CES 2012

From a technical standpoint, speakers have hardly changed since I went to my first CES back in January 1990. Yet each CES is still jam-packed with new speaker designs. Some are merely modifications on the classic black box. Others are aesthetic flights of fancy intended to captivate those who really don’t much like audio gear.

Wi-Fi, 3G, and LTE networks may have been overwhelmed during CES 2012 itself, but news of wireless and wireless standards for audio (and video) was everywhere, with high-end manufacturers and do-it-all mega-corporations alike looking to free their consumers from their plastic-sheathed copper bonds.

In keeping with the overall haziness of CES 2012, the buzz came in the form of a meme with a few almost-maybe-real devices attached rather than as a single wowza product debut. During last Monday's press extravaganza, pretty much every TV titan talked about integrating content across all of the screens in their customer's expanding gadget arsenals, and while there was certainly plenty of excitement around do-it-all wired connections like MHL, making everything converge seamlessly seems to require a wireless approach.

Few details were announced regarding Samsung’s OLED, or Organic Light Emitting Diode HDTV.

With all the skepticism and cynicism I can muster, I will say this: OMG.

Not that 2D images can convey what 3D looks like, but here are some images that'll give you an idea about the limitations of current glasses-free 3D.

These images are from Toshiba's booth, where they were showing off some surprisingly complete-looking autostereoscopic 3D TVs. 

Cutting the cable” is a fashionable trend, but Monster is doing it in a different sense: It’s now just going by Monster instead of Monster Cable. True to its new moniker, the company didn’t even mention cable in its CES press conference today. But given the onslaught of cool new products the company introduced, nobody seemed to notice.