Vision - November/December 2008 - (Page 40)

CEAnewsline Dynamic CES TechZones By Mark Chisholm ach January, Las Vegas is the focal point of the consumer electronics (CE) industry, with the International CES providing a one-stop location to see the latest innovations. As the scope of the industry continues to widen, CES strives to capture the heart of the industry as well as the best of neighboring industries that find themselves influenced by CE. CES attendees may find themselves wondering how best E Advanced Display Technologies Located in the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) South Hall, the Advanced Display Technologies TechZone exhibits the parts that make up the display ecosystem, including new display technologies, key components and materials. Paul Semenza, senior vice president of DisplaySearch, comments, “Display technologies are becoming increasingly important to CE due to their ability to create new product categories, to enhance existing products and to totally rejuvenate categories.” Semenza points to new products such as digital picture frames and portable media players, as well as ultra-thin notebook computers and advanced cell phone displays, as evidence of the influence of advanced display technologies on CE. DisplayPort As display technologies rocket forward, attention is being paid to the infrastructure that makes these beautiful displays possible. The DisplayPort TechZone showcases technology that aims at a common interface approach to pave the way for higher color depths, refresh rates and display resolutions. DisplayPort, an open standard developed by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), is a technology that provides high-end graphics with resolutions as high as 2560 x 1600 at 70-Hz refresh, doubling what is seen at 1080p. The standard has gained support from manufacturers such as ATI, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Nvidia and Samsung. “Given the ease of implementation and lower cost to implement, we expect to see DisplayPort in most PCs, laptops, graphics cards and monitors over the course of the next few years,” says Brian Eble of VESA. Visitors to the DisplayPort TechZone located in the Sands Expo and Convention Center, will see demonstrations of the technology in new ultra-thin direct drive monitors, notebook computers, Blu-ray drives, HD projectors and graphics cards for gamers. ZigBee ZigBee offers consumers a way to interact with utilities with integrated, centralized management. Sponsoring this year’s ZigBee TechZone in the LVCC South Hall, the ZigBee Alliance works to enable reliable, costeffective, low-power, wirelessly networked, monitoring and control products based on an open global standard. ZigBee technology is deploying various sensors and control applications in the energy sector as the core technology for smart metering, promoting energy management and efficiency. “Within a few years, many homes and commercial buildings will be using ZigBee to increase energy efficiency while offering increased comfort, convenience and safety,” says Bob Heile, chairman of the ZigBee Alliance. “Within five to ten years, we will be living in a relatively expansive sensor environment, both at home and at work, that will customize those areas to better fit our individual needs.” HomePlug Attendees interested in the networked home of tomorrow should visit the HomePlug TechZone, sponsored by the HomePlug Alliance, located in LVCC South Hall. The HomePlug Alliance is devoted to developing industry-standard specifications for powerline communications technologies to provide consumers with increased connectivity. The networked home is changing in two directions, according to Rob Ranck, president of the HomePlug Powerline Alliance Inc. “Smart energy doesn’t have to be that fast,” he explains. But fast it is. Utilizing the home’s power lines, the HomePlug AV standard works to connect devices and provide bandwidth of as high as 300 Mbps over the electrical wiring of the home. www.ce.org to see these blistering new technologies at the largest consumer technology tradeshow in the world. The CES TechZones offer attendees a location to see market-specific technologies and up-and-coming companies. Spread across the show’s different venues, these TechZones group technologies together in one location to provide specific showcases to captivate attendees. The 2009 TechZones range from display technologies, wireless, home automation and control, to gaming, digital imaging, and generationspecific technologies including: 40 November/December 2008 http://www.ce.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Vision - November/December 2008

Vision - November/December 2008 Contents Shapiro's Spectrum In this Issue The Economist C4 Trends Going Global Visionary CES Unveiled Eco-Intelligence Is Vital in a Sustainable Global Market XGP— A Game Changer Enhancing the Tech Experience High-Definition Decade Public-Private Partnerships CEA Newsline Tech Speak Tech Policy Eye on Business Market Insider Just the Stats

Vision - November/December 2008

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