High Tech on Display in Many Forms in Las Vegas

Editor’s note: Emily Price of WRAL News Channel and a published technology blogger, is covering the Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas for WRAL.com and WRAL Local Tech Wire. Watch for her reports this week.

LAS VEGAS - At the Consumer Electronics Show Monday Panasonic debuted the world's largest plasma TV.

The 150-inch plasma HDTV is currently the largest of its kind on the market and has a 2,000 x 4,000 pixel resolution. The television itself is 11 feet wide, the size of nine 50-inch plasma TVs. No price was announced with the set, but many analysts predict the television to go for close to $100,000. Panasonics 103-inch plasma retails for $70,000.

‘Homebase’ Message Center

Audiovox was showing their new homebase message center and digital picture frame at CES. The device is essentially a white board that can be written on with a built-in digital photo frame. There are two different models, an audio version that allows users to leave audio messages for each other and an audio-video version that allows users to record short video messages to each other using the devices built-in video camera that can then be played. Both are expected to be released in March.

iRobot’s Gutter Cleaner

iRobot maker of the popular Roomba showcased their new Looj gutter cleaning system at CES. The $100 device simply has to be placed in a gutter and then can be driven though your gutters to clean them using a remote control found on the robots detachable handle.

A Victory for Blu-ray

The HD DVD Group postponed their press conference scheduled for Sunday at CES in the wake of an announcement Friday by Warner Brothers that they were going to exclusively support the Blu-ray format in 2008. Warner previously released titles in both HD DVD and Blu-ray.

Toshiba, the leader of the HD DVD format issued a press release saying they were "quite surprised by Warner Bros.' decision to abandon HD DVD in favor of Blu-ray, despite the fact that there are various contracts in place between our companies concerning the support of HD DVD. As central members of the DVD Forum, we have long maintained a close partnership with Warner Bros….We were particularly disappointed that this decision was made in spite of the significant momentum HD DVD has gained in the US market as well as other regions in 2007."

There have been close to one million HD DVD players sold in North America with over 1,000 different HD DVD titles available for purchase worldwide. Warner Bros. decision to move exclusively to Blu-ray is a huge hit for the format which is being declared dead by many industry analysts. Jodi Sally the vice president of marketing for HD DVD said Sunday "Many are saying the HD DVD format is dead, it is not…we've been declared dead before"

Current supporters of Blu-ray include: Fox, MGM, Disney, Lionsgate, and Sony. Exclusive HD DVD supporters are now only Paramount and Universal.

Editor’s note: Emily Price is a technology writer based in Raleigh NC as well as a producer for the WRAL News channel. She currently writes regularly for About.com, Download Squad, and Reviewd.com a syndicate of the Washington Post.