CES 2009: Day One Wrap-UpCES 2009: Day One Wrap-Up

Here's a collection of small things that turned up today on the first full day of the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show, including some great new info about the Palm Pre.Speaking to Palm, it turns out a GSM version is on the way from the company. I was told by Palm executives that a UMTS version is on the works, but Palm wouldn't elaborate on the bands it will support, nor which countries it will be available in. Also, there will be a Palm Apps Store. That's about all they said on that subject. Also, neither Palm nor Sprint would say a single word about the price of the Pre. Nada, zippo, zilch. They did, however, tell me that the entire WebOS operating system is a pastiche of HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Linux is serving to run WebOS, which is, in all intents and purposes, a browser-based operating system.

Logic Wireless showed off its projector phone, the Bolt. It's a honkin' big piece of mobile hardware that is heavy and bulky. It does, however, do what Logic advertises. It will project an image, whether still or moving, onto surfaces ranging from 36 to 64 inches. That's great for sharing PowerPoint presentations (it's aimed at mobile professionals) or video. The demo I saw wasn't perfect, but it worked. Look for availability on GSM networks later in the spring.

Slacker announced Slacker radio for BlackBerry. It offers over 100 stations to BlackBerry users, with access to over 10,000 artist stations. Users can even create their own Slacker radio stations.

Skype indicated that it is hard at work making clients for both the Android and iPhone platforms. According to Skype, it will be available in the Android Market within the next few days. It is making a client for Java-based handsets, as well, and that client will be available in the next few days, too.

HTC is said to be prepping no less than a dozen new smartphones for 2009. The phones will include a mix of Windows Mobile and Android-based handsets.

Last, but not least, Sling Media said that is working on a prototype of SlingPlayer for Apple computers to playback HD content, and it is also working on a version of SlingPlayer Mobile for the Apple iPhone.