The final day of CES, I went to the Sands and Venetian exhibitions. These were mostly small exhibitors who were trying to get in front of a large audience, but there were some interesting exhibitors that I got the chance to talk to. I will go over them real quick and give you some advice on attending conventions like this.

            Orig3n was doing free DNA tests and I decided to take one. It’s a simple mouth swab that you run up and down the inside of your mouth 10 times, put in it’s container and ship to them. I’ll let you know when I receive my results. The medical profession can eventually use the results to change DNA, but right now it is more curiosity. The good thing about Orig3n is they don’t share your information, which recently became a big issue because of other DNA test kits.

            Nations Hearing has self screening for hearing losses. This could be good in construction fields because we are constantly working in environments with loud noises that can damage our hearing over time. The kiosks are small enough that I suspect placing them on jobsites with disposable ear plugs would help protect workers ears. When we realize the harm we are doing, we tend to adjust.

I tried the screening out and they had two different kinds of tests. The first made high pitched noises to see which you could hear and the second had white noise with numbers read that needed to be keyed in afterwards. I scored in the 20% range for my age and requested a hearing doctor contact me. I’ll let you know how that goes too.

Wave Italy had a racing simulation booth. It was a F1 body with the front two wheels simulated on three screens in front of it. I didn’t get a chance to play it, but it looked like it could be fun if you are a racing enthusiast who would prefer not to risk life and limb for entertainment purposes.

AIQ Synertial makes smart clothing. This is currently intended for sports, but with some adjustments, I could see this being good for training purposes. It lets one visualize the movement that is occurring so people can adjust their behavior to be more effective. While it I only tracking motion, I suggested it track heat too. This would have the added benefit of seeing where one is putting unnecessary pressure on their body because muscles heat up under heavy loads. Using this for training in the construction industry could help prevent back injuries when lifting heavy materials.

There were other companies that offered some cool tech. One company has a GPS tracker for your dog, which makes it where we don’t lose our loved one due to a careless mistake. There was an ear-to-ear translator, which could be used while travelling or working with foreign clients. Then there was an automatic clothing folder, but you could only load one at a time, so it doesn’t really save you time. I would only recommend it for retail stores or people who want perfectly folded clothes.

 I felt rushed on the final day because there were so many vendors and so much space to cover in a fairly short time. After about four hours of looking and talking to different vendors, people started packing up.  I felt like they packed a little prematurely, but that’s life.

There are some things I learned about this that I want to pass on to others though. Here is my list of recommendations:

1. Make sure to plan. With so many things to do and see, planning can take a little bit of time.
2. Go to the smallest booths first as they are less spectacular.
3. Attend at least one presentation a day to learn about where the industry is going.
4. Visit the big booths on the middle days.
5. Use the final day for going back to vendors who you are specifically interested in developing a stronger relationship with.
6.  Complete the final day in the morning. Once 2-3 pm comes, vendors start tearing down because they are eager to get home to their families which they’ve been missing.
7. Make sure to have some fun in between the convention hours when you are visiting a new city. New experiences are the spice of life. Ask the employees in the hotel for some recommendations of unique places in their city. I’ve had wonderful experiences taking this approach.

I hope you have enjoyed learning about some of the new tech as much as I enjoyed telling you about it. The next blogs will be going back to covering the normal everyday challenges small businesses, such as HVAC contractors, experience while dealing with technology and what Maryland Computer Service can do to help them. The next blog will focus on the different cybersecurity risks that small businesses face.