The 2011 Consumer Electronics Show will feature the introduction of numerous tablet PCs. Image: CC joanna 8555/Flickr

The 2011 Consumer Electronics Show starting Thursday in Las Vegas is expected to be all about tablets. The usual suspects, such as smartphones and gaming devices, will also make token appearances. But CES hype is calling 2011 the year of the tablet, even though the company that started it all — Apple, with its iPad — doesn’t bother to show up.

How Apple could upstage CES 2011

CES 2011, based on previews proliferating on the web, will resemble CES 2010. Last year’s annual technology trade show extravaganza featured the ballyhooed demo of a Microsoft windows tablet that never made it off the ground. Apple independently announced its iPad a few weeks later. The iPad hit stores in April, and more than 14 million have been sold. When CES 2011 gets under way Jan. 6, other tablet manufacturers will compete for attention as they introduce their devices. The same day, the Mac App Store makes its debut. Many tech pundits expect Steve Jobs will upstage the also-rans at CES 2011 by using the occasion to preview Apple’s iPad 2.

The scramble to catch up with Apple

Many PC and mobile phone manufacturers will be scrambling to catch up with Apple at CES 2011. Samsung will feature its Galaxy tablet that it claims has sold about 1 million units so far. Tablet devices will be unveiled by such brands as Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Research in Motion (RIM), Dell, Toshiba, Acer and ASUS. The success of Apple’s iPad leads analysts to believe that the market potential for tablets will allow most of these players a modicum of success. But no one anticipates that Apple’s considerable lead in the tablet market will be threatened by a raft of cheap imitations racing to the bottom as they compete on price.

Other CES 2011 gadgets

CES 2011 may be all about tablets, but smartphones will also make headlines with devices that continue to promise cable-caliber high speed internet connections that have been promised since CES 2010. Motorola, HTC and others will introduce new Android phones made for Verizon’s 4G high-speed LTE network. Internet-connected TVs will also proliferate, as well as cars and household appliances that access wireless data networks to receive remote commands from their owners.

Sources

Information Week

CNN

Wall Street Journal

The Verizon 4G network will only be available in select cities. Image: Flickr / nomad73 / CC-BY

Coming Sunday, Dec. 5, Verizon Wireless will launch its 4G network. This fourth-generation network technology, called LTE, promises to offer near-broadband speeds. The Verizon 4G network is being rolled out without any phones that support the technology, meaning people must wait until January to get a full hands-on experience.

Verizon 4G LTE technology

The Verizon 4G network is the company’s fourth generation wireless technology. Sprint Nextel has already released its version of a 4G wireless network, called WiMax. The LTE 4G is different than WiMax 4G. Both wireless technologies are being used in large metropolitan areas and airports. Both technologies require smaller wireless transmission points placed relatively closely together. Verizon’s LTE 4G network claims download speeds of 12 megabits per second. Sprint’s 4G claims peak download speeds of “more than 10 megabits per second.”

Verizon 4G phones coming in January

Though the Verizon 4G LTE network is rolling out in limited areas, 4G networks are set to replace the current 3G networks fully by about 2013. The biggest issue for Verizon Wireless, though, is its lack of phones. The 4G network on Verizon will only be available with USB modems. Verizon Wireless has indicated that it will be offering 4G-compatible phones come the Consumer Electronics Show in January of this year. Verizon Wireless is often known for having a good network, but its selection of phones has cost the company customers in the past.

The cost of Verizon 4G network capability

Though many customers are calling out for more and more speed on their wireless networks, the speed does not come free. Unlimited data plans have been crippling 3G networks around the country, and the increased usage expected with 4G networks could easily do the same. Verizon is addressing this by pricing its 4G network access with limits. There is no unlimited plan for the Verizon 4G network. Instead, it will be priced at $50 for five gigabits per month and $80 for 10 gigabits. A five-gigabit data plan would allow for watching about 200 minutes of YouTube videos and uploading 500 photos to Facebook, plus 1,000 or so web pages.

Sources

Phandroid.com
Forbes

Phone, camera, MP3 player and now remote control. Image from Flickr.

Because the Consumer Electronics Show features items that aren’t even on the market yet, and thus in the early stages of development and marketability, there are always some products that are more for “wow” factor than for actual use. I think, and on some levels I hope, that the AR.Drone is one of those.

The AR.Drone is  a circular hovercraft-type thing with a camera that sends live video feed to your iPhone. It’s also controlled by your iPhone, like a remote control. So you could potentially use this device to spy, basically.

Details on AR.Drone

Not to encourage this, but Parrot, the company that makes the AR.Drone, says it will cost “less than $500,” which probably means about $500. It’s supposed to be out this summer, so plan your installment loans accordingly, if you’re into buying remote-control spy drones.

CNN says the drone is about twice the size of a Frisbee, and it hovers a few inches off the ground. It’s somewhat comforting that because of its size, the AR.Drone won’t exactly be stealthy, and thus not very effective at spying, but still. Why give weirdos another method for stalking and spying on people? It kind of gives me the creeps.

Help me out, here

I’m sure there are plenty of people who would use it just for fun or just because it’s a cool, new gadget. I’m interested, and a little concerned, to see what this technology develops into. Clearly, the size of the AR.Drone will preclude it from being an effective spying device, but we’ve seen plenty of examples of technology getting smaller and smaller and smaller.

I’m trying to figure out some sort of practical application for a giant, hovering, video-streaming Frisbee. So far, I haven’t thought of anything. Maybe I just need to drink some more coffee. Do you have any ideas? What would you use the AR.Drone for?