At the International Consumer Electronics Show last week in LAS VEGAS 3-D television, electronic readers and little laptops captured much of the attention.
There were plenty of other interesting ideas on display, too, from 3-D printing to a wireless cell phone tether. Here are some of the gadgets most worth keeping an eye out for this year, and some that best deserve an arched eyebrow of amusement:
TV on the iPhone — Qualcomm Inc.'s FLO TV service has been limited by the fact that only a few AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless cell phones can receive the signals, which carry about 15 news, sports and entertainment channels. Now, Qualcomm has teamed up with phone accessories maker Mophie to create an external battery pack for the iPhone that doubles as a FLO TV receiver. It's expected in the first half of the year.
Game-controller glove — Iron Will Innovations demonstrated a futuristic-looking black-and-silver glove that replaces a keyboard and lets users control games by touching their fingers together instead. Called the Peregrine, the glove includes five sensors on each finger that replace different keystrokes when touched to the glove's thumb.
Wireless charging — Last year, Powermat USA showed off a mat that charged gadgets that were placed on top of it — as long as the gadgets were equipped with special covers.
Polaroid Instant Cameras — Polaroid stopped making instant film two years ago, but a brave group of enthusiasts and former employees bought one of Polaroid's factories in Netherlands and reinvented the film. Their film is expected on the market later this year, and to go along with it, Polaroid announced at the show that it will be bringing back instant film cameras.
Cell-phone tether — Losing your cell phone is a drag, and a company called Zomm believes it can make it a thing of the past. It has a small device, also called Zomm, that connects wirelessly with your phone through Bluetooth and sets off an alarm if you walk away from it.
3-D camera — The big push from TV makers this year is for sets that show 3-D in the home. Fujifilm, betting that people will want to shoot their own 3-D movies and photos as well, is also selling a digital camera with two lenses, set apart as if they are human eyes.
3-D filter — What if you want 3-D viewing, but you don't want to get a new TV and a 3-D Blu-ray player? Real view Innovations Ltd. has it all worked out for you. The Irish company has developed a film that can be placed over a set to make it look like the flat surface of the screen bulges inwards.
3-D color printing — Shapeways has been offering 3-D printing for a few years, taking data files and turning them into sculptures with the help of a machine that lays down successive layers of a plaster-like material. At the show, the Dutch company announced that they're now offering sculptures in full color.
Mopping robot — It's the battle of the cleaning robots! The vacuuming Roomba robots will get competition this September from the Mint, a square robot that has a pad for a dry or wet Swiffer-type cleaning cloth. Guided by a beacon that projects an infrared light on the ceiling (think Batman signal), the Mint will methodically sweep one room at time.
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