January 6th, 2008
CES: 1.8 million square feet of gadgets
I have arrived on the scene in Las Vegas, in preparation for joining the 140,000 people exploring the 1.8 million square feet of exhibit space inhabited by 2,900 companies. The festivities kick off tonight with a keynote by Bill Gates, who isn’t expected to make any earth shattering announcements on behalf of Microsoft (more to come from the keynote).
The quiet before the CES storm
In addition to Gates, high profile speakers includes Toshihiro Sakamoto, president of Panasonic AVC Networks; Intel CEO Paul Otellini; Comcast CEO Brian Roberts; Rick Wagoner, CEO of General Motors; Yahoo CEO and co-founder Jerry Yang; FCC Chairman Kevin Martin; Nicholas Negroponte of One Laptop per Child (the $188 XO laptop); and Gary Shapiro, CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association.
The usual array of celebrities will make brief appearances shilling for sponsors, including Danica Patrick, Michael Douglas, Kevin Costner (playing in a rock band) and Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz. Yoko Ono will be at the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus for an hour. Monster Cable is hosting a concert with Mary J. Blige, Sheila E. and Prince, the “solo artist.”
We’ll have coverage on ZDNet of some of the keynotes and new products, including those that have cross-over appeal, for personal and business use.
For other coverage of all the gadgets at CES, check CNET.com, which will be broadcasting some live events and covering dozens of the hottest products.
CNET TV gets ready for wall-to-wall coverage of CES
Dan Farber, editor-in-chief of CNET News.com, has more than 20 years of experience as an editor and journalist covering technology. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
