufacturers are finally figuring out that consumers want fewer speakers, not more. Whether you call it "virtual surround," "2.1 home theater," or "single-speaker surround sound," look for more brands to offer audio systems composed of just two or one front speakers, and -- maybe -- a subwoofer.
Streaming network audio
Whether pulling from your PC, networked hard drive, Internet radio, or a premium online service such as Rhapsody, more consumers are discovering that the long-promised "celestial jukebox" is now a reality -- at least in the home. Look for more mainstream products such as A/V receivers and home-theatre-in-a-box systems to incorporate streaming audio functionality (via Ethernet or Wi-Fi connections) that was previously limited to dedicated, higher-end products such as the Sonos Digital Music System.
High-end features at low-end prices
Once upon a time -- as little as eight months ago, in some cases -- features like HDMI 1.3, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, and iPod compatibility were ultrapremium bullet points only found on audio products costing north of AU$2,000. Look for these features -- plus many of the upgrades listed in the points above -- to be standard features in all but the low-end entry-level home theater products this year.
Where are they now?
Virtual surround isn't new for 2008. Not only was the Philips HTS8100 SoundBar, the first 1.1 (single stereo speaker plus subwoofer) audio system to include a built-in CD/DVD player, it also boasted a minimalist design that was downright striking. When we got a chance to put the SoundBar through its paces later in the year (away from the noise and crushing crowds of the CES show floor), it performed ably, scoring a 7.6 from CNET editors. But similar products are now offering wireless subwoofers -- exactly the sort of must-have upgrade we'll be seeing in this category in 2008 and beyond.
Don't be surprised if the home video headlines at the 2008 International Consumer Electronics Show look like reruns of the past four or five years. The big themes will continue to be the Blu-ray/HD-DVD format war, network video delivery, and the slow but steady transition from analog to digital broadcasting.
We expect that the format war between HD-DVD and Blu-ray will be front and centre once again. Blu-ray players are already selling for less than AU$600, so we're betting we'll see players announced that go even lower. Meanwhile, we wouldn't be completely surprised to see the HD-DVD camp going for broke and announcing something crazy like a AU$200 HD-DVD player just to keep an edge in the price war. There will be new combo players, for sure, but unless they start falling below the AU$800 mark we predict consumers will continue to largely ignore them. Also, we wouldn't be surprised if we saw the first HD-DVD and Blu-ray recorders announced, although expect the pricing to be in the region of several thousand bucks. More important will be the swirling rumors about which (if any) of the studios will switch their allegiances from one side to the other.
The LG BH100 was ahead of its time -- but ugly.
Every year seems to be "the year" for network video streaming, and 2008 is no exception. Expect more units with wireless-N capabilities and bundled with every audio and video codec you can imagine. But for the category to ever go mainstream, the bigger issues -- securing A-list content, simplifying setup chores, and improving reliability and quality -- need to be addressed. And while Apple won't be at CES, the following week's MacWorld conference could well see Apple announcing an upgrade for Apple TV, allowing users to purchase video directly from the device -- something the iPhone and iPod Touch can already do with music. We'd also like to see DivX compatibility, but we may need to keep dreaming.
Consumer electronics manufacturers pretty much dropped the ball on DVD-recorders with digital high-def tuners this year, so more robust models should crop up with support for true HD pass-through and electronic programming guides (EPGs) utilizing program guide data now embedded in the digital broadcast signal. Along the same lines, we're hoping to see some standalone DVRs designed to be primarily used with over-the-air digital broadcasts, which is another product consumers were missing in 2007.
2007: A look back
Last year, when the US picked the LG BH100 as the Best of CES overall winner, a much bigger deal of the fact that the combination Blu-ray/HD-DVD player actually existed than of its astronomical price tag. The combo player went on to receive a lukewarm reception in the market, a reception that wasn't helped by the eventual CNET review, from which we'll quote: "After thoroughly testing the BH100, we learned a few things that gave us cause for concern: no CD playback, somewhat limited HD-DVD functionality, and subpar soundtrack support, to name the main ones. The worst part, of course, is the AU$1599 price tag, which means you could buy both a Blu-ray capable PS3 (AU$699) and an Xbox360 (US$400) with the HD-DVD addon drive (US$200) for the same price -- and get two high-performance game consoles for 'free.'" 'Nuff said. A pair of newer universal players, the Samsung BD-UP5000 and LG BH200, are already on the US market, but there's no denying they owe a lot to the trailblazing (albeit flawed) BH100.
Excited to see all the latest and greatest video game products at the 2008 International Consumer Electronics Show? Don't be. New and noteworthy gaming products will be few and far between.
Unfortunately, CES just isn't a big show for gamers. You might think the world's largest consumer electronics expo would have plenty of stuff for remote-waggling, button-mashing misfits like ourselves, but that simply isn't the case. Virtually every games-only company from Nintendo to Electronic Arts steers clear of Las Vegas in early January, saving their news for GDC, E3, and the various other shows and events that come later in the year.
Sony PlayStation Home is expected to debut at CES.
CES won't be completely devoid of gaming content, though. While nearly all major game developers will be conspicuously absent, you can expect a solid amount of spillover from the big two: Sony and Microsoft. While actual game news tends to be minimal, both giants tend to use CES to highlight the broader consumer applications of their respective gaming consoles. Sony will continue to tout the PS3's Blu-ray compatibility and upcoming Second Life-like PlayStation Home service, while Microsoft will highlight the Xbox 360's ever-improving media-centre capabilities.
If PC gaming is your thing, the news is a bit better. New graphics cards and faster CPUs are often CES mainstays, and there's always the chance that a fearsome gaming desktop or supercharged laptop may make the rounds.
Even if there won't be much new information about the games themselves, CES should at least show off a ton of the equipment with which you play games. From mainstream accessory makers like Logitech and Nyko, to niche players offering specialty rigs such as full-on flight simulator cockpits and Wii-style motion control cameras for PCs, there will be plenty of accessories and peripherals on display.
Peripherals notwithstanding, gamers will be better served at CES by highlighting upgrades to your home theatre setup. With a ton of HDTVs, surround-sound systems, and other equipment for hooking up a sweet gamer's pad, it'll be a good show for demonstrating what you'll be connecting your Wii, PS3, or Xbox 360 into next year.
Like this article? Click below to send it to your mobile for free!
laser-tv.org
03/01/2008 02:07 PM
Laser lit devices such as cell phone screens, televisions and displays are all going to dominate the market in the very near future. Nothing can touch the brightness, longevity and efficiency of a laser. Look for the cost to dramatically drop too as these devices get smaller, as there are lots of laser manufacturers in the market and laser tv will not suffer from the same patent and licensing problems as OLED and SED tvs.
Report offensive content