1. Lenovo WD700 Dual Screen Laptop: The most practical device I saw at CES that CPAs could use immediately was the Lenovo W700DS (Dual Screen) laptop.  While the second screen in only 10.6 inches, it is in a vertical “portrait” format which is ideal for displaying scanned images or secondary entry screens.  As the main unit is a 17” screen, it allows for a full ten-keypad to be integrated.

2. DisplayLink Integrated Monitors: Triple monitors are the new “dual monitor” and the AAA 2009 Survey found that 37% of firms already had someone using them.  The challenge has been to add the additional screens, particularly if you wanted one or more of them in a vertical “portrait” mode.  DisplayLink easily allows you to add up to six monitors in any size and format you need.  If you already have the monitors, the DisplayLink graphics adapters sell individually for $99.

3. Sony Vaio LifeStyle PC: (Winner of Best of CES 2009: Computer and Hardware): Sony has come out with a miniature PC that has an 8” screen.  Though it had a smaller keyboard, it was remarkably easy to type on.  It has all the core features of any laptop in that it runs Windows Vista and can have up to 4Gb of RAM. The one feature that was lacking was a touchpad as the Vaio comes with a small track “nub” in the middle of the keyboard which was fairly easy to adjust to.  One noticeable trend for 2009 gadgets is “Fashionista” packaging, which are custom colors and designs in your personal electronics.

4. Netbook: Netbooks were everywhere at CES. They are basically very thin and light portable computers designed to be used as access devices to the Internet.  Most of these have 8” to 11” screens with great WiFi and digital cellular capabilities.  Once a firm has everything available via a thin client application and wireless Internet access becomes ubiquitous, it may no longer be necessary to buy laptops that have all the applications and data located locally so that all that is needed would be a Netbook.  We expect this to become popular on the consumer side first and then firms will begin to experiment with them, most likely with their executive partners.

5. Micro-projectors: Butterfly Technology showed off a micro projector that you can hold in your hand.  This format seems to be the new trend whereas Nextar had their z10 version, Microvision had their PicoP, and 3M touted their Mpro prototype that they plan to build into cellular phones in the future.  Imaging meeting with clients and projecting everything on a small screen.

6. Digital Paper and eReaders: We bought an Amazon Kindle eBook for Christmas this year and have been amazed with the quality of the screen, which is a working digital ePaper product.  While the current devices are the size of a paperback book, for this technology to be really practical it needs to be in a larger format.  A company called PlasticLogic touted their eReader which is the size of a standard piece of paper but allows you to mark-up Microsoft Word and Excel documents!

7. Sandisk 60Gb SSD: SanDisk touted a 60GB Solid State Disk (SSD) that can be used to replace an existing hard drive in a laptop to extend the life.  For $149, firms can consider replacing older, slower drives with a faster drive that uses less power.  While they have disks up to 240GB, they are fairly expensive and found mostly in the higher end executive laptop models.  My guess is that in five years, the traditional spinning hard drive will fade the same way as the 5 ¼” floppy disk!

8. SanDisk 64Gb Ultra Backup USB FlashDrive: We all use flashdrives to backup data, but SanDisk makes this more effective with a 64Gb version that has integrated backup software and both a password and AES Encryption.  While the initial $199 cost is somewhat steep, like all great technologies they will come down in price drastically once there is enough adoption.

9. ClickFree USB Dongle: For people that already have a USB Backup Hard Drive at home but are not always sure if it is working properly, ClickFree has integrated their software into a dongle that makes backup virtually painless for approximately $60. We bought one at the show for use on the family computer!

10. Microsoft Windows 7: Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft had big shoes to fill at his first CES Keynote where Bill Gates has traditionally held court.  The biggest announcement from Microsoft was the release of the Windows 7 Beta which will probably have firms waiting for the next Windows release, rather than adopting Vista. Since XP Service Pack Two is so solid, there is not much pushing firms to Vista.

11. LiveScribe Pulse Pen: One technology we saw that could have practical application for CPAs and specialists that are highly niched or work mostly alone was the LiveScribe Pulse Pen.  This device records sound at the same time that the penholder is writing and then synchronizes the audio to the notes.  The cool thing about this device is that you could touch different points on your notes and have the audio played back to you.

12. LG Watch Phone: Cellular phones have continued to get smaller and smaller and now LG has integrated one into a format that you can wear on your wrist.  This device is remarkable in that it has a Quadband GSM phone, WiFi, 5 megapixel camera, FM radio, document viewer and full HTML browser.  They also have integrated Bluetooth capability for your headset.  To keep with the Fashionista theme, Prada has branded their own custom version.

13. Palm Pre:  (Winner of Best of CES 2009 and People’s Voice Award): While I have made the switch to Microsoft Mobile with my Sprint Mogul, there is always a soft spot in my heart for the Palm devices. The Pre runs on a new WebOS that is getting great review and will be out early this year exclusively from Sprint. This device has been touted by many industry experts as Palm’s comeback device.

14. iClubby Workstation: Over the years, the working area within CPA firms has been fairly standardized office spaces with the traditional executive office or cube farm being somewhat generic.  Now that triple monitors are become more prevalent and the future points to at least four screens, the requirements for desk space will have to evolve.  iClubby shared a futuristic workstation which could be your future desktop! (Now if they could just get the price below $10,000!)

15. Liquid Cooled PCs: There was a time that liquid cooling was for car engine radiators and nuclear power generators.  With advances in microchips, the heat put out by these CPUs can make using a notebook somewhat uncomfortable while at the same time requiring the adding of fans which make PCs louder.  Companies such as CoolIT and Alienware are partnering to create liquid cooled gaming systems that can keep these future devices working.

16. Personal GPS Everywhere: This Christmas we received a Garmin 305 GPS Watch that allows you to track workouts and location.  These micro GPS units are being built into devices with significantly longer battery life so they can be attached to pets or placed in your children’s backpacks or teen’s car. The software in these devices let you designate “safe zones” and notify you immediately when your child or pet goes beyond them.

17. HD 3D: Most of us can remember watching movies in 3D where balls bounce at you or yoyos come and go on screen.  While it was cool, it was nothing more than a novelty.  This will change this year with High Definition full 1080 p 3D that changes the way we view sports, play games and watch movies, which they are already starting to broadcast.  While they have upgraded the old blue and red lenses with polarized headsets, it’s still pretty tough to look cool in those glasses!

18. Eye-Fi Wi-Fi SD Card: Imagine an SD memory card in your camera or laptop that has an integrated Wi-Fi card that would allow you to send pictures and video from your device!  This device was the hands-down crowd favorite at the Last Gadget Standing session at CES. This could be a trend to adding Wi-Fi to everything!

19. Go Green: Going green was a pretty strong trend at the CES show with many of the manufacturers partnering to set up consumer electronics recycling centers throughout the US to safely get rid of all those old CRTs, laptops, and batteries.  Renewable energy such as wind, solar and even electric bicycles like those from Schwinn were a big hit.

20. HeartMath EmWave PSR: (Personal Stress Reliever): The online winner of the Last Gadget Standing session at CES was the EmWave PSR. This $200 device immediately reduces stress by having the user synchronize their breathing and heart rate.  While we did not have a chance to try it out, the testimonials were outstanding ...maybe buy one for the lunch room this busy season instead of that extra aspirin!

For any additional questions regarding the 2009 CES Gadgets, please email Roman H. Kepczyk, CPA.CITP at roman@itpna.com or phone (480) 706-1728. 

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