ETCentric correspondents Carolyn Giardina and George Gerba discuss the major trends on display at this year’s CES in Las Vegas. During the 5-minute video recap, Carolyn and George review this year’s breakout star — 4K — by discussing displays, content, cameras and upscaling technologies. They also address areas such as tablets, smartphones, second screen apps, and glasses-free 3D. Continue reading CES 2013: ETC Provides Show Recap, 4K Leading Trend (VIDEO)

Six new Roku Ready partners — Coby Electronics, Harman Kardon, Hisense, TCL, Voxx Accessories and Westinghouse Digital — have joined existing partners so that future devices from these companies will be certified as “Roku Ready,” meaning they’ll come MHL-ready for Roku’s compact Streaming Stick. The stick now offers more than 700 channels of streaming entertainment. Continue reading CES 2013: Roku Announces New Slate of Roku Ready Partners

In addition to flat OLED panels at CES, both Samsung and LG generated attention with prototype 55-inch Curved OLED TVs. According to Samsung, the curved panel provides depth for a more “life-like viewing experience” and an immersive panorama effect not possible with flat panels. The curved screens are said to be ideal for vast landscapes and nature scenes, similar to that of an IMAX experience. Continue reading CES 2013: Curved OLED Prototypes on Display in Las Vegas

Panasonic has taken an interesting route for a Windows 8 Pro tablet with its FZ-G1, another entry in its ruggedized Toughpad series. The company promises the 10.1-inch tablet can endure intense heat and sunlight, pouring rain and freezing conditions. Panasonic sees the FZ-G1 as a secure solution for industries in which a tablet may take a beating, such as food services, military, healthcare, public safety, utilities and more. Continue reading CES 2013: Panasonic Windows 8 Toughpad Gets Ruggedized

Samsung announced its first two Windows 8 smartphones in October with Verizon, but missed the December delivery date on both. Now it appears ready to ship the 3G LTE ATIV S, possibly as soon as January or February, but after talking up the 4G LTE ATIV Odyssey at CES, shoppers have little incentive beyond a thin form factor and slick brushed steel housing to dive in with the ATIV S. Continue reading CES 2013: Samsung Rings Up Pair of Windows 8 ATIV Phones

While Microsoft made a point of not having a CES booth this year, it quietly showcased its new Surface Pro tablet in a private suite. The unit is a full-on computer in a tablet, with an Intel i5 processor, true HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 on a 10.8-inch screen and a complete Windows 8 software suite. It’s due to ship January 26 with a retail price of $899 for 64GB of memory and $999 for a 128GB version. Continue reading CES 2013: Windows 8 Strong on Surface Pro, Ships This Month

Unlike last year, Research In Motion was not an official CES booth exhibitor this time around, but BlackBerry devotees got a sneak peek at the company’s new BlackBerry 10 at the Venetian Hotel. The touchscreen-only device does away with the BlackBerry’s iconic QWERTY keyboard and home button. RIM is set to officially unveil its two new BlackBerry units at a press conference January 30 in New York (originally scheduled for the fourth quarter). Continue reading CES 2013: RIM Quietly Shows BlackBerry 10 in Suite Demo

The debut of the RCA Mobile TV Tablet made CES attendees sit up and take notice. Sporting an 8-inch HD (1024 × 768) screen, the device combines mobile DTV with over-the-air TV reception and doubles as a touch-based Android tablet. Equipped with dual cameras, Wi-Fi and GPS functionality, it is also being touted as the first dual-tuner mobile TV as well as the first integrated unit to feature the Mobile Content Venture consortium’s Dyle mobile TV service. Continue reading CES 2013: RCA Wins One for the Nipper with Mobile TV Tab

Canon did not announce any major new products at CES, but it was finally showing the production version of its newest DSLR camera, the Canon EOS-1D C. Sharing the same basic chassis and form factor as its flagship still camera, the 1D X, the 1D C features several significant changes to both its hardware and software that are designed to optimize the camera for motion imaging. Perhaps most significantly, the 1D C was one of the only cameras to be found at CES capable of recording full 4K resolution footage to onboard storage media. Continue reading CES 2013: Canon Demos its Most Powerful DSLR (VIDEO)

Action sports camera manufacturer GoPro had a significantly larger presence at CES this year than they have had in the past, and they used that space to display their latest camera, the Hero3. Available in three different versions, the Hero3 is a significant upgrade from previous GoPro cameras, and offers a number of technical features that are clearly targeted at making it into a camera that is capable of delivering broadcast-quality footage. Continue reading CES 2013: GoPro Displays Latest Action Sports Camera (VIDEO)

There were a large number of Ultra HDTVs unveiled at CES, but HD or Blu-ray played on a 4K display “visually is not an enjoyable experience,” contends Technicolor CEO Frederic Rose. “A lot of manufacturers say ‘don’t worry, we have software that can upgrade what you are watching.’ What we see is that it doesn’t work because the chip technology that is used in the Connected TVs is actually not performing enough for what is required.” Technicolor is suggesting an alternative. Continue reading CES 2013: Technicolor Addresses 4K Upscaling, Color Science

Canon is showing it line of cameras including the EOS-1D C, EOS C100, EOS C300 and EOS C500 (which began shipping last month with a $30,000 list price). It also announced two additional Cinema EOS Primes, a 14mm and 135mm, both slated to ship in the spring. Larry Thorpe, national marketing exec and senior fellow at Canon USA, offered his take on the direction of 4K. Continue reading CES 2013: Larry Thorpe Discusses Canon and a 4K Viewpoint

Toshiba showed that it is serious about 4K with a range of Ultra HDTVs, including the L9300 series that will be available in 58-, 65- and 84-inch LED models. To demonstrate what native 4K would look like on its displays, the company showed 4K content shot with a RED Epic camera and played from the soon-to-be-released, $1,450 REDRAY 4K Cinema Player. Continue reading CES 2013: Toshiba Teams With RED For 4K Ultra HD Demo

Sharp showed a 32-inch 4K IGZO monitor, initially aimed at professional applications such as CAD, architecture and medical applications. The Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide (IGZO) technology increases the amount of light transmitted per pixel. Continue reading CES 2013: Sharp Shows 4K IGZO Monitor, 4K and 8K TVs

While the latest new displays and the stunning new tablets and smartphones tend to get the bulk of the attention at CES, in the smaller booths, hidden in the nooks and crannies of the Las Vegas Convention Center, one can find a smattering of simpler, humbler tools that can make life a lot easier for people on working in physical production. Here, we look at some tools for shooting in the field that are all new at this year’s CES, including lights, camera mounts, protective gear and storage options. Continue reading CES 2013: Production Tools for Personal and Professional Use