Picture a system that controls not just your home electronics but the lights and furnace and lots of other things in your house. How about a screen-and-keyboard device that plugs into a smart phone and allows you to use it as a laptop computer?
Those are two of the products from more than two dozen Utah companies that will be on display at next week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Though the event is somewhat muted this year because of the contracting U.S. and world economies, it remains an important showcase for manufacturers, retailers and others.
This year, producers are expecting 130,000 people from 140 countries to attend, compared with 141,150 last year, said Sara Szabo, communications manager for the Consumer Electronics Association, the industry group that stages the show.
The same number of Utah companies that participated last year -- 30 -- also have booked space this year. Szabo said that despite economy, the show remains a cost-effective way to bring together buyers, retailers, analysts, partners and the media.
Although retailers are bracing for disappointing sales figures for the year and from the all-important Christmas season -- the association is projecting only a .1 percent increase in sales of consumer electronics the fourth quarter, compared with last -- Utah companies are poised to make the most of their time in Las Vegas.
Celio Corp., a Salt Lake City company, is exhibiting its REDFLY Smartphone Terminal in its second visit to the show.
"We have the opportunity to demo and conduct valuable meetings with retailers, partners, and media contacts from across the globe," said Steve Saunders, vice president of sales.
The device looks like a small notebook computer with an 8-inch screen but does not have a central processing unit or storage. However, when connected to a smart phone, it uses the phone's computing power to act much like a real laptop. Owners can use the bigger screen and keyboard for e-mail, accessing the Web and applications available on the smart phone.
Control4 of Draper is returning to the show for the fifth year.
The company makes what CEO Will West calls "an operating system for the home."
It can play the movie you choose on a home theater system, adjust the sound and temperature in the room, and even dim the lights. It also can perform such tasks as waking you up with 10 minutes of music, then switching to the news, before adjusting the lights so they are not too bright when you first rise.
"We make it all work together so your life is better and more entertaining," said West.
The electronics show remains an important venue for Control4, which sells its products through other outlets. Best Buy plans to roll out Control4's system nationwide over the next year, while companies such as Panasonic are incorporating its capabilities into products.
"CES is a great show for us," said West, who added the company uses the show to host its own conference for those who want to develop products that work with the Control4 system.
