You will be able to follow all the consumer electronic announcements on my news.wouldntmind.com site. I will endeavor to highlight the products coming out over the next year and will focus on the potential game-changers.

I posted my initial thoughts on Consumer Product Trends for 2012 last month and am excited to see these technologies and products make there way to our homes in the coming year.

One area I am extremely excited about this year is the shocking number of startup companies (94) exhibiting products in the "Eureka Park TechZone". I am looking for some fresh air from some forward-looking new companies...not more incremental derivatives. For all intents and purposes, the world of consumer electronics is changing. As mentioned in the product trends article referenced earlier, technology is converging. Devices are getting smarter. They can getting connected. This should bring together a convergence of solutions. Too many products at CES will be about "stand-alone" solutions...products that do "one thing" probably in a very proprietary way.

CES generates a lot of noise and it can be tough to shift through all this information to find the gems. My goal at the show is to focus on the gems and trends that make sense. Not the "here's another proprietary thing". Wish me luck!

If you want to take a look back in time at some of the breakthrough products and technologies introduced at past CES' including (in reverse chronological order):

• Connected TV and Smart Appliances 2011
• Tablets, Netbooks and Android Devices, 2010
• 3D HDTV, 2009
• OLED TV, 2008
• Digital Content Services, 2006
• IP TV, 2005
• Blu-ray Disc, 2004 
• HD DVD, 2004 
• HD Radio, 2004
• Home Media Server, 2002
• Plasma TV, 2001
• Xbox, 2001 
• Digital Audio Radio, 2000
• Digital Video Recorder (DVR), 1999 
• HDTV, 1998 
• Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), 1996 
• Digital Satellite System, 1994
• Radio Data System, 1993
• Compact Disc - Interactive, 1991
• Digital Audio Technology, 1990
• Tetris, 1988 
• Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), 1985 
• Amiga computer, 1984 
• Commodore 64, 1982 
• Compact Disc (CD) player, 1981 
• Camcorder, 1981 
• The Tennelec MCP-1 programmable scanner (radio), 1976 
• Pong home console by Atari, 1975 
• Laserdisc player, 1974 
• Video Cassette Recorder (VCR), 1970