CES 2008 Preview: Future Tech

CES has always been the prime launching pad for bleeding-edge tech, with established companies and tiny start-ups from all over the globe hoping to be the one with the next Roomba (the surprise hit at CES 2003). Who will take the prize for 2008? Hard to say—the hottest contenders will likely remain under wraps until the show opens next month. That said, here's a few interesting new ideas that should make a splash.

Bug: You've heard of Google and Yahoo! mashups, right? Apply the same concept to hardware and you'll get the idea behind Bug, a modular hardware and software "platform" that lets you build your own gadgets. The heart of Bug is the Bugbase: a paperback-sized Linux computer with four connectors onto which you can add various snap-on components, including an LCD touch screen, a GPS module, a digital camera, and a motion sensor (more components are in the works). Mix and match the add-ons and you can end up with, say, a geo-tagging digital camera or a security cam that uploads snapshots to the Web.

3D display, no glasses needed: Ubergizmo reports that display maker 3DIS will be showing off a 3D LCD monitor, dubbed the 1040S (catchy, no?) at CES. Of course, 3D displays are nothing new—that is, unless you get the 3D effect with having to wear special glasses. LG had a similar model at last year's show, but as Ubergizmo points out, the eye-strain-inducing panel was only good for watching short snippets of video. We'll see if the 1040S manages to up the ante.

Pico projectors: These teeny, tiny projectors—small enough to fit in a cell phone, but powerful enough to throw a decent-sized, WVGA (854 by 480 pixels) image onto a nearby surface—have been slowly gaining attention in the past several months, but CES 2008 may be the big coming-out party. Texas Instruments showed off a prototype back in March at CTIA, and now chipmaker Displaytech, which makes FLCOS "micro displays" for the diminutive projectors, has announced that working models will be on display at the show.

 

Laser TV: The latest—and long-delayed—incarnation of DLP TV has been percolating since April 2006, and next month's CES could be make-or-break time for the new display technology. As described in this (now dusty) CNET article, "laser TV" is essentially a DLP variant that replaces the old, incandescent (or LED-based) lamp with a trio of lasers: one red, one green, and one blue. The advantage? Deep, dark blacks, better color, and the longer (if not ever-lasting) life of the lasers, compared to the 3,000-hour life span of the standard DLP lamp. Sounds great, but laser TVs were supposed to ship starting this year—and we're still waiting. Gizmodo reports that Mitsubishi may have closed-door demos of laser TV models on tap for CES. Let's hope this promising (if troubled) technology gets some traction this year.