New York – A number of
accessories suppliers, including some new faces and a few armed only with
prototypes, came to the Consumer Electronics Association’s Line Shows to debut
newly announced or newly shipping product lines.
Start-up
Immerz
demonstrated a prototype of its
KOR-fx multimedia enhancing device that will debut later this year. Designed to
make video gaming, movie watching or music listening more immersive, and driven
by a new acousto-haptic technology, the vest-like KOR-fx is worn across a
user’s shoulders and chest and delivers subtle vibrations to selected areas of
the chest cavity, acting as a wearable subwoofer of sorts. The vibrations are
said to activate neural pathways that subconsciously monitor the vibrations of
the chest cavity that naturally occur when speaking, laughing or crying.
Maxell
showed its
Ergomotion mice and keyboards, designed to lessen the risk of repetitive stress
injuries. The mouse has a pivoting motion base to ensure that the user’s wrist
is never in a fixed state, instead adapting a user’s natural hand and wrist
positioning and conforming to the user’s movement. The line, developed in a
partnership with Snapfish and
originally announced at International CES
but newly shipping, is endorsed by New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery.
Scosche
showed its MotorMouth
II hands-free and streaming audio car kit, originally announced at CES and
shipping now. The device plugs into a vehicle’s MP3/aux input to allow
hands-free phone conversations to play through a vehicle’s speakers. It
features auto-pairing and one-touch voice dialing with most Bluetooth
cellphones and DSP echo cancellation. The kit includes a switching audio
splitter, aux relocation cable, USB charging cable and car charger. It supports
HFP and A2DP profiles.
Also displayed in
Scosche’s booth: the KickBack P1 hybrid case with kickstand for iPad. It’s a
polycarbonate and rubber hybrid case that features a hinged kickstand for
landscape and portrait viewing as well as low-angle typing. Integrated traction
nubs provide grip on flat surfaces and an open design allows for complete
access to all connections and controls, the company said.
Also for the iPad,
OtterBox
displayed its new Defender-series
case, which incorporates three layers of protection: a self-adhering protective
film for the touchscreen, a two-piece polycarbonate shell, and a layer of
shock-absorbing silicone. Every iPad feature remains fully accessible while
completely enclosed, the company said. It includes a built-in stand and
silicone grip pads on the bottom.
Targus
was on hand
with a broad line of fashion cases for iPads.
The Hughes leather
Portfolio Slipcase for iPad comes with a black or brown oil-tanned premium
leather exterior and scratch-protective twill lining with a magnetic closure.
The Zee-case for iPad is a hard-shell skeleton with a leather exterior in
orange, mustard and black. The Truss Case for iPad has a top-grain leather
exterior that flaps open like a book and can act as a stand for hands-free
viewing. It has a scratch-resistant soft interior and wraparound band closure.
It’s available in beige, black and brown.
Targus also showed the
water-resistant Crave slipcase line, a neoprene sleeve and a line of leather
wallet-style cases for the iPad. Suggested retail prices for the lines range
from $24.99 to $59.99.
Tiffen
announced the
release of its Steadicam Smoothee, a new “easy to use right out of the box”
image stabilizer for portable video. The Smoothee, developed by professional
camera supplier Steadicam, allows iPhone 3G, Flip and Droid owners to capture
video without the shaking normally associated with handheld video shot on the
go, the company said.
Trexta
, an OEM case
supplier from Turkey, showed a branded consumer line that included Sketch Up
iPhone cases made of recycled paper and designed for doodling on. The thick
paper wraps come in five-packs complete with color markers.
And finally,
VIOlight
introduced what the company
claims is “the first ever UV cellphone sanitizer.” The battery-powered
cleaning device will sanitize handheld devices and other small items like
Bluetooth headsets and ear buds by removing up to 99.9 percent of germs and
bacteria, according to the company. It will begin shipping in September.
