There will be no records set -- whether for giant TVs or for simple attendance -- at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (I'll be blogging from the event from January 7 to 11). The L.A. Times -- and everyone else -- is predicting a leaner, more somber show, and even CEA, the group that produces the show, is predicting an 8 percent drop in attendance vs. 2008.

We've known this was coming. Big trade shows have been a dying breed for more than a decade, and CES is the last of its kind to take place in the U.S. (A few overseas shows are even larger.) But the current recession is hitting many companies incredibly hard. While most (but not all) of the usual big exhibitors are still set to have their overstuffed booths in operation, many people who might normally have attended just to check out the lay of the land are pulling out, despite the big discounts on Vegas hotels being offered.

I'd wager that CEA's estimate of an 8 percent decline in attendance is awfully charitable, and wouldn't be surprised to see it hit 20 percent vs. 2008's level. (That said, getting a legitimate figure on attendance will likely be impossible; without pointing any fingers, trade shows are notorious for double-counting attendees and even rounding up people on the street to pump up the numbers.)

Meanwhile, vendors and PR agencies are outright panicked in trying to set up meetings this year. It's a longstanding CES tradition for every exhibitor to attempt to set up a personal, one-on-one meeting with every member of the press who's attending the show, which means journalists field hundreds of phone calls and thousands of emails come CES time. Now, with fewer writers attending the show, exhibitors have become more aggressive than ever: One television vendor alone has asked me 14 times (so far) for a meeting, and we've still got 10 days to go.

Expectations? I've got my eye on some really interesting tech products (and have been pre-briefed on some cool stuff already; watch for posts as the embargoes expire during CES week), but the advances are incremental and modest, not industry-shattering new gear. The bottom line: Expect lots of posts about cool technologies, but little that's likely to blow you away.