In case you got too caught up by Polaroid announcing that Lady Gaga was going to be their new Artistic Director, and missed all the actual music gadgets that came out in Sin City this week, well then Spinning Platters is here to help in your misguided priorities! We at Spinning Platters love our conventions especially when it’s a “convention of nerds.” See, they’re our people, and we of course love all the amazing toys that get announced there, and just in general love Las Vegas. So, here are the top six nine gadgets to come out of CES 2010.
We all know Sennheiser for their legendary headphones that have made our spines tingle for years now, but we have all also tried on unimpressive wireless headphones, but what if Sennheiser made wireless headphones? The RS170 are the first promising pair of professional grade cans to cut the wire. Luckly they didn’t try and get all overly complicated on us, leaving out the uselessness of noise cancelation and leaving that to the sealing like on their HD pro line. They are out now for a retail price of $300 but look around online really quickly and you can get a pair for as little as $250.
The name is a big gesture: what if you suck? Apparently if you suck too hard you can just use it as a super overpriced Guitar Hero controller. If you’re willing to rock out with a toy, you can plug into your amp and make the Imagination Movers proud; however, Kurt Cobain might rise from the dead and murder you. The You Rock Guitar sounds a little bit better than the Guitar apps that are out of the iPhone, but in a few years this thing might actually be something not to laugh at, because one day no one will actually be able to play guitar and only simulated guitar. Yes, a chord one day soon is going to be red button and orange button. $180 will give your friends hours of entertainment to make fun of you for.
OK, maybe not the most practical gadget of the week, yet still really cool! You’re probably thinking that why not just buy a keyboard with all the software inside of itself, well that answer is simple: how would you charge your iPhone? The iDiscover Keyboard also offers the ability to be used as a MIDI controller for your PC/Mac.
Eye-Fi’s been out of a bi,t but with 802.11n it wont drag your network down and you can put all your amazing photos from that show you went to last night up onto Facebook even faster, and still retain 8 gigs of space for your photog bliss!
It’s not a “music gadget” but who in their right mind hasn’t wanted to operate a Predator, if not for that pesky 4.5 million dollar price tag. However there’s a solution. The Parrot AR. Drone is a remote controlled helicopter of sorts that is controlled from your iPhone via a Wi-Fi connection. The Drone has an on-board camera that relays its footage to your iPhone so even when it’s out of sight, you can still operate it. This, topped with an augmented-reality game that you can play against other operators, is about as close most of us will ever get to actually bombing the Afghan mountainside.
Canon Wireless File Transmitter
If you have recently purched one of Canon’s professional camera’s (5D mk II, 7D or 1D mk IV) you might want to start saving up. Canon’s grip mounted Wireless File Transmitter is kind of like Eye-Fi for the CF card reading folks but with the price doubled. Screw on your new grip, and you’ll have a blast with an extra 16 gigs of storage, not to mention never having to plug a USB cord into your unit again. The fun is turning your camera into a live FTP site might make the price tag actually worth it. Have fun! The 5D and 7D units will run for $699 and no word on the 1D unit.
Finally 1080p in your pocket! Sanyo’s ultra slim new Xacti will do just that, fit into your pockets. The Xacti has a sleek smooth design with a pop out screen to monitor your recording. The Xacti will run you $299, which is rather reasonable for full HD at a 1920×1080 compression rate. And for the ladies, it comes in a pretty pink, as well as a few other more normal colors.
Geneva Labs iPod/ iPhone line up
Step aside Bang-Olufsen/ Bower & Wilkins, there’s a one-named show in town. Geneva Labs showed off their stunning line up of iPod/ iPhone players that also play these things called “CDs.” The industrial design of them should complement all of your other Apple products as well. With hidden LED read outs and Walnut finishes, you’re sure to make your Bose products light themselves on fire in a fit of jealous rage. Varieties come in small, medium, large and of course extra large, with prices ranging from $300 all the way through $1,999.
Yeah, another non-music related item, but you know that you want to be able to watch The Jersey Shore no matter where you are, and this is the device that’ll show the genius of Guido fist pumping! The Tivit connects to your iPhone or iPod touch via Wi-Fi, and then give you access to enjoy mobile TV viewing. The Tivit won best in show this year at CES, and you’ll for sure see the units on the streets soon, retailing for a relatively reasonable pice of $90 to $120
