Last week, my friends, I was in Las Vegas, Nevada. I'm was there for a big industry conference called CES - the Consumer Electronics Show. It's the largest consumer electronics trade show in the U.S. Over 150,000 people attend this event - and Las Vegas gets quite crowded during this time.
I actually have a love/hate relationship with Vegas. One of the few things that I love here, is the food. The top chefs in the country seem to all have restaurants (or several) here in Vegas. The downside? They're expensive. I don't think I'm brave enough to try some of these places without an expense account ; ) I could go on and on about the worst parts of Las Vegas…but let's get back to CES.
My company had a good presence at the show. We actually established a huge tent, just outside the convention center, to hold several events. Inside, we were able to display all of the products that we're involved with - laptops, game consoles, PCs, tablets (think iPad) , etc. It was really fun to see everything in one place.
Ultra-thin laptops
This is how you're supposed to play games - on three screens. AMD's Eyefinity technology
We started off with a press conference, where we announced a new tablet with Vizio. You may recognize the brand from all the high-def TVs in Costco and Wal-Mart. It was a big deal.
I stayed in a really nice hotel. Too nice, probably. It was the Palazzo Hotel, which is part of The Venetian complex. Everything there is gorgeous - like most of Las Vegas. The hotel was opulent, with a great deal spent on little touches to compliment the Italian theme of the property.
Seriously, check out those digs!
It doesn't smell like Venice??
As I indicated above, I love all the choices for food in Las Vegas. This includes not only the high-end restaurants, but so many of the national chains are located there. I was lucky enough to find not one, but two different locations for Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs…my all-time favorite hot dog joint that is usually found in the East Coast area.
While we're on the subject of food…one of the high-end restaurants that I wanted to take clients to, is Tom Colicchio" CraftSteak. Tom is the head judge on the TV show Top Chef. His CraftSteak restaurants are simply amazing.
We were treated to a "sampling menu" that brought six different cuts of meat to the table. The same happened for appetizers. Let's not forget desserts, as well. It was probably one of the Top 5 meals of my entire life. Every dish was outstanding. As a huge fan of steaks, my dreams came true.
It's a good thing there five of us ; )
Back at the show - CES brings all major manufacturers of consumer electronics, together. This includes Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, Sharp, LP, Intel, AMD…everyone but Apple. In addition, car companies were there - Ford, BMW, Audi - to show new consumer technology that will come in select vehicles. There was almost two million square feet of show floor. The booths of the big companies were enormous.
One of the big draws at CES are new televisions. The companies duel over size and features. The hot category this year? 4K TVs. These are televisions with 4X the resolution of high definition. Most people simply can't distinguish that benefit. I don't think the TV industry is going to find a lot of buyers, but every company had one. Here is a selection of images and video from my short trip through the expo floor.
Super wide monitors - 12:9 ration
Smart fridge that you can see before you open, connects to your phone
Panasonic had one of the new First Class cabins from the A380 jets...it's like having your own little apartment in the sky...
Samsung had these gorgeous 110 inch "gallery" TVs:
Not to be outdone, Sharp showed an 8K TV - this would be 8X the resolution of today's HDTV. I don't think this will ever go on sale ; )
At Sony's booth, I found a couple of interesting items. First, some of their new camcorders actually have mini-projectors built-in. This way, you can show friends what you've recorded, as long as you have a really dark room ; )
Sony also had a creepy product. It was a pair of digital binoculars - that can record video. I'm sure there are some innocent uses for this product, but how many peeping toms would love this device??
Rapper LL Cool J also made an appearance in their booth, to talk about their recording software and hardware:
Away from the show, another big part of CES are the parties. I don't have much desire to attend parties, but I found one this year that was interesting. It was held in one of the high-end dance clubs. In this case, it was Tao at The Venetian. A company had some of my favorite DJs (The Crystal Method) playing music for the crowd. Here's a picture from the entrance to the club. Crazy…
Another evening, my team hosted some game developers at a dinner. We went to the Eiffel Tower Restaurant at the Paris Hotel. Set high above the Vegas Strip, the view was incredible, with a clear view of the Bellagio Fountains below.
The meal was wonderful at the French restaurant, with highlights that included Bernaise sauce and chocolate soufflé for dessert. Yum, yum!
Afterwards, we were treated to an exclusive club at the top of the Mandalay Bay Resort. Once again, the view was incredible - with the ability to see clearly for miles beyond the Vegas Strip.
Before leaving town, I made a special trip over to the local In-n-Out Burger. I dream of the day that they make it to Austin...
My last meal in Vegas was by myself. Instead of a high-end restaurant, I tried a small place called I Love Burgers:
They serve gourmet burgers of all shapes and sizes. I went for sliders - with fried egg and bacon on the top. They were simply amazing, with smoked gouda cheese and a special bacon mayo to make it really sing.
Overall, it was a good week in Las Vegas. I was able to work side-by-side with my team, socialize with some great software developers, and meet with a lot of people inside our company. I will always remember the food…which I will need to do if someone tries to convince me to go back ; )
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