CES, the Consumer Electronic Show, is a geek respite in the deserts of Nevada among the neon of Las Vegas. It represents, for the non-Mac crowd, the last, best hope for geekdom. It’s in early January which often puts it at odds with MacWorld in San Francisco so if you’re of a Mac or iPod bent then you’re likely to choose MacWorld – though reports from Mac press journalists are that they were well received by the exhibitors at CES this year – we can blame the iPod, the iPhone and the Mac resurgence for that.
CES 2008 was again, after 11 keynotes over 15 years, keynoted by Bill Gates, the Dick Dastardly figure from “Pirates of Silicon Valley” and this year was to be his last ever as he retires from Microsoft and concentrates on the charity foundation he also runs with his wife. The keynote, a “snoozer” by all accounts, introduces nothing new but speculated about the state of consumer electronics, what he reckons is important (we commented on “natural user interface” before).
Bob writes, though, that CES seems flatter and more morose this year:
Worse, there’s little new to report. Flatter flat screens, fatter wireless connections, and now you can send YouTube videos directly to your TV, isn’t that special? When the most exciting news is the absence of something — the possible extinction of the HD-DVD format — something is clearly amiss.
This puts some pressure on Steve Jobs, with his keynote next Tuesday, to provide something to write about.