There is a wave of announcements about high definition television and video hardware and software components at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES), emphasising Bill Gates's forecast that the segment will expand even further.

Microsoft's co-founder was looking beyond the consumer gadgets now on the market to the 3D high definition displays he says are coming to the web, and to portable devices. According to the show's organisers, technology sales are forecast to jump 6.1 percent to $171 billion this year. And TV displays continue to be the largest contributor to the CE industry bottom line, representing 16 percent of overall US consumer electronics shipments.

Shipments of displays are expected to grow 13 percent to $29 billion this year, according to the CES. About 50 percent of US households already own a digital television. Meanwhile the association predicts sales of next generation DVD players will grow by 173 per cent, as prices decline and consumers continue to seek out high quality home display products. Announcements at the CES certainly show that companies see no end to the current craze for high quality video and graphics.

Among the many is Mitsubishi's unveiling of its new category of large-format televisions that harness laser technology to gain a better colour. LaserTV delivers as much as twice the colour of current high-definition televisions, the company claims.

Today's HDTVs display less than 40 percent of the colour spectrum that the eye can see. LaserTV delivers twice that, Mitsubishi says. The company also says it will leverage the technology to deliver 'true' 3D viewing, which was demonstrated at CES. Read more about LaserTV at www.mitsubishi-tv.com.

Broadcom is another company forging ahead with high definition content. It has developed a HD AVC/MPEG encoder/transcoder that allows a desktop computer to function as a multimedia centre in a connected home. The system-on-a-chip (SoC) can be used to transfer audio and video content to several classes of devices, such as a video recorder and camcorder, and the desktop. SanDisk has also introduced a new line of video flash memory cards for the new HD camcorders on the market.

The company has an eight-gigabyte high-capacity card and a four-gigabyte one in the SanDisk and Memory Stick Pro Duo formats. Meanwhile Sony is claiming victory in the disc format market, crowing that Blu-ray disc movie titles outsold HD DVD in the US by a nearly two-to-one margin last year. Worldwide, 85 percent of all hardware sold that is capable of playing high-definition discs, can also play in the Blu-ray format.

Another trend that's certainly not going to go away, and in fact ties in neatly with the move to better video display, is the jump toward portability.

Downsizing and packing more features into existing devices is the big trend here. Certainly cell phones are now coming loaded with all sorts of features. Mine comes with a Walkman and a radio! Polaroid has cottoned on to the obvious trend, releasing a portable digital instant printer about the size of a pack of cards. The printer is designed to be carried in a pocket, man bag or purse so you can instantly print out a photo from a cell phone or digital camera whenever needed.

I've never felt the urge. The portable uses a zero-ink, heat-activated printing process to create full-colour pictures. You connect through Bluetooth or a USB cable.

As part of that architecture to make our portable devices even more powerful and useful, a new system-on-a-chip to be introduced by Intel later this year is designed to allow the migration of internet applications and services to TVs.

Intel also plans to ship its first low power processor and chipset for mobile internet devices in the first half of this year, so expect to see the gadgets start appearing sometime after the release.

Intel CEO Paul Otellini said companies are in the midst of the largest opportunity to redefine consumer electronics and entertainment since the introduction of the television. Intel is working on microprocessors, wireless connectivity and other enabling technologies - such as visualization and gesture-based computing to make access to such devices more user friendly.

"Packaging several important functions - such as computing, graphics and audio-video processing - into a single chip will help devices do more while taking up less space and energy," Mr. Otellini said. G2 Microsystems has also developed a ultra low-power Wi-Fi chip. The chip provides "instant-on" Wi-Fi devices powered by regular alkaline batteries. The first device in this category is a Wi-Fi remote control developed jointly by Philips and G2 Microsystems. The low power consumption is meant to reduce the drain Wi-Fi puts on a battery, extending the time between recharges. But CES was not all about new devices and advances.

Companies also realise that consumers are getting more greener as they become more device hip. HP for one announced that by 2010 it would have reduced by 25 per cent the energy consumption of its volume desktops and notebooks.

I hope other computer makers follow through on this example. After all such reductions could also cut your energy bill, especially if your company is host to 100s of desktops. Much more useful is the move by the Wireless Source to introduce a recycling programme for mobile devices.

The service is aimed at wireless service providers, retailers and charitable and fundraising organisations. The service will recover and recycle mobile devices on-line, by mail-back, and through drop-off sites.

The company estimates about 500 million used phones are no longer being used and are stockpiled in a drawer somewhere in the US today. CES is taking place in Las Vegas and ends on 10 January.

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