At CES, Accessories Vendors Aim To Sweeten The User Experience

By John Laposky On Jan 6 2011 - 6:01am

LAS VEGAS — When you get past the 3D flat-panel TVs, tablet PCs and 4G-compatible handheld devices garnering headlines at International CES, a veritable universe of accessories to these devices, as well as many other categories, make up the bulk of introductions at the show.

A critical mass of new add-on peripheral options present retailers with an opportunity to fill out shelf space and add valuable points to sales, as well as enhancing the performance of the majority of new CE innovations.

Brands new to the CE accessories space that bring their own distinctive appeal and unique audience to the category include: House of Marley headphones, brought to you by the family of Bob Marley and the foundation that funds its charitable efforts; Ecko Unltd, a line of handheld cases, chargers and headphones from designer/provocateur Marc Ecko and Mizco International; a line of MTV-brand headphones from Argento as well as MTV properties device cases from MusicSkins; and a line of Alienware bags from Mobile Edge.

Ecko isn’t the only fashion designer diving into CE as attendees will see 3D glasses from the likes of Calvin Klein and Gucci. Many other more traditional CE brands will bow 3D glasses also, including Monster, XpanD and Steren. XpanD and Monster are both claiming models that are brand agnostic and work with any 3D TV models.

And while Apple is again absent from this year’s show, the sheer number of companies bringing accessories for Apple products is enough of a presence to impress upon showgoers how influential the company has become.

The iPad is the accessories’ vendors’ latest muse. Cases, stands, mounts, screen cleaners, apps, power solutions, headsets, cables, connectors, docks and speakers designed for the iPad, as well as the flood of other-brand tablet PCs and devices debuting here, are ubiquitous on the show floor.

Power and charging solutions for handheld devices are also out in force among exhibition booths. After gaining some critical mass the last two years, wireless charging solutions in particular should make a strong statement at the show. Several companies are bringing to market products that charge as many as six devices at once.

Many of the power solutions debuting here have a decidedly green angle to them. Dozens of suppliers are offering products that reduce or eliminate “vampire power” draw by components that remain plugged in but are not being used.

ThinkEco is one such company, offering it’s Modlet (modern outlet) to consumers for the first time. The simple device is connected between an outlet and a component, and it monitors power draw, feeding data to a browser-based interface that controls power to the outlet and records usage habits.

Gaming accessories are another hot category as custom controllers for the big three game consoles appear in form factors such as guns, tennis rackets, baseball bats, golf clubs, musical instruments (especially guitars) and bowling balls, and the list goes on.

Wireless solutions for traditionally wired components and systems also abound. Many such products are designed to stream online content or content from a PC to the TV, or extend Wi-Fi capabilities of an Internetconnected PC to handheld devices such as smartphones or handheld gaming devices.

Other categories well represented at this year’s show are: mounts and mounting solutions for increasingly thinner TVs as well as tablet devices; A/V furniture and storage solutions for components; bags and cases in myriad colors, styles and constructions; and digital home health care products designed to both monitor medical conditions as well as promote wellness.