Since I'm the closest thing to a "technology" reporter for this fair establishment, I'm setting aside the pop culture in this week's Scanner in favor of more gadgets, toys and expensive high–tech goodness.

Why, you may ask?

CES.

CES is the annual trade show/parade/play date between electronics companies, the press and other interested parties. It's where you'll find the newest, sleekest and most ridiculously expensive new hardware, games, appliances, cars and just about anything else that can theoretically make your life better...through technology. And oh, by the way, it's held in Las Vegas.

And I in no way am bitter about not being there.

Actually, Joel Johnson over at Boing–Boing Gadgets makes a good case for why ditching CES may not be such a bad thing.
The team at Gizmodo also paints a bleak picture of the deathstar–like tradeshow. Fighting just to cover/write the same thing as other media, the circus atmosphere and Jerry Bruckheimer production values, the PR shell games and the complimentary Kool–Aid.

Still...shiny things and Vegas!

• If you are into Heineken, and I mean really, really, into Heineken, and have a few hundred lying around, how does draft beer at home sound? I will wait for the High Life model. (Hat tip: Engadget)

• A monitor like this has no real applications for the newsroom, but just look at it! How can you not want that? You get behind a monitor like that and you feel like you're running things. (Hat tip: Gizmodo)

• Think Nintendo Wii, only without the Wii-mote. Personally I enjoyed this because of the photo. Who doesn't enjoy punching Pandas, right? Right? (Hat tip: NYT Bits)

• Speaking of Wii, how sweet are these new Wii–cessories. Or is that Wii–pons? That of course probably blows my Wii–related pun quotient for the week. (Hat tip: Gizmodo)

• Robots have been all over the place at CES this year. Here's the iRobi helper and the iRobot Looj that cleans gutters. (Hat tip: Engadget)

• Here's something interesting - a DIY gadget that can become just about anything you want. The Bug Labs platform runs open-source software and using various parts can be all things to all people - camera, GPS device, music player and some sort of hybrid of all those things. (Hat tip: CNET)

• Sure he's the most well–known (and trusted) sidekick in the universe, but now R2D2 can also serve as a DVD projector in your home. Whiney gold–colored life–mate not included. (Hat tip: Wired)

• Since it's not enough to just have a Taser, now the company wants them to be fashionable and accessorized? That's right, a leopard-print Taser, with an MP3 player holster. Wow. (Hat tip: Technobabble.)

  
  A few non-CES, but gadget–related offerings:

• Sure it may be enough to have a fake Gibson for your Guitar Hero rock sessions, but what if you could have a turntable? Is "Scratch Hero" far behind? I'd buy that. Also, if you're listening Activision, I want a cut. (Hat Tip: Boing–Boing)

• Why, why, why weren't Legos this cool when I was a kid? I would have flipped for an Indiana Jones Lego set. I'm sure the answer is "use your imagination kids." (Hat tip: Boing–Boing Gadgets)

• Hilarious. Just hilarious. (Hat tip to The Long Tail)
  

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