Hey everybody, welcome to CNET Top 5. I'm Donald Bell, and I just got back
from a fairly underwhelming week at the annual Consumer Electronics Show:
CES.
I mean, I saw some beautiful TVs that cost more than my car. I played with toy
helicopter that you can control with your mind. And I ate with a Bluetooth fork.
Plenty of cool stuff, but nothing that's really going on my 2013 shopping list.
Fortunately, there are plenty of products expected this year that are worth getting
excited about. Here are my top 5 picks that will keep 2013 interesting.
Staring off at #5: Google Glass. Google's augmented reality glasses are
expected to hit software developers early this year. And with any luck, early
adopters will have something to buy before the year is done.
I mean, if you think you're addicted to the internet now, just wait until Facebook is
literally on your face. Even if this thing is a dud, it's going to make for an
interesting year.
At #4: an iPad Mini, with a Retina Display. It?s a pretty safe bet that Apple will
refresh their iPad Mini this year by giving it a higher resolution screen. The
competition in 7-inch tablets right now is fierce, and if Apple wants to keep their
tablet lead, they really need to make that iPad Mini something to shout about.
But maybe they were too busy thinking about #3: the Apple HDTV. The rumors of
an all-in-one Apple TV have been tossed around for years now, but there are a
number of signs pointing to a 2013 release. With the TV manufacturers busy
dialing in UltraHD and OLED TVs, this would be the perfect year for Apple to
disrupt the market with their own take on things. Whether you actually buy it or
not, is another question.
But more exciting than that, and probably more affordable, is #2: the Sony
PlayStation 4. The Playstation 3 has been with us since 2006 and even though
Sony has slimmed it down a bit, it?s still due for a serious overhaul. The rumors
are pegging this as a quad-core machine with a 1GHz graphics card. Whatever it
is, if it's going maintain Sony's lead with hardcore gaming for the next 7 years,
you can bet that Sony is going to throw in everything they've got.
Now before we get to #1, let me prepare you for the most annoying gadget of
2013: the iPhone 5S - or whatever this year's iPhone is going to be called.
Historically, this is Apple's off-year for the iPhone. Just like the 3GS or the 4S,
this year's iPhone is probably going to look just like the iPhone 5, but with some
slightly improved specs. In spite of that, it will receive more hype than last year's
Mayan apocalypse. So brace yourself.
Also take some comfort in a gadget that will probably be at the top of every
family's holiday wish list this year. At #1: the Microsoft Xbox 720. Yes folks, the
game console wars of 2013 will be epic. The Xbox 360 is currently the #1 selling
console worldwide, and the next generation is bound to be a big deal. We're also
expecting a new generation of Kinect to go with it that can track up to four people
as they accidentally destroy your living room.
So those are the top 5 technologies I'm looking forward to in 2013. If you have
one to add to the list or if you take issue with how I ranked them, head over to
Top5.CNET.com and leave me a comment, or flame me directly over on Twitter.
I'm Donald Bell, thanks for watching.
