Other Tech

Somewhere along the way to the 2003 edition of CES, just about everything calling itself a convergence product sprouted wings.

Virtually every company, brand, and industry coalition that attends the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas takes the opportunity to lay claim to the most "remarkable," "groundbreaking," or-three cheers for everyone's favorite-"innovative" developments at CES. Of course, they can't all be right.

The first day of the International CES ended on a colorful note at a Sharp press conference on the convention floor in front of scores of its LCD TVs. The company arrayed rows and rows of its flat-screen TVs, from 13 to 37 inches - a total of 286 displays - as the focus of its space.

Rockford Corporation, which owns such brands as Rockford Fosgate, Lightning Audio, and MB Quart, used CES 2003 to showcase its newest member, NHT, and promote home-network products made by Rockford's new partner, SimpleDevices. Formerly owned by Recoton, speaker maker NHT used its CES limelight to promote its modular Evolution line and that line's latest addition, the on-wall L5 speaker.

That's a concise summary of the myriad press conferences held the day before the official opening of the 2003 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Dreaming about a great big box under the tree this year? Sure there'll be rectangular boxes containing new shirts and maybe a bigger one with a jacket. You'll unwrap packages from the kids filled with golf tees and ties, and maybe even a nice-size box containing a new DVD player. But those miniature thrills just can't compare to what you really want: a big-screen HDTV.