HTC Thunderbolt on Verizon's 4G LTE

This awesome phone is the HTC Thunderbolt on Verizon—for all intents and purposes, this is the equivalent of the very popular Sprint EVO with its large touchscreen, 8 megapixel camera, and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera. NerdBoyTV likes this one...BIGTIME!

NOTE: This videoclip was taken by AndroidPolice at this year's 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

2011 CES Best Gadget — Motorola's Xoom Tablet

Courtesy of CNET

CNET's Brian Tong demos the recently crowned Best Gadget of the 2011 Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas — Motorola's Xoom Tablet.

Motorola Xoom tablet crowned best CES gadget

Motorola Xoom tablet crowned best CES gadget - Yahoo! News: "Motorola Mobility's Xoom tablet computer powered by new 'Honeycomb' software from Google was crowned the best gadget at the giant Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on Saturday.

Along with being declared the top creation at the dazzling gadget extravaganza, Xoom was also honored as the best of the scores of tablets introduced here as fresh competitors in a market dominated by Apple iPads.

Motorola also scored a victory with its Atrix smartphone designed to work with high-speed 4G wireless networks and which can be used in a dock to power a laptop.

Atrix won the top spot in a smartphone category at the official Best of CES awards.

'We took big risks and they paid off,' said Motorola Mobility chief software engineer Seang Chau. 'We didn't know if people would get it; but obviously they got it.'

US telecom maker Motorola Mobility jumped into the bustling tablet computer market Wednesday when chief executive Sanjay Jha unveiled Xoom at CES.

Motorola Mobility's hotly awaited tablet computer, the 'Xoom,' will be available in the first quarter of the year, Jha said.

With a 10.1-inch (25.6-centimeter) screen, the Xoom is about the same size as Apple's iPad, which hit stores in April and has other leading technology companies around the world scrambling to catch up.

Xoom will be a fierce competitor in the marketplace because Google built Honeycomb software specifically to power tablet computers, according to Jha.

'This is really the next generation of tablets,' Motorola Mobility device team head Alain Mutricy said as he held a Xoom in one hand at the awards ceremony.

'Our partnership with Google has been very intense and has enabled some great technology.'

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Have Your Computer Zoom for You

Courtesy of ABC News Video

Becky Worley of ABC News' "Good Stuff" demos the Lean & Zoom software that adjusts text size as you lean closer.

Snap Your Tablet Back Into a Laptop

Courtesy of ABC News Video

Becky Worley reports from this year's CES in Las Vegas and demos the Lenovo LePad, which easily changes from a tablet back into a laptop.

Send Photos Directly From Your Camera

Courtesy of ABC News Video

The Eye-Fi card sends pics from your digital camera to other devices.

Cool Gadgets from CES (courtesy of MSNBC)

MSNBC reviews some of the cool gadgets at this year's 2011 Customer Electronics Shows (CES). There have been over 120,000 in attendance at this year's show. Watch the video below to see what gadgets were presented at this year's show.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Tablets crowd gadget show, chasing iPad's tail

Tablets crowd gadget show, chasing iPad's tail - Yahoo! News: "Big tablets and small tablets, white ones and black ones. Cheap ones and expensive ones. Brand names famous and obscure at the starting line of a race where the iPad is already a speeding dot near the horizon.

It's impossible to walk the floor at this year's International Consumer Electronics Show without stumbling across a multitude of keyboard-less touch-screen computers expected to hit the market in the coming months. With Apple estimated to have sold more than 13 million iPads last year alone, the competition is clearly for second place, but even that prize is worth pursuing.

Technology research firm Gartner Inc. expects that 55 million tablet computers will be shipped this year, most of them still iPads, but there will be room for rivals to vie for sales of the remaining 10 million to 15 million devices.

A bevy of consumer electronics makers, including major names such as Motorola Mobility Inc., Toshiba Corp. and Dell Inc., showed off their tablets in Las Vegas at CES, betting 2011 will be the year the gadgets finally take off.

Companies tried for years to popularize tablets, but the frenzy began only with the release of the iPad in April. Now companies whose names don't include the word 'Apple' are doing everything they can to differentiate themselves from the tablet front-runner.

They're adding bells and whistles the iPad doesn't yet have — such as front and back cameras for video chatting and picture taking and the ability to work over next-generation 4G data networks — in hopes of taking on the iPad, or at least carving out a niche.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

CES: Samsung unveils 9 Series, a thin competitor to the MacBook Air

CES: Samsung unveils 9 Series, a thin competitor to the MacBook Air - CES 2011 CNET Blogs: "Samsung laptops have caught our eye for more than a year now, with an increasingly impressive design aesthetic and fairly good prices to boot. Today, its announcement of a thin, 13-inch laptop aimed squarely at the MacBook Air-loving crowd seems to indicate a direction in higher-end products, too, and we certainly can't complain.

The 9 Series comes with a second-generation Intel Core i5-2537M CPU, 4GB of DD43 RAM, and a 128GB solid-state drive, along with Windows 7 Professional. The design looks great so far: its metal finish has beautiful curved edges, and Samsung boasts it's the thinnest 13-inch laptop in existence. While specific dimensions weren't provided, it weighs 2.86 pounds. Despite its size, it also packs a 1.5-watt subwoofer and stereo speakers, too.

The Samsung 9 series isn't cheap at $1,599, scraping the top of the high-end. However, it's nice to see laptops aiming to get sexy again, a trend seemingly lacking at this year's CES. With heated competition from tablets and smartphones bearing eye-popping designs, we're surprised more laptop manufacturers aren't following suit, albeit perhaps with something a bit more affordable.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Verizon reveals first '4G' tablet and phone

Verizon reveals first '4G' tablet and phone - Yahoo! News: "The first portable devices announced for Verizon Wireless' new, high-speed wireless data network are a smart phone and a tablet from Motorola, both designed to take advantage of network's speed with cameras for videoconferencing.

More devices for Verizon's '4G' network, which went live for laptop modems in December, are expected to be announced Thursday by the CEO of Verizon Communications Inc. at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

For the moment, Verizon has the fastest wireless network in the country, and it's hoping to capitalize on it by selling data-hungry tablets and smart phones. There are unconfirmed reports that Verizon will also get to sell version of the iPhone, breaking AT&T Inc.'s exclusive hold, but analysts don't expect Verizon to reveal one at the show.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Always connected lifestyle on display at CES

Always connected lifestyle on display at CES - Yahoo! News: "Smarter devices, homes and cars for the always connected lifestyle are taking center stage as the annual Consumer Electronics Show kicks off here on Thursday.

Slick new smartphones, ultra-thin laptops, tablet computers to rival Apple's iPad and Web-connected and 3D television sets are expected to grab the most attention during the four-day event at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

But the show floor will also feature more smart home appliances such as ovens which can download recipes and vehicles which give drivers hands-free voice control access to their smartphone applications.

Technology titans such as Cisco, Intel, LG Electronics, Microsoft, Motorola, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba were among the firms offering a glimpse of their upcoming products to reporters here ahead of the official CES opening.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Motorola Xoom Android tablet may be first iPad killer

Technolog - Motorola Xoom Android tablet may be first iPad killer: "Though there have been tablets running Android on the market since last year, the Motorola Xoom, debuted today at CES in Las Vegas for the very first time, represents the first real Android tablet sanctioned by Google, running an operating system designed explicitly for tablets. Forget the Samsung Galaxy Tab, forget it completely. This is Google's first attempt to take on the iPad, and it's a worthy one.

The device has a 10-inch widescreen display and is actually a hair thinner than an iPad: Xoom measures 12.9mm at the middle while the iPad measures 13.4 mm. It's a smooth black on black with a rubberized rear. It has two cameras, one in front for videoconferencing, one in back for shooting. Battery life is about 10 hours for video, which should put it in the same company as the iPad. Meanwhile, its 1280x800 display is 16:10, which means it uses almost the entire screen when playing a movie."

Microsoft TV may challenge Apple, Google

Technolog - Microsoft TV may challenge Apple, Google

By Suzanne Choney

With a big push on for "connected TVs" — those that can hitch you up to the Internet via your home TV for streaming movies, TV shows, music and photos — Microsoft is likely to jump into that arena with its own product to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas.

Google and Apple already have a footprint in this effort, and hungry TV makers are pushing for it, too (with 3-D TVs, the failed wunderkind of last year's CES, not yet ready for prime time with consumers).

Microsoft plans to use a "stripped-down version of Windows tailored for set-top boxes and connected TVs," reports Brier Dudley of The Seattle Times. "The software is a version of its embedded device software, overlaid with the Windows Media Center interface, with media streaming and remote-control capabilities." (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

Microsoft's connected TV boxes are expected to go for around $200 and be available later this year, according to the report, and "pose a serious challenge to the new Apple and Google TV devices, largely because the Windows boxes have a polished and familiar TV-program guide that makes it easy to blend and navigate both online and broadcast content."

Tablet market will see lots of road kill

Tablet market will see lots of road kill Therese Poletti's Tech Tales - MarketWatch: "Anyone heading to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show this week won’t be able to avoid the avalanche of examples of tech’s hot new thing, the tablet.

Analysts are predicting that at least 100 tablets will be introduced, just about a year after Apple Inc. (AAPL 328.75, -0.82, -0.25%) led the way when it unveiled the iPad on Jan. 27, 2010. The anticipation of Apple’s tablet even managed to cast a shadow over last year’s show.

So this year, the rest of the industry hopes to catch up with Apple’s iPad — the clear leader for now. Does anyone else have a chance?

The biggest loser at the hands of the tablet will initially be the netbook. Companies which placed big bets on the netbook could suffer if they are not able to garner more interest with their new tablets, especially if they adopt a similar lower-price, less functionality strategy. One reason netbooks are losing their popularity is because they do less than a laptop, but at prices that are getting closer to those of laptops."

Gadget show to bring fiercer competition to iPad

Gadget show to bring fiercer competition to iPad - Yahoo! News: "Apple Inc.'s popular iPad is getting its strongest competition thus far as consumer-electronics manufacturers unveil tablet computers with bigger screens, front-facing cameras for video chatting and more.

The iPad has been a smashing success since its April launch, leaving other companies to play catch-up in the suddenly hot market for the keyboardless, touch-screen devices. Rivals are making a bigger push at this week's International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, betting they can challenge Apple with such features as Android, the popular smart phone software Google Inc. developed to compete with the iPhone; high-definition touch screens and cameras for video chatting and taking photos.

The competition is going to be fierce. DisplaySearch analyst Richard Semenza estimated that a hundred different tablet models are in development, though not all of them will reach store shelves."

Apple's absence to be felt at CES gadget show

Apple's absence to be felt at CES gadget show - Yahoo! News: "What do you call it when you have 120,000 people and an elephant in the room?

The International Consumer Electronics Show, which kicks off this week in Las Vegas.

The elephant is Apple Inc. It won't be at the show this year, but its tablet computer, the iPad, is the most important new product for an industry that needs to once again excite consumers. Sales of the iPad have been strong since its April debut, and the whole industry is now trying to mimic Apple's success.

With the iPad, Apple single-handedly cracked the code for the tablet, a device that dozens of manufacturers have tried to take to the masses for two decades, with little success.

Apple itself doesn't do trade shows. When Apple has new products to reveal, such as iPads or iPhones, it stages its own events.

But nearly every other company in the industry will be there for CES, which runs Thursday to Sunday and is the largest trade show of any kind in the Americas. A good many of them will show off their tablets — computing slabs with touch-sensitive screens. Big names expected to do so include Motorola Inc. and Dell Inc.

DisplaySearch analyst Richard Semenza estimated that a hundred different tablet models are in development, though not all of them will reach store shelves.

Competing tablets will have a hard time catching up to Apple's lead, at least this year. Certainly, no one managed to do so last year, even though a lot of manufacturers, including Dell, brought out tablets. Samsung did have some success with its Galaxy Tab, but sales didn't come close to the iPad's.

'For the next year or two, we expect there to be a lot of false starts, failed attempts, and disasters,' Richard Shim, another DisplaySearch analyst, said in a blog post.

Apple sold 7.4 million iPads through September, in the device's first six months on sale. That means they're already outselling Apple's Mac computers, but not iPods or iPhones.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Tablets galore on tap at major CES gadget fest

Tablets galore on tap at major CES gadget fest - Yahoo! News: "Tablet computers will lead a host of 'smart' gadgets in the Nevada desert this week at a Consumer Electronics Show (CES) spotlighting slick new devices on the horizon.

CES attendance in Las Vegas should top the 126,000 figure from the annual event last January and the roster of exhibitors has climbed 2,000 to 2,700.

Internet software will fuse with televisions, cars and even household appliances at CES, where an army of tablets will be unleashed to challenge Apple's winning iPads.

'Certainly the Number One trend will be tablets,' said NPD Group analyst Stephen Baker.

'I think every smartphone and PC (personal computer) company will either have one on their show floor; be showing them behind closed doors, or announcing things.'

CES organizers said that from 40 to 80 tablets could debut at the event that runs from Thursday through Sunday.

Apple sold more than eight million iPads since the California company introduced the tablets in April and year-end sales could surpass 10 million.

- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Slate mania grips PC makers

Slate mania grips PC makers | CES 2010 - CNET: "Call them tablets or slates, but companies at CES seem obsessed with showing off the possibilities of PCs stripped of their keyboards and touch pads. These slate devices are essentially handheld screens that do some or most of what your laptop does, but with touch controls and, often, 3G data access.

We've seen several versions this week, in situations ranging from extensive hands-on demos to arms-length sneak peeks of devices that may or may not ever see the light of day. Of course, all of these products are operating under the very long shadow of Apple's still-unannounced tablet. (And note that people started calling these 'slates' more often after the rumor mill called Apple's device the 'iSlate.')"

SHOW #86 - NerdBoyTV: CES 2010

In this episode of NerdBoyTV, Ryan Yee talks about the gadgets making a lot of noise at this year's CES 2010, including the new iLounge Pavilion, the Panasonic VT25 3-D Flatscreen Television, the wide assortment of eReaders coming out this year, and a SmartMoney.com matchup review of Google's Nexus One and Apple's iPhone 3GS.

E-reader boom kindles a variety of new options

By Rachel Metz / Associated Press (CLICK to read more)

"When most people think of electronic book readers, Amazon's thin, white Kindle probably springs to mind. But that could be about to change.

A cascade of e-readers will hit the market this year, taking the devices far beyond gray-scale screens with features like touch navigation and video chatting — and probably lowering prices, too.

It's happening as other gadgets, such as mobile phones and tablet computers, give people even more choices for diving into their favorite books. Perhaps the only downside is worrying you might buy an e-reader from a company that won't stick around.

This week, nearly two dozen companies that make the devices or deliver reading material to them are showing products at the International Consumer Electronics Show, the first time it has devoted a section to e-books.

In a good sign for the mainstream status e-book companies hope to achieve, they are clustered at a prime location in the Las Vegas Convention Center often taken over by the likes of Microsoft Corp. And Amazon isn't even at the exhibition.

E-books make up a tiny portion of book sales, but their popularity is growing rapidly. According to the Consumer Electronics Association, which organizes the trade show, 2.2 million e-readers were shipped to stores in 2009, nearly four times as many as the year before. This year, the group expects 5 million will be shipped.

'It's an incredible growth category,' said Jason Oxman, senior vice president of industry affairs at the electronics association."