At SXSW, hardware goes soft
AUSTIN, Texas -- An open-source Android gaming console and 3D printers ready to scan you Tron-style were what the organizers of the annual South by Southwest Interactive conference here wanted badge-holders to care about.
Instead, people chose Grumpy Cat.
The annual show took a hard turn toward hardware in an attempt to expand its mandate, but badge holders swerved in another direction -- toward memes.
Hardware was unusually ever-present but remarkably unappreciated. It was as if conference organizers, who put new devices center stage in keynote presentations, wanted to intentionally shift the show's focus away from consumer Internet applications … Read more