Macworld - The GOOD part!

There were several cool products at the Expo.

Interwrite Learining was there with the bluetooth wireless tablet, whiteboard and personal response system (PRS). It was a busy booth and there was a lot of interest in the PRS, both as a testing device and as a method to collect homework.

NEC had some new products including a wrap around wide screen display. It is not a flat screen as you can see but a rear projection. Neat concept, yet sad, as I do not have space on my desk for it....Yet!

Canon was there with their large format printers 44" wide and up to 75' long. The images were sharp and while I was at their booth they were printing this beautiful banner! They also displayed there consumer and professional video cameras, HD is out there and its stunning. I am looking for a new video camera for podcasting and I think Canon may be it.

Continuing along the lines of video Pod casting, I saw two excellent software programs from Vara Software. http://www.varasoftware.com/ The videocue 2 allows you to enter your script and read it like a teleprompter as you look into your video camera. They were using the built-in camera in the top of the screen and it worked like a dream. The other product they had was a software based live broadcast studio. It has a robust feature set and you can do some neat things.

This next picture is of Software Bisque's booth. http://www.bisque.com/ They have a series of astronomy software products that are comprehensive to say the least. For both the beginner and the expert they have a solution for you.

I suppose that since I am writing about Macworld Expo, I should say a few things about Apple's offerings. They had the whole line-up there, Ipod, IPhone, and the rest. They were showing of the Macbook Air, a super thin notebook. It was slick and there are going to be a lot of happy travelers, when they get their hands on this beaut.

Overall, the show broke even, not too many breakthrough items, but a lot of solid products that address various niche markets.

What did you think?

What was your expectation?

What cool things did you find?