My Trip to CES

I found myself at the Microsoft booth at CES 2009. The CES, or Consumer Electronics Show, offers some of the latest technology, coolest gadgets and craziest new innovations. At this particular booth, I was playing around with one of the newest Windows Mobile phones when I was approached by a very insistent woman.

"You need to get off this phone, the FCC Chair wants to see it." Say what?

Naturally, I obliged and let Kevin Martin, the current (but not for long) FCC Chairman, use the phone I was just playing with. He kicked me off!

Part of me wanted to respond, "the FCC Chair can wait his turn just like everyone else." But I didn't want the government all over me, though I wonder in retrospect what he would've done if I had resisted. Guess we'll never know.

So why did I go to CES? To blog. And for an escape. I'm making the transition from full-time job at AT&T to a part-time internship, and it seemed like the best time to do it. Plus, I could get into the show and parties for free. All I had to worry about was the gas, food and possible hotels. Sounds like a good deal to me.

I currently blog for unwiredview.com, and figured I could find plenty of stuff to write about. It was true. Some of the cool stuff I saw? A watch with a built-in touchscreen phone (Dick Tracy style) and MP3 player, that will speak your text messages to you. A luxury phone that costs $2,000. An 8 MP camera phone (read: better than my current digital camera).

There was a ton more. Huge booths with the fanciest displays I've ever seen, showing off all the latest products. One in particular was a sensor that you put on the top of your HDTV that can see your hand gestures so you can use your hand as a remote control. Practical? No. Intriguing? Indeed.

I also enjoyed the parties. Many of the big players at CES will put on afterparties Thursday-Saturday nights. I went to three on Friday night -- one that was on the top floor of the Wynn, with amazing views of the valley; one that was uneventful for me and doesn't need to be mentioned; and one that featured a free performance by the Counting Crows. I got into that one at the last minute and waltzed right in to a nice view, only 5 feet away from the lead singer. Not bad for free!

I also was able to attend my grandma's birthday celebration that my parents and my dad's siblings attended. That was nice timing for me to be there, and a pleasant surprise for her.

The other notable thing I did on the trip was eat out at a posh steakhouse at the Paris called Les Artiste. Rather pricey stuff. I was invited by my sister-in-law who was on her way down to Cali with some friends; they definitely wanted to go to a place while stopped in Vegas for the night. Naturally I hadn't eaten much that day, so thus my stomach was smaller and I wasn't able to eat much of my expensive dinner. Nice timing for that as well. Fortunately I got a doggie bag and finished it all later, so it didn't go to waste.

All in all, it was a great weekend and everything seemed to come together quite nicely. I networked with some new people, saw some cool new gadgets, and caught some good entertainment. Great way to transition into a new phase of my life!