CES 2012: Next Big Thing

A day in the life of your future, according to CES 2012

LAS VEGAS--What would the world look like a few years from now if all the emerging technologies we saw at CES this year became as ubiquitous as Android phones, iPads, and DVRs?

Well, let's pretend it's a January morning three years from now. You might wake up to a hot breakfast freshly extruded by your new MakerBot 3D food printer--hopefully you remembered to refill the flavor cartridge the previous night or you could get a mouthful of a bland protein construction.

Next you'll probably turn to your Yoga. Not the ancient practice of physical, mental, and spiritual balance, but the tablet/laptop computer hybrid that became more popular than the iPad last year.

If you're into the meta thing, you could use your Yoga to play a yoga video, but you'd probably rather use a larger screen--a much larger screen like the 96-inch OLED taking up most of your wall. … Read more

MakerBot builds the future, layer by layer

LAS VEGAS--If you haven't yet heard about Makerbot, you haven't been paying close enough attention to this year's CES.

The Makerbot Replicator is an open-source, 3D printer that can create just about any plastic object you can imagine. The $1,999 two-color consumer device launched here this week and just this morning, it won a CNET Best of CES award in the Emerging Tech category.

I tracked down Makerbot founder Bre Pettis after the awards show to find out what's next for Makerbot. Here's what he told me about the potential he sees for turning kids on to 3D printing, and a new kind of homemade jelly, just for starters:… Read more

Wireless charging goes further--into tablets, cars, the home

LAS VEGAS--Wireless charging pads are available now for a selection of smartphones and small devices, but the technology--anchored by the Wireless Power Consortium's (WPC) "Qi" standard"--is about to get a lot bigger.

Here at CES 2012, Fulton Innovation--a founding member of the WPC--has been showing off its eCoupled wireless power system, which can charge a phone or device that isn't physically touching the charging surface. Fulton director Bret Lewis demonstrated the technology for me charging a phone in a cluttered purse, as well as through a thick wood tabletop. Lewis says that a recent breakthrough also allows for a charge to even be delivered to a device through certain types of metal cases.… Read more

The Next Big Thing: Android in the home, and in the fridge

Nearly every device in your house, from your television to your refrigerator, is going to be networked and could very well be Android-powered, panelists said today at a CNET CES event in Las Vegas.

Of course you'd expect Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google, to say that. But the vision was also endorsed by executives at Google partner Samsung, Sling Media, and Benchmark Capital, who spoke to CNET's Brian Cooley and Molly Wood about ecosystem trends. Here's what they said.

Eric Schmidt, Google executive chairman

The smartphone will become the portal to other devices and appliances in … Read more

Schmidt on Next Big Thing: Devices have to be friends (live blog)

LAS VEGAS--What's the Next Big Thing in tech? Google's Eric Schmidt says it's devices that play well together.

Devices such as smartphones are a portal to other devices and applications, the Google executive chairman said today at the Next Big Thing panel at CES. But the trick to consumer products is to make them work, Schmidt said.

CNET brought together four industry luminaries at the annual confab to discuss and debate the evolution of ecosystems and how they are changing the landscape of consumer electronics.

The panel included Schmidt, Sling Media co-founder Blake Krikorian, Benchmark Capital General … Read more

CNET's Next Big Thing of 2012: The ecosystem. Should we fear it?

When is a phone just a phone? A TV just a TV? A Blu-ray player just a Blu-ray player? How about last year? Because in 2012 and beyond, the next wave of consumer electronics evolution is all about the "ecosystem."

That concept, in fact, is the topic of CNET's Next Big Thing Supersession at CES 2012. We'll be talking about this idea of the ecosystem, and how it's changing the landscape of consumer electronics--and turning media and service companies into hardware partners, if not actual hardware makers.

We'll talk one on one with Google'… Read more

CES' Next Big Thing panel features Google's Schmidt, Sling's Krikorian

It's often hard to sort through the cacophony of the Consumer Electronics Show to find the trends and technology that will emerge in the coming year worthy of attention.

We're here to help.

On Tuesday, CNET is presenting a panel dubbed "The Next Big Thing in CE," featuring a few of the most prominent figures in tech. The group includes Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, Sling Media co-founder Blake Krikorian, Benchmark Capital General Partner Bill Gurley, and Tim Baxter, president of Samsung Electronics America sales, marketing and operations, covering both the consumer and enterprise business divisions.… Read more