CES 2010: Selected mobile products at CES Unveiled

I arrived in Las Vegas today in order to attend my first CES Unveiled event that I have missed in year's past. I put in a measly 3,768 steps (recorded by my new iPod nano) as I walked between my hotel and the Venetian and covered the Unveiled event floor. There were quite a few companies there, but I was particularly interested in the mobile space and checked out four vendors in detail. I wanted to see the new Lenovo gear, but that table was jam-packed the whole time and I couldn't get close enough to get any photos or talk with anyone. I did take a few photos of items I saw at Unveiled and you can find them in myCES 2010 image gallery. I will keep adding to this gallery each day so check back for photos of more devices the rest of the week.

Marvell powered products

The first booth I stopped at was the Marvell booth because I saw the Spring Design Alex device sitting on the table. You may remember this is a dual screen Google Android device, but unlike the B&N nook this device is geared towards web browsing over WiFi and mobile networks. I was extremely impressed with the high quality 3.5 inch color display located on the bottom and found the device to be very responsive. It was much like a Google Android smartphone with capacitive display, browser, and more. The upper display is a typical 6 inch eInk display that shows the web pages you surf too. I am a true believer in having an ebook reader that focuses on the ebook experience and see no need for such a device focused on browsing with an eInk display.

The device was thinner and much narrower than I thought it would be and it fit very well in my hand. It felt very solid and the buttons were pretty easy to understand. There is supposed to be an announcement later this week since no release has been announced for this device yet. With the focus on web browsing, you better hope it is not going to AT&T with their connectivity issues.

Marvell also had a couple smaller ebook reference designs that looked quite slick.

The other major product that caught my eye was the enTourage eDGe dual screen device, labeled as a dualbook. It is designed to serve the functions as ebook reader, netback, notepad, and multimedia player and recorder. It opens up like a rather heavy (just under 3 pounds) book with a color display on the right (1024 x 600 pixels at 10.1 inches) and a full eInk display on the left (1200 x 825 pixels at 9.7 inches). The device opens like a book and then can be flipped all the way so that the back of both display rest against each other. It is designed for WiFi with future 3G connectivity. ePub and PDF formats are supported by the reader too.

This device is also powered by Google Android so the right side is an Android tablet device. I didn't get a chance to play too much with this part of the device as it was getting passed around. You can see on their website that several colors are going to be available in February for $450 ($40 more for any color other than midnight blue).

MSI netbooks

My personal netbook is the MSI Wind U100 that I bought when netbooks were first available and I use it today as my Windows 7 device for downloading and syncing Zune content along with syncing up Nokia devices and other Windows only programs. I was pleased to see the upcoming MSI Wind U135 and U160 devices and particularly like the new chicklet-style QWERTY keyboards. They remind me of my Macbook Pro and look to be even better than the MSI Wind I have that had one of the best netbook keyboards when they were first launched.

iGo chargers

I always carry lots of devices with me and thus power is an important consideration. iGo showed off several of their chargers, with a focus on their green line. These devices better manage power so outlets are shut down when not in use or reduce standby time by up to 85%. There are a couple products I may have to check out, but the solar charges probably won't work too well in overcast Washington State.

ZOMM

My wife often misplaces her phone and keys and this upcoming ZOMM device looks to help solve both of these issues. This was one of the coolest devices I have seen and very relevant for those with Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones. The ZOMM is a small device with a Bluetooth radio, speaker, and mic that is charged up via miniUSB. If you get out of Bluetooth range with your phone or keys (where the ZOMM is attached to) then the ZOMM will vibrate, sound, and flash. If you have your phone in a bag and keys in your hand when a call comes in you can press the button to send to voicemail, answer, and hang up calls. You can also have the device call 911 if you press and hold for an extended period of time. This may be a good accessory for your elderly parent or grandparent. The ZOMM is planned to have a MSRP of $79.99 with summer 2010 availability.

You can find photos of these gadgets in my image gallery.