CES 2012 Ruminations

So, we're coming up on three weeks since CES 2012. It wasn't a huge show for gamers, but there were a few standouts. The first couple of days started strong with lots of news and announcements, but this quickly tapered off by the third and fourth days. I guess this is to be expected.

After have a few weeks for it to all sink in (and to get through another video card reviews and the AMD HardOCP event), I thought I'd circle back around and give my spin on all the announcements. Did gamers fare well, or was it all TVs, tablets and new wave washing machines?

Displays

There were no real monitor announcements this year for PC display panels. The two big themes were big OLED panels and 4k resolution displays. LG announced a couple of 3D IPS panels, and BenQ announced a pair of 24" panels for North America, but there weren't any real innovations or announcements on the PC front. LG also announced 3D TVs with 1mm bezels, but I'd like to see some of these advancements come to the PC space where bezels make a bigger impact due to the smaller screen sizes.

The one bright spot was the 20" 4k "raw" panel (i.e., a component for a PC manufacturer to use) announced by Panasonic. I'm hoping this will make it's way into desktop monitors in the very near future. The pixel density on this would be amazing. Dropping the resolution in a game wouldn't have near the impact on its visual fidelity that it does now (and in many cases it's already not "that" bad).

Vizio

I have to admit, I was watching for information on Vizio. I have been intrigued at the 21:9 they announced at CES 2011, and was subsequently disappointed when it didn't come out last year. They showcased three 21:9 displays, and showed how they would handle the difference between the now common 16:9 broadcast standard and the 21:9 TV. The extra space will allow for a "tiles" of Internet applications such as Yahoo!, Hulu Plus, Facebook and Twitter. Many of us are already multi-tasking with tablets or smart phones while we watch TV, so I see this integration as a welcome thing.

My wife won't have to keep the laptop handy to check out other football scores while she watches her New Orleans Saints or LSU Tigers (or check out their progress during a local blackout). One of the screens from the Vizio website shows browsing the Hulu Plus app, while watching a show on the 16:9 portion. Cool indeed. It would also be great to use the Twitter app to watch follow a certain hashtag will watching stellar TV such as Top Chef or the presidential debates. And, it would allow my wife and I to catch up on news and weather while the kids watch Nick Jr in the morning.

I'm really excited by the prospects of 21:9 displays (multi-tasking, removal of black bars in movies, and ultra-wide PC gaming), and I'm glad that someone is leading the adoption of the new technology. Vizio just announced a March release of the 58" and a price point of $3499. The 50" and 71" will launch in the 2nd half. Hopefully by then the street price on the 50" will be something I can manage. I'd like to replace the 40" HDTV in my office with the smaller 21:9 panel. Maybe I can sell enough monitor stands in the WSGF Store to make that a reality. ^_^

Check out this promo movie from Vizio. Cheesy tagline aside, I hope this is successful and ushers in a new standard in displays ("Wider is Better", right?). Also, Vizio decided to enter the PC market. Hopefully that is an indicator of a healthy PC market, when others have been leaving and/or pundits are always decrying the death of PC gaming (yet again).

Razer

Razer announced and/or showed a number of cool things. The Razer Blade is the the culmination of the work that went into the Switchblade prototype from CES 2011. Honestly, I liked the Switchblade more than the Razer Blade. I'm not in the market for a 17" notebook. My gaming rig is an desktop Eyefinity rig. If your primary machine is a notebook, then I do see where a thin 17" gaming notebook would be nice. However, (IMHO) GPU technology moves too fast for me to get locked into an expensive platform that I can't upgrade. I would have been more inclined to the 7" portable nature of the Switchblade.

However, I do *REALLY* fancy the multi-use touchpad on the Razer Blade. I love how it functions as a touchpad until you pull out a separate mouse, and then it becomes a gaming tool. For day-to-day usage, you really don't need a 12 button mouse. A touchpad with a few hotkeys is great. Once you pick up your gaming mouse, then the trackpad turns to a gaming device. I would love to have a keyboard and mouse combo with that technology. However, the only option is a $250 SW:TOR themed keyboard and $150 mouse. I'm as big a Star Wars geek as the next guy (just check out my comic book collection), but I don't see the need for $400 worth of input devices. And this is especially true when Razer is so keyed on promoting the Star War angle, that I can't figure out if any of the gaming function on the trackpad will be customizable for other games.

The Razer Naga Hex looks to be nice as well. I don't need 12 keys under my thumb, and I'm not sure I could keep them straight. However, I think I could remember the mapping of six keys, and those would match up with with the likes of Torchlight, Diablo. If only Razer would put out a combo kit with this mouse and a keyboard with their innovative touchpad.

Project Fiona turned a lot of heads as well. It's a great concept, but does it really fit a market need (or at least my needs). Tablets are all the rage now, and the 10.1" form factor trumpeted by the Apple iPad seems to be the sweet spot. That in itself is a pretty hefty beast, but at least the Fiona puts in in a widescreen format. Considering the size of current 10.1" tablets, I'm concerned about the size and heft of adding two controller sticks. Do I really want to take something that large with me to play, while my wife shops for closed as Macy's? An iPad is kinda of accepted and relatively inconspicuous, but the Project Fiona is anything but.

If I couldn't use it on the go, what about on the couch? Well, the dual analog sticks and multitude of buttons imitate the Xbox 360 or SP3. If I'm going to lay on the couch and play something, why not fire up one of the consoles I already own (and I'm sure you own as well)? Well, let's assume my kids are already hogging the TV... The Fiona would have its place as my personal screen, but so would the upcoming Nintendo Wii U, and at an expectedly lower price point. Besides, the Wii U will save my progress so that I can pick up on the big screen when the kids go to sleep. I realize more and more games are taking advantage of the Steam Cloud, but it's not ubiquitous yet. Lower price, Mario games, and saving my ongoing progress, the Fiona looks to be a decidedly luxury niche product.

All in all, Razer keeps showing me great technology, and great technology, but doesn't end up packaging it in a way I want, can use, or can afford. I'm glad Razer is out there, and I'm glad they are successful. I just wish I could find a home for their products in my house.

Consoles & Portables

There was a little noise on this front. The PS Vita was showcased. I'm intrigued by it. I owned and enjoyed a PSP until just recently. It was the only truly portable widescreen gaming device. The touch controls (especially those on the back) have be quite interested. The info on free data access through AT&T is nice, considering I'm already on the hook with my iPhone. Microsoft announced the Kinect for PC. I'm not sure why the PC version costs $100 more than the Xbox 360 version. Granted it's got a close range lens, but it also doesn't come with any pack-in games.

Final Thoughts

There were some nice things for gamers at CES. The new standard of 21:9 displays starting to solidify will be good for us (the 21:9 aspect ratio is about the same as 5x1-P, but with no bezels and lower GPU requirements). These will be great TVs for a gaming-centric home theatre. It's nice to see Razer innovating and pushing PC technology forward for gamers. I just hope I find some products I can use, rather than watch from the sidelines. And, here's hoping someone shows a finished product next year for a desktop display that runs 4k and has 1mm bezels...