Sony netbook, sorry, Lifestyle PC 7 January 2009
Posted by Steve Blum in Tellus Venture Associates.Tags: australia, lifestyle pc, netbook, new zealand, sony, sony ericsson, t-mobile, tmobile, verizon, vodafone
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Here’s what it looks like…
The Sony netbook, sorry, Lifestyle PC
Sony also has a “Webbie” cam. HD video, $170 when it hits the market in March. There’s a $200 version available now, but not as cute.
Sony Webbie Cam -- the cute model
Live from CES Press Day, 7 January 2009 7 January 2009
Posted by Steve Blum in Tellus Venture Associates.Tags: australia, CES, cisco, ericsson, flacks, german, Intel, japanese, lg, linksys, microsoft, netgear, new zealand, sony, t-mbile, tagolog, tmobile, toshiba, verizon, vodafone
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Last to first, real time tweets from Las Vegas…
- Bill Gates is the UrGeek. Love or hate him, he’s an original with historic scope. Heroic in classical sense. Ballmer…
- Listening to Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO. Microsoft will rule the world. Honest.
- Sony shows great respect for mobile telecom carriers. Has WiFi Walkman in pipeline, but no 3/4G product that would cause consternation for Sony Ericsson’s mobile carrier customers.
- Sony sez not in negotiations for NZ/Australia mobile carrier deals for netbook, sorry Lifestyle PC, but GSM deals in Europe are locked.
- Even so, Sony netbook, sorry Lifestyle PC, is way cool. 600 grams, 20 cm screen. Uses Windoze OS but has a Linux bios & can boot either way.
- Sony intros netbook, sorry Lifestyle PC. $900. Includes wireless data card. Verizon deal for US, T-Mobile, Vodafone in EU. Nothing in New Zealand or Australia. Sorry, mate.
- Of course, Sony is cautious. Sony Ericsson is in bed with, and enthusiastically servicing, mobile telecom carriers.
- For CES, Sony divides its business into “in-home” & “out-of-home”. But out-of-home is mobile carrier-friendly, not consumer-focused.
- A couple words of Tagalog got me the sympathy of the bartender, though.
- My Japanese & German is an advantage at CES, Italian & Spanish no help.
- Lots of consumer-grade PR minions at what are supposed to be trade press-class events. Frustrating.
- Snuck a peek at Intel booth, heavy on mobile Internet & 4G, at least the WiMAX flavor.
- Cisco likes femtocell technology, puts it in the same bucket as WiFi. Interesting perspective.
- Steve Ballmer is tonight’s keynote, but here’s the advance scoop: Microsoft Bob is back!
- Apple it’s not but it’s a start for Cisco. They’ll need a lot of help though.
- Linksys by Cisco new consumer brand strategy, paying attention to product design now
- People started leaving, slid in for Q&A. Service provider guy talking about making networks video aware.
- Cisco PR kiddies say look it up on their website later. Duh.
- Cisco press conf overfull. Sent to watch a live web feed. Didn’t work. What business are they in?
- Line for Toshiba press conf too long. One way to manage reduced attendance is to book a smaller room.
- Sharp showing big displays. Really big.
- Line for Toshiba press conference out of control. Must be giving away free stuff.
- Netgear also showing IPTV player and home media center. Category is getting crowded, not much secret sauce anymore.
- Netgear has no deals with mobile carriers but sez they’ll appreciate increased data usage. Not convincing.
- CE guys determined to hang gizmos on mobile data networks: weeds in the walled garden!
- Streaming TV + tethered wifi router = bandwidth hell for carriers. CE guys are on the march!
- Netgear introing wifi router with slot for 3G data modem card. Sez 1 use is streaming TV.
- Skipped main event, checked out stuff afterwards. LG showing netbook, usual mobile phones, nice. Just nice.
- Line for LG press conf already strung out at 7:30am
Cisco is here to help. But whom? 7 January 2009
Posted by Steve Blum in Tellus Venture Associates.Tags: CES, cisco, consumer electronics show, linksys, t-mobile, tmobile
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Cisco builds stuff for service providers. They’re at CES primarily to talk about their latest effort to extend their brand into the consumer realm, but there’s no doubting they’re network guys to the core.
Interesting comment from their service provider group SVp & GM Tony Bates: they’re deploying technology that makes service provider networks video aware. Of course, it’s with the consumer’s best interests in mind. If a service provider knows that video is streaming through it’s network, it can take steps to optimize the consumer’s experience.
Yes. Absolutely true. On the other hand, they can take steps to downgrade the experience or charge more for it. From a technological capability perspective, anyway.
If mobile carriers are in fact under siege from consumer electronics manufacturers determined to sell mobile gizmos without the blessing of carriers, then Cisco could be in a position to craft a defense.
Cisco also makes a tethering product for T-Mobile, allowing consumers to sign up for wireless data service in the home. The product and attached service are under the control of T-Mobile, but it’s a more generous offering than most. So maybe there is a middle ground. Or maybe when you’re at the back of the pack, you’re willing to take more chances.
Still more to come from CES.
