Today marks the official opening of the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Approximately 150,000 global attendees will descend the show in droves when the doors open at 10:00 a.m. PST. Some argue CES could be re-named "Celebrity Electronics Show" given the huge names that help market the latest gadgets to appear at the show.
Looking back at yesterday's CES press day, the celebrity turnouts didn't disappoint.
Monster Cable, makers of the uber popular Beats by Dr. Dre headphones and high-end HDMI cables, kicked off the morning a live Skype feed with Mariah Carey's beau, Nick Cannon (from reality TV show, America's Got Talent), who promoted his new line of headphones dubbed "N-Ergy in-ear" and "N-Tune on-ear headphones."
Panasonic riled up the press with an appearance of singer and actor Justin Timberlake. J.T. strutted the stage and shared his support of 3D content and technology.
Another Japanese electronics powerhouse, Sony, didn't disappoint either bringing huge names from the entertainment industry: actor and rapper, Will Smith, director Barry Sonnenfeld and American Idol, Kelly Clarkson. Smith and Sonnenfeld fittingly shared their excitement for the upcoming release of Sony Pictures' Men in Black 3. Sony Music artist Clarkson belted her hit single, "Mr. Know it All."
Microsoft, delivering its last CES keynote, surprised everyone at their press conference by having American radio and TV personality and producer (think the Kardashians), Ryan Seacrest, host. He helped Microsoft CEO deliver messages on their latest smartphone developments, PCs, tablets, centre discussions around the official announcement about the release of Windows 8, and share details of Xbox - specifically adding more content and making the Kinect sensor accessible to PC users.
Celebrities prove time and again their ability to stir crowds live or following major announcements. This is only the beginning. More headliners expected to create stirs both day and night during CES include:
- Canada's singing sensation, Justin Bieber
- Rapper 50 Cent
- Rappers and actors LL Cool J and Ludacris
- Former NBA players Robert Horry, Dennis Rodman ("The Worm") and John Salley
- Former NFL linebacker Carl Banks
- MTV Jersey Shore's "Snooki" (Nicole Polizzi)
As in years past, you can count on me to document some of the above should the opportunities arise. Bieber raises the fever on Wednesday. Expect crowd control to be in full force.
