Gadgets galore - new products at the 1997 Consumer Electronics Show

Sunset, April, 1997 by Michael Goldstein

Hot new products launched at the recent Consumer Electronics Show

The Consumer Electronics Show, held in Las Vegas each January, is where the electronics industry unveils the shape of things to come.

DVD: THIS TIME IT'S FOR REAL

Digital video disk (DVD) can store 4.7 gigabytes of information (as much as 133 minutes of video) and offers higher resolution and faster access time (no rewinding) than videotape. It was supposed to replace its smaller CD and CD-ROM cousins in 1996.

But format wars and a reluctance to release titles because of piracy fears delayed the DVD revolution. Now, with feature films becoming available on DVD, manufacturers are launching DVD players. Toshiba's new SD-3006 offers 720 pixels of resolution per on-screen line and lets users view video at the 4:3 aspect ratio of a conventional TV or in the film's original letterboxed format. The SD-3006 ($699) offers still, slow-motion, and parental-control modes, and lets you zoom to any spot on the disk. Toshiba; (800) 631-3811.

AFFORDABLE HOME THEATER

Home theater setups can run upwards of $20,000. Yet it's possible to put first-run theater sound into your house at video-store prices.

Aiwa's AV-X550 Home Theater System combines a 400-watt total output amplifier, a digital AM/FM tuner, a stereo VHS VCR with VCR Plus, a sub-woofer for deeper bass, and five satellite speakers so you can surround yourself with sound. Yet it sells for just $1,200 - and it sure is loud. Add a CD player and a projection television and you're set. Aiwa; (800) 289-2492.

THE MAGIC EYE

Want to visit with far-flung friends and family from the comfort of your couch, without a $10,000 videoconferencing setup? C-Phone Home, a set-top box that works with your TV, can make it happen. It includes a high-speed digital camera, a 33.6-kbps modem, and a remote control with built-in microphone.

Call another number with C-Phone Home installed and smile - you're on Candid Camera, although the video is a bit jerky. C-Phone Home costs $350, with a $20 monthly video network subscription fee. C-Phone; (800) 666-2496.

PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT

Surge protection isn't sexy, but a power surge can instantly destroy your costly consumer electronics. RCA's Surge Protector Plus ($69.95) is designed to protect a digital satellite system (DSS), but with eight electrical outlets and inputs for cable and phone lines, it will protect most consumer electronics products. And if a surge breaks through, rest easy - the protector carries $10,000 insurance to replace the damaged equipment. RCA; (800) 336-1900.

COMING SOON

* Imagine a phone with a miniature computer keyboard and an LCD screen for sending e-mail and getting on the Web, all without a personal computer. Manufacturers are coming out with several competing products, including iPhone by Cidco (408/779-1162) and P200 Screen Phone by Philips Home Services (800/284-2428), which promise to sell for less than $500 this summer.

* One of the most exciting hand-held PCs at CES was also a phone - the Nokia 9000 Communicator. It weighs less than a pound and looks like a typical portable phone, until you flip it open. Inside, there's an LCD screen, a modem, and a touch keypad, so it can serve as fax machine, e-mail device, Internet connection, and pager. The 9000 will be available in late 1997 for about $1,800. Nokia; (800) 666-5553.