Activision 
proved there was a market for small, real-world items interacting with a virtual environment with its toy-based video game Skylanders. Now a French technology company is hoping to expand on that idea.
ePawn is demonstrating a new technology — called the Arena — at this week’s Las Vegas-based Consumer Electronics Show, which it hopes to ship to retail by this holiday. And it’s something of a doozy.
The Consumer 
Electronics Show isn’t just about a bunch of drool-worthy TVs and doomed-before-they-launch tablets. Gaming is a big part of the show.
While new games aren’t announced or showcased and major new hardware announcements by big industry players don’t typically happen (even rumored ones like the Xbox 720), there’s plenty of gaming on hand. Sony and Nintendo have been busily showing off the PlayStation Vita and Wii U, respectively, and many of those fancy sets and mobile devices are geared towards those who like to play.
Attending the Consumer 
Electronics Show is not good for your bank account. No matter how new your TV is or how high-tech your home might be, there’s always something better on the way — and once you see it, you often want it.
There is, however, a lot of repetition in the Las Vegas Convention Center halls. After a couple of days the myriad TVs start to run together, and it starts to seem like every booth is offering some variation of an iPhone case.
Some items rise above the fray — and these are often the ones that resonate with consumers. Here are a few of the most interesting things on display this year.
The prosumer 
and mass market audiences don’t tend to run in parallel — especially when it comes to cameras. But when it comes to 3D, they seem to agree on one thing: Price is king.
3D capture technology is certainly intriguing to both groups, but few view it as essential — and the cost of entry has, thus far, been rather prohibitive. As the field continues to evolve, though, that might be changing.
Lightfield capture 
is one of the more intriguing technologies to hit the photographic world in years — and one that could eventually have a big impact on 3D filmmaking.
The tech is like something out of a sci-fi novel: Shoot a picture now and worry about focus later. It’s something that has been predicted as a possible replacement for the stereoscopic camera, since true lightfield capture would give filmmakers the flexibility to choose 3D settings in post — something that’s only possible now through post conversion.
As the 
television manufacturing industry struggles to persuade consumers that 3D is the future, the videogame industry is having a little easier time of it.
Several of the hottest games of 2011 were 3D-compatible. Some, like Sony’s “Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception,” made a convincing case that the technology could add to the gaming experience and wasn’t just a gimmick. And after a sluggish start, Nintendo’s 3DS has, seemingly, finally found its footing.With the one-two punch of a price cut and a strong holiday slate of games, the 3DS surpassed first year sales of the Nintendo DS in just eight months. (The DS went on to be the bestselling game system of all time in the U.S.) Nintendo now estimates 3DS unit sales should top 4 million units by February.
While the 
Consumer Electronics Show includes just about every type of gadget imaginable, the star of the show is almost always television.
Every year, manufacturers roll out their latest and greatest, touting a new technological advance they hope will resonate with consumers. But for the past few years, the reaction among shoppers has been more “ho hum” than “I gotta have it.”
The television 
industry could use another revolution these days.
With the upgrade cycle to high definition sets nearing completion, the hunt is on to start another one. But so far, consumers haven’t been wowed by the new offerings.
Pretty much 
every year, a big trend emerges from the Consumer Electronics Show. And pretty much every year, it’s heralded — at least for a short while — as the next big thing in consumer electronics.
This year, it’s shaping up to be Ultrabooks. The problem is: In many ways, the “next big thing” of the last few years hasn’t really been all that big.
Two years 
ago, 3D TV commanded center stage at the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Last year, it was tablets. This year, while both of those product groups will still be shown in force, it looks like the PC is ready to make a comeback.
The computer industry, which seems swept by one revolution after another, is back in the spotlight at CES this week, with a new version of Windows and a new type of laptop heralding the new era.
Chris Morris: Journalist 