CES 2012: TVs, tablets, ultrabooks and phones set to be unveiled

Matt Warman previews what’s set to be unveiled at the world’s largest technology show, CES, next week from major brands including Sony, Microsoft, LG and Nokia.This week the world’s largest technology firms – with the notable exception of Apple – will gather in Las Vegas. The annual Consumer Electronics Show hosts the announcements which shape the gadgets that are an increasing part of all our lives and has previously fostered the rise of 3D and internet connected TV, as well as the latest laptops and new tablets that aim to rival the iPad.

This year, alongside major new products from Sony and Samsung, there’ll be a focus on voice recognition – which is finally threatening to take off thanks to Apple’s 'personal assistant’ service Siri – and a chance to look at Microsoft’s forthcoming Windows 8 software. That, manufacturers are hoping, means that this CES will mark a departure from last year’s, which was dominated by iterative improvements to existing technologies.

2011 also, however, saw the launch of the first Google Android tablet – the Motorola Xoom. Already succeeded by the Xoom 2, new tablets will again be a major focus for CES in 2012. Tech blogger MG Siegler, who covers Apple for website TechCrunch, has already written that the iPad-maker has stolen the show because all 2012’s products will be compared to either those that Apple makes, or the TV that it is rumoured to be designing. Although he’s right in terms of much of the coverage, Apple products do not account for the entire market: expect to see the coming week’s announcements reverberate throughout 2012.