Technology, Las Vegas | featured news

These days, the Las Vegas gathering favors deal-making over groundbreaking, but firms plan to unveil thousands of products.The International Consumer Electronics Show next week may be facing questions about its relevance in an Internet world that makes new things seem old in minutes, but it is still the foremost gathering for all things gadgety and geeky.

SolarFocus will introduce SolarKindle, billed as “the world’s first solar powered e-reader cover” at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) which gets underway on Monday. The cover will have a built-in solar panel with a dual-charging (USB and solar) reserve battery. The company said that there is “a guarentee of three-months of unplugged Kindle use” under normal sunlight environment.

The 2010 Consumer Electronics Show features alot less gloom than last year. At last year's Consumer Electronics Show, even Microsoft essentially admitted to a droopy feeling, as chief executive Steve Ballmer acknowledged a sense of "reduced expectations" in his industry.

A longtime quest to bring the Internet to the living room has entered a new phase, borrowing a page from Apple and its iPhone.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s enthusiastic keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show was hampered Wednesday night by a power failure and a lineup of announcements that did little to generate buzz for the company.