Yeah, baby! Electronics makers hold a love-in for hot products
11/16/2000
By Alan Goldstein and Leah Beth Ward / The Dallas Morning News
LAS VEGAS – Showing off that Dell Computer Corp. has gone beyond beige with newer models in bolder colors, the company threw a 1970s-style party this week at a private home well off the beaten track of the Las Vegas Strip.
Austin Powers himself might have been the decorator of this "funka-Dell-ic pad," and media types covering the huge Comdex trade show here lounged on leopard-skin sofas, putting their feet up on pink, heart-shaped ottomans.
But the technology message was in the tunes – including ABBA, of course.
Music blasted from Dell's new digital audio receiver in the living room, originating from a personal computer serving as an MP3 jukebox in the den.
The receiver can be networked using either standard phone lines or a regular Ethernet connection.
"The PC is becoming the entertainment center of the home," said Michael Dell, chairman and chief executive of the Round Rock, Texas, company, who hosted the party.
Last week, Dell introduced a $299 digital audio receiver, which has an internal 10-watt amplifier that allows it to transmit sound through regular stereo speakers. The small box easily fits in a stereo cabinet.
Dell also displayed side-by-side notebooks on a coffee table, where guests could play an auto racing game against each other. The connection between the two notebooks was over a wireless network that linked devices throughout the house.
And in one of the bedrooms, Dell was featuring video editing on a computer from movies on VHS videocassettes.
"It'll appeal at first to gadget freaks, but it's really just the beginning of a lot of convergence products we'll all want to own," said David Goldstein, president of Channel Marketing Corp., a market research company based in Dallas.
"In a very quiet way, Dell scooped the competition with this. Next year, everyone's going to have it."
HIGH SPEED, HIGH ALTITUDES: At the Las Vegas Convention Center, a mockup of the first-class cabin of a Boeing Co. airliner drew big crowds.
Each seat was equipped with a special arm holding a notebook computer, as well as the wiring for network high-speed connections. On a real airplane, passengers would bring their own PCs or rent one from the airline.
Boeing said it is talking with the major airlines about making its Connexion system available on their fleets.
PDA VS. CELL PHONE: Wireless connectivity of all kinds generated much of the buzz at Comdex this year.
"Within a few years, there will be more connections to the Internet with wireless handhelds than through connected PCs," predicted Gerry Purdy, president and chief executive of Mobile Insights Inc., a consulting firm in Mountain View, Calif.
On the show floor, handheld organizers and cell phones, offering voice and Internet data capabilities, were on display. Industry executives said they expect the two formats to co-exist for a while.
Advocates of using a personal digital assistant, such as the Handspring Visor, as a telephone say the main advantage is they can review and enter data on a bigger screen while they are talking, using a headset.
But a wireless telephone remains far easier for placing calls, though it is limited to lighter Internet use.
"This is where the battle will take place," said Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies Inc., a technology consulting firm in Campbell, Calif.
"It's not going to be one-size-fits-all," said Bruce Stephen, an analyst at International Data Corp., based in Framingham, Mass.
"You'll make a choice based on whether you're voice-centric or data-centric."
PCs are hardly dead, analysts said. But as portability becomes easier, notebook computers could outsell desktops within a few years, Mr. Purdy said. The price difference between the two continues to decrease and high-speed wireless networks are becoming more common.
ON A SCHEDULE: Sabre Holdings Corp., the provider of technology for the travel industry, had its wireless Internet service on display in the Nokia booth.
It has been in use for Sabre's business travel service since July and will be expanded next year to travel agencies where consumers may use it, said Nicholas Pinciotti, product manager for wireless services for Sabre in Southlake.
The most popular function for current users is checking their itineraries, Mr. Pinciotti said. They also monitor the status of their flights.
dallasnews.com |
