Normally, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. But when it comes to the world of shiny new gadgets, that isn’t the case.
The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was held in Las Vegas last week, giving a glimpse into the future of HD, 3-D, OLED, PC and just about any other acronym.
While one could write a column a week for the rest of the year detailing everything shown off at the convention, I’ll stick with only the most impressive items from CES 2012.
Tablet PCs were all the rage this past holiday season. Yet, anything you may have received under the tree pales in comparison to what Razer is cooking up.
Razer introduced a prototype of its new gaming tablet, Fiona. While games like “Angry Birds” or “Infinity Blade II” look stunning on an iPad, the Fiona pushes tablet gaming to its limit, boasting an Intel Core i7 processor — that’s usually only seen in high-end computers.
What this processor allows the Fiona to do is run PC-quality games, such as “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” on high settings in stunning high definition.
Users can control the game using either the tablet’s 10.1-inch touchscreen or two joysticks jutting out on each side of the device.
The Fiona currently runs Windows 7, but Razer is optimistic it will run the newly unveiled Windows 8 by launch.
It’s a slick-looking device, but with its strange apparatus it seems more like an oversized PSP than a true tablet.
While tablets may be the current hot item in the tech world, 3-D displays have been on people’s minds since they invaded homes the past few years. Unfortunately for those who like to watch movies with a little more dimension, these set-ups can be pricey, and the need for special glasses is a turn-off to those with more than one friend.
Toshiba is trying to change that by unveiling its new glasses-free 3-D television.
Glasses-free 3-D tech isn’t new — it’s been on cameras and Nintendo’s 3DS since last year — but the scale Toshiba is pushing with its new TV is staggering.
The 55-inch display allows nine people to view a movie in all three dimensions without overpriced glasses. The television scans the room and instructs viewers on where to sit for optimal 3-D viewing.
Finally, one of the most gorgeous things on the CES floor was Samsung’s 55-inch organic light-emitting diode (OLED) TV. This is the first time we’ve seen OLED technology on such a grand scale.
Normally restricted to screens in the 10- to 20-inch range, Samsung’s new “Super OLED” screen is like staring at your iPhone 4 or 4S screen — only much larger.
The TV is only 5 millimeters thin (about the width of your pinky’s fingernail) and boasts a gorgeous scale of colors, deep blacks and absolutely no motion-blur.
It’ll also ship with Samsung’s “Smart TV,” allowing for voice recognition and motion-based control — think Microsoft Kinect meets “Back to the Future Part II.”
It is truly one of the most impressive pieces of tech I’ve seen, and the good news is that Samsung is promising its release before the end of 2012.
Maybe what happened during CES should’ve stayed in Vegas. While the future looks bright, all the gadgets I have now seem old and out-dated.
 
Adam Arinder is a 22-year-old communication studies senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_aarinder.
 
Contact Adam Arinder at [email protected].