THE BEST OF CES 2012

Image source: TechRepublic

CES (the International Consumer Electronics Show) was the hottest place for tech fanatics to be last week - and not just because it is held in Vegas.

If your tech company has a new product to launch, CES is the place to do it. Each year the hottest gadgets are announced and 2012 did not disappoint.

Take a look at the tech we’ve been most excited about from this year’s show.

Big, smart and beautiful TVs

Television may have been around for nearly a century, but they’ve never been as smart as they are now. TVs improved over the years of course; first colour, then widescreen, flat screen, high definition – but now they’ve hit their peak... until CES 2013 of that is. Now we can access the internet of TV and use apps to view content in different ways. Better yet, we no longer need to sit in front of a measly 37” screen; big and beautiful TVs were a major attraction this year, with OLED screens taking high definition to a new level.

A key highlight on the TV front has to be the Sharp 85-inch display with 7680x4320. Check out more about the TVs announced at CES 2012 in PC World’s blog post here.

Ultrabooks

As expected, Ultrabooks are taking over the industry in 2012. Netbooks are not powerful enough, yet most laptops are large and heavy so they don’t make good travel companions. The ultrabook on the other hand, is lightweight, portable and extremely fast. Credit must go to Apple for kickstarting the trend with the Air, but looking at the latest ultrabooks from CES - they’ll have a fight on their hands.

We’re itching to get our hands on the Acer Aspire S5 (world’s thinnest laptop) and the super small Dell XPS with its edge to edge screen. Take a look at SlashGear’s in-depth post for each of these ultrabooks and others.

Intelligent cars

Cars at CES may seem somewhat out of place, but wait until you see the technology the automotive industry has been creating. Heads up display may be something you’re quite used to in video games; but it isn’t exactly a feature of the school run or drive to work. Judging from the cars at CES, this shan’t be true for long. Road range appears to be on the out too, after Kia announced they’ll soon be adding technology to detect the driver’s mood and will even hint that a break might be a good idea if it thinks you’re tired.

Have a read of this Huffington Post article for more analysis on what the latest announcements from car manufacturers mean for the automotive industry.

What do you think of the announcements at CES? Let us know in the comments below.

STREAMING OFF TO A GOOD START IN 2012

Last month we posted about the best ways to get internet TV content onto your living room screen (thanks for your comments too). Already this year there has been some big news that shows streaming of content from the internet is going to grow more popular in 2012.

Recently two major players in the movie and TV streaming market have been battling it out to become the UK’s number one service. Netflix has just launched in the UK, meaning you can now access hundreds of thousands of films and TV shows on various devices hooked up to the net. LoveFilm has responded by making sure it gets exclusive partners, including the BBC and ITV.

This means you’ll have a tricky choice on your hands if you were thinking of signing up to a streaming service – and it isn’t just LoveFilm or Netflix, read our previous post to see an even wider range of options. Then again, do you really have to sign up to one service that packages it altogether nicely?

Each terrestrial channel now offers a catch up TV service; BBC’s iPlayer, the ITV Player, 4OD and Demand 5. So if it is just TV you are after then maybe all you need is to hook your laptop up to a TV and enjoy these free services that are readily available to you.

Plenty of people are doing this already; over Christmas for example the BBC broke its peak usage levels with the new series of Sherlock reaching 4.3m on iPlayer the day after being aired. With such high usage, it seems the UK is taking streaming to a new level in 2012.

BE'S TOP TECH FOR 2012

Technology continues to advance with great speed. 2011 brought us a wide range of tablet PCs and the influx of high powered ultrabooks. Let’s take a look at what we think will happen in 2012.

1. RENTING CONTENT

Spotify, LoveFilm, Steam... digital content is no longer owned, we rent it. In 2012 this will only grow, especially with major services becoming available on mainstream platforms - such as Spotify for Facebook and LoveFilm on Xbox 360 and PS3. Maybe 2013 will be the year we take up owning content again.

2. TELEVISION MARKET DISRUPTED

Last week we wrote about how the Apple TV isn't going to be anything major compared to what is already available. But you can bet your bottom five pound note that – if it comes to be – it will still have a major impact within the TV industry and people will forget that Smart TVs were around in 2011.

3. NEW TABLETS

This year we’ve seen plenty of new tablets that seemed a little rushed to the market, just to compete with the iPad. 2012 will bring us new tablets that are more considered, providing a real alternative to the dominating device – starting with the Kindle Fire becoming available in the UK.

4. PC VS MAC… AGAIN

This year Apple release Mac OS X Lion - a (sort of) hybrid between OS X and iOS. Next year Microsoft will release Windows 8 - an OS that is compatible with both desktop and mobile devices. With both offering similar concepts, it will be interesting to see where the market share goes.

5. UBUNTU TABLETS FOR XMAS 2012?

This year Canonical announced their drive to make a user friendly Ubuntu experience on tablets, mobiles and even TVs. We’re glad to hear it, as there are some fans of the new Unity desktop here at BE. We don’t expect an iOS killer but neither do we want one – just give us open, more hackable computing on the go please!

6. BATTLE OF THE MOBILE OS

Blackberry where art thou? Beaten in the UK riots and left for dead by the likes of WhatsApp, that’s where. It is now Android and iOS running the show, but with Windows Phone and the newly open source Web OS ready to step up the game, we're unsure who will win.

7. BYE BYE NETBOOKS

Why buy a 9 or 10 inch netbook with all the power of a worn out bumble bee when you can buy a 12 inch super fast ultrabook that is as powerful as many top of the range laptops? Dell have killed their netbook range already, we think many more will follow.

8. GOOGLE+ MAKE OR BREAK

At the moment Google+ seems to be doing quite well, with plenty of new users and stronger uptake than Twitter or Facebook ever saw. But ask yourself honestly, who do you really know on the site? That’s exactly what Google Buzz and Google Wave have in common with Google+.

9. NEW GAMING CONSOLES

Every 6 years there has been a new PlayStation. This isn’t much of a pattern considering there have only been three, but we can still hope, as it would mean a new console in 2012. But with services such as On Live and Steam, is a console really needed in 2012?

10. OVER TO YOU

You’ve heard ours, now we’d like to know what your predictions are for tech in 2012. Let us know in the comments below.

What’s the best way to watch the internet on your telly?

We're coming up to the season of over-eating and over-drinking, which in turn makes the sofa in front the TV a very appealing place to park yourself - even if there is a Home Alone marathon on.

Today we’re no longer limited to 5 terrestrial channels, there’s a whole world of content online and on demand via the internet. We know from expreience that BE members are a smart bunch so you’ll probably already have some way of connecting your living room TV to the internet in some way.

Almost certainly not what Apple’s integrated TV will look like

You know the market for connected devices will be lucrative when the Apple rumour mill starts, and many of the stories after Steve Jobs’ biography was published concerned the Cupertino-based company finally “cracking” the concept for a TV product. We thought we’d take a look over the options already available and see what your current favourites are.

Smart TVs

There are plenty of TVs available now that are internet ready. Most are even 3D which is a great bonus. Sony’s range for example include apps such as YouTube, iPlayer, Demand5 and LoveFilm. The Apple TV will probably be something similar, but do you really want to be tied into one service provider?

Set-top boxes (eg Boxee Box, WD Live, Apple TV)

These connected media devices help turn any ordinary TV into a smart TV, connecting it to a wide range of video on demand and move streaming services through apps and a media browser for local files on USB or your home network. If you’ve only just bought a decent HDTV then this may be the option for you.

Your games console

The PS3 and Xbox 360 both have access to LoveFilm, as well as the ability to store quite a lot of downloaded content too. Both consoles also have apps, with the iPlayer, 4OD and ITV Player on the PS3 (not to mention the PlayTV option for pause and rewind Freeview) and Sky Go, 4OD and the iPlayer coming in 2012 for the Xbox 360. Each console has an ace up its sleeve too – a 3D Bluray player with the PS3 (yes – even the first generation of PS3s) and the ability to control your Xbox with Kinect – who needs a controller?

Computers

With so many streaming websites online, possibly the best way to get an interactive TV is to hook it up to your PC or laptop. Blockbuster, LoveFilm and even HMV all have movie streaming services, while software such as XBMC, Boxee and Plex mean computer can become *the* media hub for your home.

These are just a few of the options available. How do you access movies and video on demand through your TV? Let us know in the comments below.

BE FIBRE TRIAL – FIRST CONNECTION IS LIVE

Our fibre trial took a big old step in the right direction this week. The first BE member was connected to the trial exchange (Barking) and we're pleased to say the process went very smootly.

Let's dive in with the best bit - here's a screenshot of the first fibre speedtest - 37.5 downstream and 8.1 upstream. That's just the beginning as well, as we'll be watching these connections closely to see what optimisations we can make.

Next up is the kit combo we're using to trial the service - an Openreach VDSL2 modem hooked up to a BE Box.

Here's the Openreach engineer at the local cabinet. His name was Mark, so thanks Mark!

Finally, the fibre trial needs a new faceplate to separate out the broadband and telephone lines. You just can't imagine what that would look like? Oh go on then - here's a snap.

We know how much anticipation you have for fibre, so we’re trying not get too carried away. That said... we're over the moon that the first trial connection went in so smoothly.

This is just one step along a big project, and we've got a way to go - but we're moving fast in the right direction.

BE SOCIAL (LONDON) A ROYAL SUCCESS

Last night we headed over to the Royal George in Soho for another London edition of the BE Social. We run BE Socials across the UK as a an opportunity for some informal chat and drinks between members and staff at BE, to hear what you’re thinking about both tech and more general topics – as well as answer any burning questions you have.

We really enjoyed meeting everyone that came. There were plenty of conversations going on, ranging from broadband, the latest tablets, to all out action adventures in Sweden with our resident airsoft pro.

Another topic that came up was that of movie streaming and with HMV's announcement that they'll be joining this area we’re planning to compare the options, much like our recent music and online storage posts. 

If you attended last night then feel free to share in the comments below and link us to any photos of the evening.

We’re putting the finishing touches on the first social of 2012, and we’ll have more information on when and where in due course.  See you there?

Google turns it up to 11 and other online music news

This week Google finally launched their music service, Google Music, in the US, meaning Android users now have a comparable service to compete with iTunes on iPhones and iPods. We're jumping the gun slightly because it's not available in the UK yet, but it made us think about our current online music favourites and we'd like to hear about yours too.

What's Google Music?

It's being called iTunes for Android - you'll be able to purchase music from their marketplace app on the phone and the web, and it will sync over your different devices. One interesting idea that we've not seen before is that you'll be able to share what you buy on Google+ and your friends will be able to listen to them in full for free - but only one play per song.

What is out there for UK music fans today?

- Spotify is a favourite of many of us here at BE. We like the Premium package, which lets you listen to tracks offline on the phone as well as unlimited streaming on the desktop and other apps (they recently launched an app for the Boxee Box which is a cool way to get music onto your home stereo).

- Grooveshark is similar to Spotify in that you can stream a lot of music from their library, with the difference being Grooveshark one is totally free. There are also mobile apps available.

- Apple continues to innovate and iTunes in the cloud is the same sort of thing that Google are doing with their music package. Great if you're a mac devotee but maybe not the most flexible route for open source fans.

- Blackberry have also announced a music service this week – BBM Music. It’s a bit cheaper than Spotify’s mobile-friendly version at £4.99 a month and the 60 day trial seems like a no-brainer for anyone currently using a Blackberry device.

- Soundcloud is worthy of a shoutout - it's not the same type of service as iTunes or Google Music, but it's becoming the modern day equivalent of MySpace for independent and alternative music producers to get their work out. The ability to follow and comment on music is very handy once you've found someone you like to hear from.

- If you're more into gigs, Songkick is a perfect complement to your favourite music player. Sync it with iTunes or Last.fm (which we still love, and connects to Spotify) and it will tell you when bands you listen to are playing in your area. Makes finding gigs from people you like a doddle.

These are some of our favourites - what technology do you use to enjoy your music? We're interested in anything - hardware, apps or online services. Tell us in the comments.