Reflecting on the just concluded CES is an analyst ritual, although normally one I choose not to participate in. Too many gadgets to see, too many booths to comprehend, too much information for one person to absorb. And I spend more time off the floor with clients and retailers than I do wandering the aisles of South Hall.
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Consumer Technology | Stephen Baker, Vice President, Industry Analysis | 
January 19, 2012 8:35 am | 
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Last year’s CES saw an invasion of mobile converged devices. With smartphone launches spurred by the introduction of Verizon’s LTE network (and joined by HSPA+ expansion by AT&T and T-Mobile) and a wall’s worth of tablets seeking to head off the iPad 2, it seemed as though consumer electronics were tied to the state of the slate.
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Beyond all of the “cloud chatter” and plethora of device announcements at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), HSN talked-up their “boundary less” retail strategy; digital efforts (driven in part by mobile gaming veteran and their EVP of Digital, Jill Braff); and offered sell-through proof points driven by their largely female audience (85 percent).
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Tags: CES, HSN, online gaming
Connected Intelligence | Linda Barrabee, Research Director, NPD Connected Intelligence | January 13, 2012 11:49 am | Comments (0)
In the past, carriers and Internet service providers had multiple tools to ensure that I remained a loyal citizen of their domain. In the early days of the Internet, the easiest way to get an email address was from my service provider, and once I began to use and distribute this email address, the thought of moving to an alternative broadband provider was delayed by the thought of how painful it would be to switch my email address.
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Tags: CES, cloud, connected devices
Connected Intelligence | Eddie Hold, Vice President, NPD Connected Intelligence | January 11, 2012 2:38 pm | Comments (0)
Retail shopping solutions are making their presence felt at CES as either a cooperative offering, or in competition with the brick and mortar stores. Following a holiday period where Amazon (and others) began actively pushing smartphone-based price comparison tools, the timing is opportune for retailers – and consumers – to begin considering how the connected device will aid next generation shopping experiences.
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In announcing a new name, new direction, and new marketing strategy that puts more emphasis on services and content and less on low price, Dish did a remarkably good job of obscuring a salient point; the digital divide still exists, and because it does a less-than-enthralling broadband offer looks like it should have legs.
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Tags: broadband, CES, Dish, IP
Connected Intelligence | Jim Barthold, Sr. Analyst, NPD Connected Intelligence | 1:01 pm | Comments (0)
For years, mobile carriers have recognized the need to create new plans that revolve around people rather than devices, but it was easy to procrastinate in a world where the idea of consumers owning multiple wireless broadband devices was a far-off future scenario. Indeed, holistic (and flat-rate) service pricing was one of the original ideas behind Xohm, the first incarnation of 4G service from Sprint. But it, like the rest of Xohm, vanished into the clear.
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Tags: 4G, AT&T, CES, Kindle, Sprint, wireless broadband
Connected Intelligence | Ross Rubin, Executive Director, NPD Connected Intelligence | January 10, 2012 2:43 pm | Comments (0)
Before The 2012 International CES even officially started there were some interesting developments on press day.
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Tags: Android, CES, energy monitoring, Headphones, PCs, TV, Vizio
Consumer Technology | Ben Arnold, Director of Industry Analysis | 10:54 am | Comments (0)
The first big news of CES happened when Vizio announced its intention to enter the notebook and AIO desktop markets in the middle of 2012. They would join an exhaustive list of companies selling PCs to consumers through U.S. retail. In fact they would be the 10th company of note (although there are even more brands than that) to have a presence on the U.S. retail shelf.
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Tags: CES, desktop, notebook, PCs, Vizio
Consumer Technology | Stephen Baker, Vice President, Industry Analysis | 10:50 am | Comments (0)
Verizon Wireless used the first day of CES to launch two new Mi-Fi products (from ZTE and Novatel) that both support LTE and – significantly – international roaming. The roaming supports both EDGE (quad band) and HSPA, ensuring that a wide range of networks can be supported (although EDGE connectivity is unlikely to provide a satisfactory experience). Both the ZTE and Novatel devices support up to 10 Wi-Fi connections, providing ample connectivity for the average globe-trotting, tech-toting business user.
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Tags: CES, LTE, Mi-Fi, Novatel, Verizon Wireless, ZTE
Connected Intelligence, Wireless | Eddie Hold, Vice President, NPD Connected Intelligence | 10:48 am | Comments (0)
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