With the new year right around the corner, it’s time to start gearing up for one of the most anticipated technology industry events of the year: CES 2020!
For those who are new to the scene, CES, short for Consumer Electronics Show, is a four-day conference that takes place in Las Vegas — and is the world’s largest annual consumer technology event. In fact, today, CES draws in crowds nearing 180,000 attendees, along with 4,500 exhibitors and over a thousand speakers.
With this year marking the 52nd anniversary of CES, we decided to take a stroll down memory lane to see which major technologies have been announced over the years.
52 Years of Product Innovation in Review
When first held in June 1967, right here in the Big Apple, CES captured less than 1% of exhibitors and less than 10% of attendees seen today, according to the history of CES. Needless to say, the event has grown exponentially. One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is that life-changing technologies are often debuted there.
The 1960s: The Birth of CES
The 1960s were the birth decade of CES. During these first few years, consumers were introduced to the first model of a computer mouse and ARPANET, which, little did we know, would become the technical foundation of the internet!
The 1970s: A New City & Apple’s First Personal Computer
Due to increasing popularity of CES, the 1970s brought a change in the host city, introducing Chicago and Las Vegas as additional conference locations, and amped up the show’s presence to twice a year. The announcements of the first-ever VCR, followed by VHS, a computer floppy disc, and Apple’s first personal computer, all came during this time.
The 1980s: Record-Breaking Attendance & the First Cell Phone
As demand continued to soar, reaching a milestone of 100,000 attendees, the 1980s marked a time for innovation in the world of music with the introduction of the CD and CD player. Also during this time we were introduced to the first color TV, cell phones, and the camcorder.
The 1990s: Transformation of How We Watch TV
And who could forget the 1990s? This decade brought huge TV improvements, such as DVD players and flat-screen plasma TVs, as well as the first Dolby home theater system.
The 2000s: Upgrades to Household Technologies
The 2000s continued to bring household improvements — cell phones and digital cameras were combined into one and 3G cellular network became available, TVs were upgraded (once again) with plasma HDTV and 3D HDTV, and the radio was transformed into HD and satellite radio — and this is just naming a few.
The 2010s: Internet of Things & More
Finally, we arrive at our current decade, when the Internet of Things became a major buzzword. Most notably, this decade has brought us Ultra HDTV, Flexible OLED, 3D printers, tablets, connected TVs, and virtual reality. And as for 2019, this past year has boasted advancements in AI, drones, health tech, TVs, and according to Fast Company, virtual assistant technologies from Google and Amazon.
Excited to see what CES 2020 has in store for us? We are too! Stayed tuned for our next blog, which will discuss expectations on what’s to come.
And if you’ll be attending CES 2020, be sure to set up a meeting with our executive team there!
