It is that time of the year when WGS travels to Las Vegas for the annual Consumer Electronics Show – an absolute wonderland of acres of products that companies hope will catch the consumer’s eye in 2011. Last year we had the promise of 3D TV and connected TVs. We had ebook readers, as well as notepads. Boxee! And on and on.
Once again, Terry invited me to be part of the WGS team at CES. There is simply far too much for one person to cover. Actually, even for two to cover. It will be an exciting 3 or 4 days of walking the floor, meeting with various companies, and enjoying some good company. Hopefully, my feet will survive better than last year.
One of the stars of this year will most definitely be the tablet. The big push for 3D Everything and the connected TV are also gaining lots of momentum. We can expect to see a lot of great new products in those areas, and more. It had better be good anyway, as getting here is often painful. Last year, Terry’s flight was cancelled at the last minute, leading to a quick change and crazy drive from LA to the show here in Nevada. This year it was my turn to experience travel hell.
I live in the heartland of the US. At the Eastern Iowa Regional Airport, you don’t need to be there 3 hours before the flight leaves. But I was there 2 hours prior because my driver (my son) had an appointment that interfered with my desired arrival time. That’s cool. This is Iowa, so security was a breeze. No pat downs, just the normal security stuff. Remove your shoes, remove your belt. Put the computer and other electronics in the tray. Walk through and retrieve. I even had time to pick up a Hawkeye outfit for a certain youngster. If you need to know more, do a search on “Iowa Hawkeye”. After this week there will have to be one Hawk fan in the UK!
Things went slowly downhill from there. And eventually accelerated. Then slowly moved back uphill.
Once boarded, we got to sit in the plane for 20 minutes while they checked a “mechanical” problem. Once airborne, the pilot put the pedal to the metal and we arrived in Minneapolis right on time. Which was cool, because the guy next to me was “chatty Charlie”. At least he was interesting to listen to. Really!
I got to my departure gate. I watched the plane come in. The scheduled departure time was 2:35pm. At 2:15pm, they announced this plane also had mechanical problems and the earliest it would leave would be 6:00pm. Oh, joy!
A few hours later, the airline did announce over the intercom that they had found a plane they could switch for our broken one. The departure time? 5:00pm. Then 5:15pm. Then who knows. After what seemed like eons, we were finally able to board. The plane actually backed up 10 feet from the gate at around 6:15. After several short starts and long stops, we were finally de-iced and in the air around 6:50pm. Real progress. Finally. With a flight time of about 3 hours, taxi time of 1/4 hour, I am finally in the Las Vegas airport around 8:15pm (2 hour time zone change). Then another 1/2 hour for baggage pickup, as I am not very efficient in my packing. My bad, obviously…
So, 5 hours after I was supposed to arrive, I was finally here. Viva Las Vegas! I think my total travel time was almost as long as Terry’s from the UK.
It was actually nice to see a familiar face: Terry’s! Time for some real food, as the airline declined to provide a meal (the original flight did not, so too bad, so sad was their attitude), a couple of beers, and a quick write-up (this one) on the trials and tribulations of flying.
So, how was your day?
p.s. I survived the day with a smile. Why? Las Vegas was my destination, so I did not miss a connecting flight. And in the end, there was no point in being PO’d, as it would not have helped. I am just happy I got here. Period! It will be a fun, but exhausting week. Hopefully, I have spread myself not as thinly this year as last, and I will be able to let you know the latest from CES in a more timely manner than last year.
However, I make no guarantees…
