2011 CES: Innovations a Boon for Boomers

Tablet computers, touchscreens, motion-based computer controls, 3D TVs and camcorders, interactive fitness equipment -- this year's Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas had it all.

As electronic devices get touchscreens, simpler interfaces and other upgrades, the gadgets are becoming easier to use for people of all ages, says Elie Gindi, founder of Eldergadget.com, a website that includes reviews of electronics and other products suitable for people over 65. "Walking around, it dawned on me how amazing this is for seniors," he says.

This year, approximately 2,700 consumer electronics companies exhibited new products and prototypes at the show, which attracted an industry-only crowd of more than 140,000.

Here are some of the latest innovations that might interest baby boomers.

1. Fitness goes online. Bored with treadmill workouts? Panasonic and NordiTrac teamed up with iFit on a treadmill with an internet-enabled display screen powered by Google Maps' Street View. Hop on, push a few buttons and feel like you're walking or jogging almost anywhere in the world. "You could do your morning jog on the Great Wall, and it will go up and down based on the terrain," Gindi says.

2. Converging user interfaces. Think of all the gadgets you use every day -- TV, DVD player, computer, phone, game system, exercise equipment, music player -- and the controls you have to learn for each. What if there was only one control for everything? The industry isn't there yet. But companies are getting closer, based on the electronic gadgets at the convention sharing the same or similar user interfaces, Gindi says. Apple, for example, gave the iPhone and iPad interface the same look and feel and partnered with electronics makers such as iHealth so the devices could be used as displays for things such as blood-pressure cuffs. Research in Motion is doing the same with its tablet PC, which will use the same touchscreen interface as newer model BlackBerrys. Sharp showed a Galapagos tablet prototype that lets users swipe a finger across the screen to move a movie or magazine article onto a nearby TV or smartphone. "The world's so technological, it's all about the interface," Gindi says. What does it means for boomers and seniors? Things are getting simpler. "My 80-year-old mom learned how to use the iPhone, so moving to the iPad was easy," he says.

3. Smarter smartphones. As more cell phone users upgrade to newer models, the smartphone wars are on, with makers of devices based on Google's Android open source operating system overtaking the iPhone in number of units sold, and the BlackBerry continuing to hold its own among faithful followers. Many of these were on display at the show, including Motorola's senior-friendly Flipside, which has easier controls and fewer bells and whistles than standard smartphones, as well as models from HTC and LG.

4. Tablet fever. Apple wasn't at CES, but plenty of other computer makers showed off new or soon-to-appear tablet PCs of varying shapes and sizes to compete with the iPad, all of them with touchscreens that operate software with a swipe of the finger. Many are trying to do the iPad one better by offering lower prices, cheaper contracts for internet access or adding features. According to Gindi, tablets to watch for include: the BlackBerry Playbook; an Android-based Achros that retails for under $200; a Samsung model that folds like a netbook; the Motorola Xoom, which is expected to be out by April; and also from Motorola, the Atrix, a smartphone that snaps into a keyboard and frame to become a netbook.

5. You are the controller. In the first two months it was out, Microsoft sold 8 million Kinect systems for the Xbox, which use motion sensors in lieu of hand-held controllers for playing video games. But the technology has potential beyond games, something that was evident by the display of many gadgets with built-in motion detectors, Gindi says. Sony and Samsung demonstrated TVs with sensors that detect where someone is sitting and adjusts the screen angle accordingly. Another manufacturer showed a TV that responds to voice commands -- goodbye clumsy remote. Microsoft is following its Kinect success with Kinect Avatar, a service slated to be out in spring that lets Xbox Live users create avatars of themselves that can "talk" online. "You can be in Washington, D.C., and have a relative in Seattle and talk to each other," Gindi says.

6. More, cheaper 3D TVs and cameras. 3D was the big buzz at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show, but this year it came into its own, with cheaper prices and technology that eliminates the need for those funny glasses. That's a plus for boomers because processing the extra visual information created in 3D TV gives a lot of people -- older and younger -- headaches, Gindi says. The only drawback is that the OLED technology electronics makers are using for 3D TV without glasses still isn't available on anything larger than 24" sets. In addition to 3D TVs, a number of companies showed economically priced 3D, high-definition camcorders, including Sony's Bloggie Touch 3D pocket camcorder that retails for under $200.

Keep reading: Here's more commentary on the 2011 CES highlights:

• What We Learned from CES: 5 Big Tech Trends to Watch
• Tops in Tech: Highlights from the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show
• Tech Show Surprises, and the Stale