Cyber sizzlers: home electronics trends and products for 1999

The January Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas (attended by nearly 100,000 people) is where companies roll out new products and test the market. It's chaotic but exciting, like the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Here's a sampling of trends and product introductions from this year's show.

TOWARD SUPER-REALISM ON THE SCREEN

High-definition televisions, more prevalent than ever, may stun you with their picture quality but shock you with their prices (from $6,000). Flatscreen, wall-mounted televisions based on plasma technology are still evolving (and price tags are still stratospheric), but the buzz is that these will be the TVs of our future.

If you're still bound to analog TV, you won't be left behind with RCA's DTC100 ($649) digital TV converter, due out by late summer. This receiver/decoder receives both analog and digital signals, so you can keep your existing TVs until digital prices drop. (800) 336-1900.

PRIME TIME IS ANYTIME

ReplayTV is a new breed of VCR without videotape - it records directly to its hard drive and has instant playback capability. It can record and play two sections of a show simultaneously. While watching a broadcast, you can "pause," "rewind," or "fast-forward" (i.e., catch up to the realtime feed). The device can even build a "Replay Channel" based on your preferences-for instance, it will search for cooking shows, record them, and create a Cooking Replay Channel. The ReplayTV 2001 with six hours of recording capability costs $699. (800) 266-1301, (650) 968-9923, or www. replaytv.com.

ELECTRONIC NOVELS

Although reading a book on a handheld 4 1/2- by 3-inch computer screen may not appeal to everyone, it does have advantages. The Rocket eBook holds the equivalent of 10 400-page books, and its backlight lets you read at night. You can scribble notes, highlight passages, and search the text. Visit www.barnesandnoble.com to download electronic editions, from $3 to $30 each. Angela's Ashes, The Death of Outrage, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Electronic Day Trader, Heart of Darkness, White Fang, and The Call of the Wild are among the several hundred titles available for the Rocket eBook, which costs $499. (The product requires a PC with Windows 95/98 and Internet service.) (800) 667-8034 or www.levenger.com.

ON THE ROAD WITH VOICE RECOGNITION

Imagine your car stereo reading your e-mail aloud or giving you directions. The Clarion AutoPC uses the Microsoft Windows CE operating system and various accessories to turn a car stereo into a computer. It has built-in address book and memo functions, plus a 35-watt, four-channel car stereo with digital equalizer and audio CD/CD-ROM player. Combined with your cell phone, it provides hands-free communication. It can even download information from hand-held PCs. The Clarion AutoPC costs $1,299. (800) 462-5274 or www. autopc.com.

"FREE" LONG-DISTANCE CALLS

How would you like to make long-distance calls for free, over the Internet, without a computer? Aplio/Phone makes it possible. Essentially, your call is directed to your local Internet service provider (service isn't included), which routes it over the Internet; the person you're calling will also need an Aplio/Phone or special software for a PC. The Aplio/Phone module ($199) connects to any phone and even doubles as a speaker phone. (888) 6427546 or www.aplio.com.

GROOVIN' TO THE WEB

One of the hottest trends in music is downloading music and audio from the Internet in the MP3 format. (Unfortunately, much of it has been placed there illegally, so the MP3 format is controversial with record companies.) The Rio PMP300 music player lets you download Internet music and audio books to a portable device. You can also convert tracks from audio CDs. The size of a pager, the PMP300 ($200) offers up to 60 minutes of music playback. (800) 468-5846 or www.diamondmm.com.

COPYRIGHT 1999 Sunset Publishing Corp.
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group