CES 2008

• Real Life and Second Life Come Together Via the Twitterverse

  Tue. Jan. 15, 2008
  by Laura P. Thomas, Global eCommerce
  While the flurry of activity that is the Consumer Electronics Show has passed, there are still some great stories to come out of it. I was there for two entire hours myself, thanks to a "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" type of experience getting to Vegas. Although, instead of an obnoxious guy hanging with me, I had my Twitter friends.

  The point of my visit was to set up a mixed reality event between Second Life and Real Life to launch our new Crystal monitor. Crystal is a product for the creative, style-conscious person and SL residents are builders, designers and style mavens; so, where better to take this experience?

  I turned again to the great team at Involve to bring Crystal into virtual reality, and they've created a true functioning SL version that is available for one more week at Dell Island. As Aleister Kronos noted, it has the "nice touch" of being able to set the texture for the screen.

  Well, weather and other unfortunate issues conspired to keep me stuck in the Phoenix airport during the time I was supposed to be setting up the computers and streaming video from the Dell Lounge booth at CES. I was twittering about my frustrations (you could find it all archived on http://www.twitter.com/lpt there) when a fellow metaverse evangelist, Peter Haik at Metaversatility saw my distress. He was at CES and asked if there was anything he could do to help. Well, to make the long story a little shorter, he dropped by the Dell booth and ensured that everything was ready to go, so that I was able to simply slide in at the last minute and unveil the virtual Crystal. Thanks very much, Peter!

  Yes, I did finally make it to Vegas (as seen in this photo), and as Dan Zehr of the Austin American-Statesman noted once the people in Vegas got to mingle with the people in Second Life, things got really interesting.

  I had the opportunity to meet Paul Jackson of Forrester in RL, and we continued discussions we have had previously via the phone about the viability of Second Life and the future opportunity of virtual worlds. He's recently published a new report titled "Getting Real Work Done In Virtual Worlds." I highly recommend it as a good read for anyone interested in this arena.

  After CES closed for the evening, Peter (who had stayed to assist throughout the event) and I watched my LSU Tigers win the BCS national championship (couldn't help but brag) and chatted about exciting things happening in other areas of virtual world development such as Metaplace and Multiverse.

  All-in-all, I left CES inspired by the "village" of Twitter as a support system and jazzed about the continued opportunities in virtual worlds. As Gartner predicts, by 2011, 80% of people will have a "second life" even if it's not in Second Life...

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• @CES 2008 - Dell's Director of Sustainability: Tod Arbogast

  Thu. Jan. 10, 2008
  by Matt James, EcoGeek.org Correspondent

  Earlier in the show I sat in on a panel with Tod Arbogast and his counterparts at HP, Sony, and several other companies. It's been invigorating and humbling to see these multinational corporations cooperate on recycling and lifecycle design, even while they're at each other's throats in the marketplace. Tod is personally passionate about making the earth a better place to live, and he's offered to help us guys at EcoGeek set up a round table discussion with some of his colleagues.

  I caught up with him at the Dell ReGeneration booth and he gave us a short video interview... I especially liked his tips for employees who want to help their bosses go Green.

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• @ CES 2008 - TimBuk2 Bag Company

  Thu. Jan. 10, 2008
  by Matt James, EcoGeek.org Correspondent

  TimBuk2 started in 1989 making messenger bags. They've always had concern for the environment, and just recently gained some green exposure for recycling PVC trade show banners (I shudder to think how many will end up in the trash after CES) into bags. At the show yesterday, we got a chance to talk with Andy and Perry, and they gave us a sneak peek at a prototype bag made from the packaging materials they receive with their fabrics. Take a look at the YouTube video here.
  

  They're planning a green overhaul for their manufacturing facility in San Fransisco later this year, which we'll be following closely. Be sure to check out their website!
  

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• An EcoGeek at CES 2008 - Day 2

  Tue. Jan. 08, 2008
  by Matt James, EcoGeek.org Correspondent

  Las Vegas is full of strange contradictions. I chuckle to myself every time I pass the little placard by the door that says "Please Conserve Energy - remember to turn off the lights when you leave ". You see, I'm staying at the Luxor, which is topped by a cluster of 39 Xenon lights, putting out 30.2 billion lumens and drawing 273 kilowatts... and all it's doing is pointing straight up into the night sky. It is some consolation that the carbon from my hotel stay is being offset by the Consumer Electronics Association, but not much. To take my mind off all this I rode a driverless electric monorail to the show this morning... over a sea of Hummer limousines and idling taxicabs. Oh well : )
  
  I'm meeting a lot of industry execs who are engaged and excited to be moving their companies towards a greener, more sustainable future. Titles like "Vice President in Charge of Sustainability" and "Director of Environmental Concerns" are common at the panels I've been attending, and these aren't people in the marketing department- they're managing waste streams, improving efficiencies, . What I've been hearing again and again is that this is coming from the consumers - companies are literally embracing green tech and sustainability in order to compete in the marketplace, and are afraid of going out of business if they don't.
  
  We'll have some interviews with industry leaders and government officials up soon, as well as some with the interesting people drawn to the Dell ReGeneration booth, so keep checking back for updates!

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• Dell's 3008WFP Widescreen LCD Display Debuts @ CES

  Tue. Jan. 08, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

   

  I'm a bit late on this, so you've probably already seen it in places like Gizmodo or HotHardware, but Dell's 3008WFP 30" widescreen is available for order, at a starting price of $1999. So, what's the big deal? Peformance and connectivity. It's our second first monitor that features DisplayPort technology. Besides that, it also features HDMI, DVI, VGA, component, S-Video and composite video, plus it also has stereo audio and subwoofer output ports.

  This picture from the 3008WFP product page on Dell.com shows the ports pretty clearly:

  

  Besides connectivity, it's pretty solid on the feature list: 2560 x 1600 native resolution, Dell TrueColor technology (it's our first panel to reproduce more than 100% of the NTSC color gamut), an 8ms response time, and a 3000:1 contrast ratio. From a design perspective, it features a brushed aluminum housing, a glass base stand, and a Dell-patented cantilever arm that provides great flexibility in terms of height adjustability, swivel and tilt.

  Here's a vlog that features Bruce Montag,who is one of our key technologists working on DisplayPort. He gives you an inside look at the technology and also gives a good overview of the 3008WFP display as well.

  Format: flv Duration: 13:10

  Downloads WMV  MP4  OGG

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• Join the ReGeneration @ CES and Beyond

  Tue. Jan. 08, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger
  Earlier, I mentioned that ReGeneration activities will be part of what Dell is doing at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) show. At our Eco-innovation booth, we'll be interviewing folks who stop by to have discussions about the environment. Here's the first video. And speaking o video, here's another one the provides a tour of our booth there. Also, Hope Lawrence from our design team discusses our upcoming Green Technology and Design Contest. We'll start accepting applications for the contest later this week.
  
  For the rest of us not at the show, we're introducing a new site today: www.regeneration.org.

  The first thing you'll see when you log on is the virtual wall, where you can enter your thoughts on what green means to you, and also see ideas from others around the world. We invite you to share your insights and join the ReGeneration. Matt James from EcoGeek.org will be a guest blogger at the ReGeneration.org site and here on Direct2Dell for the next few days.

  Beyond the virtual wall, I asked Sean Donahue, our resident green guru, what else folks can expect at the site. Here's how he broke it down:

  Inspiration: The most innovative and inspiring ideas our customers, suppliers and partners are putting into practice every day. Examples include the University of California - San Diego, which recently installed a seawater air conditioning system and The Conservation Fund, whose Project Go Zero was the foundation for our "Plant a Tree for Me" and "Plant a Forest for Me" programs.

  The Blog: Trends, interviews, thoughts and ideas, from Dell employees and outside partners and customers around the world. Our goal isn't to create a news center, but rather to tap into our vast global network to provide perspectives on key environmental topics and trends affecting our customers every day. Already several posts there. If you have an idea or a post, feel free to send along.

  The Backpack: Before heading out on a movement to change the planet, we'll package the latest tips, tools, screensavers and links in a portable (and downloadable) "green" backpack.

  We hope this encourages companies and individuals alike to think about changing things for the better. We look forward to working alongside all of you as we add new features, languages and content in the coming weeks. In the meantime, check out the site, drop us a comment with your thoughts and ask ten of your friends to join us in this campaign to change the planet.

  As a reminder, you can visit the ReGeneration site here:

  http://www.regeneration.org

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• An EcoGeek at CES 2008 – Day 1

  Mon. Jan. 07, 2008
  by Matt James, EcoGeek.org Correspondent
  When Dell asked me to guest blog for them at the Consumer Electronics Show 2008 in Las Vegas I knew I was in for something interesting... a show for an industry renowned for planned obsolescence, held in a city that leaves the lights on every night, seems like a weird place to unveil a new thrust in their green campaign. Then again, there's no sense in preaching to the choir... Given the size of the audience (over 140,000 in attendance) and the green thrust CES is making this year maybe it's the perfect place to move the Green Technology dialogue forward!

  Similar to their booth at OpenWorld 2007, the Dell booth at CES has large, clear Plexiglass walls upon which attendees can write out their answers to the question "What Does Green Mean to You? We're listening." Though bigger than last time, they're beginning to fill up on the first day. It's a real kick to be here in person and see some of the additions to the display, including the Dell logo on a background of live grass, hanging on a wall made of Kirei Board - a green building material manufactured from discarded agricultural fiber. Everything here is Earth friendly, from the floor to the incredibly comfortable Eames Chairs. For an in-depth description of the materials used for the booth, check out this PDF.

  Dell spokesman Sean Donahue has been hinting at something big to be released here during the show, and we'll be keeping you updated on that front, as well as providing video from both big-ticket presentations and attendees on the conference floor. If you're at the show, stop by booth #21854 located in the Sustainable Technologies TechZone of South Hall 1 in the Las Vegas Convention Center and say "Hi!"

  I'll be reporting on some of the other things at CES of interest to the sustainability crowd, so be sure to check back in the coming days.

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• Lots of Things Going on @ CES Next Week

  Sun. Jan. 06, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Busy week next week for Dell @ the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). If you're not able to make the trip to Las Vegas for the show, we'll let you know what's going on from a Dell perspective via Dell Lounge (at www.delllounge.com/ces) and here on Direct2Dell. Over at Dell Lounge, we'll post webcasts of events, products demos and more.

  Dell folks on the ground in Las Vegas will also be uploading photos to Flickr at www.flickr.com/dell_digital_media and will be twittering at www.twitter.com/DellConsumer.  

  Here on Direct2Dell, you can expect a lot of CES-related content as well. We'll have several Dell folks contrbuting blog posts throughout the week. In preparation for this, I've created a CES 2008 category so you can easily see all of the CES-related blog posts in one place.

  Several products will be on display @ CES, like the Inspiron 1525 notebook, the 22" widescreen Crystal display and the new 30" widescreen LCD, and the UltraSharp 3008WFP that you may have seen elsewhere. Beyond that though, we will be previewing a few new concepts like a 16" widescreen notebook with a true 16:9 aspect ratio, an HD entertainment solution which shows off our XPS 420 with CableCard tuners connected Linksys' new DMA 2100 Media Center Extender, our XPS 630i, our forthcoming mainstream gaming desktop that packs some power into a more compact chassis than the XPS 720, and Alienware's new 15.4 inch Area-51 m15x notebook.

  Building on what we started at Oracle OpenWorld, we'll also be asking conference attendees to join the ReGeneration and to answer the question What Does Green Mean to You? on two large graffitti walls. They will be on display at Dell's eco-innovation booth (#21854) located in the Sustainable Technologies TechZone of South Hall 1 in the Las Vegas Convention Center.

  Much more to come over the next few days. If you're interested in keeping up with Dell's CES activities, here are the best places to do it: 

  • The CES 2008 category on Direct2Dell (you can subscribe to the RSS feed here)
  • Dell Lounge @ CES: www.delllounge.com/ces
  • Flickr: www.flickr.com/dell_digital_media
  • Twitter: www.twitter.com/DellConsumer
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• Dell 22" Crystal Display

  Thu. Jan. 03, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  

  Many of you have probably already seen the coverage in Gizmodo and other places in the blogosphere. I had blogged about Kevin Kettler's demo of a prototype of the display, but now it's official. Today, we introduced the Dell Crystal 22" widescreen display.

  

  It features a maximum resolution of 1680 x 1050 display, a 2ms response time, and integrated webcam and speakers, in a pretty slick overall design. It's our first monitor to feature a DisplayPort connection. Lots more to talk about in terms of that new technology, so I'll see about getting some Dell folks to blog more about DisplayPort in the future. Besides DisplayPort, The 22" display supports high definiton resolutions through DVI or HDMI as well.

  Update February 18:  My apologies to customers for mis-quoting the specs of the 22" Crystal display. It does not support DisplayPort—our 3008WFP widescreen flat panel is the first one to incorporate DisplayPort.

  

  It doesn't come cheap though—the Dell Crystal display is $1,199. See more information at www.dell.com/crystal.

  Update: 1/13-I forgot to include the IdeaStorm reference here. My apologies for not doing this several days ago. On IdeaStorm, conversations around improving the look of Dell's widescreen displays have also been popular. Back in May, IdeaStorm member jmxz posted an idea for Dell to "keep making great designs like this" for its monitors.

  Not long after, hope_l from Dell's Experience Design display and imaging team joined the conversation and talked about Dell's commitment to creating new designs that blend technologies and reduce wires.

  And while I'm here, I thought I'd post another video from CES. This vlog features Ken Ding, who was the lead designer behind it. He highlights some of the features and discusses the design goals behind it.

  Format: flv Duration: 3:58

  Downloads WMV  MP4  OGG

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