Best gadgets announced at the Consumer Electronics Show

by Phil Hornshaw

This year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas drew to a close last week, and we saw some very cool gadgets during the last few days. Everything ranging from computer components to new tablets were offered during the show, and among all the spiffy new devices, there were clear favorites.

With so many interesting and useful devices, there are bound to be a few standouts from CES 2013 that are worth taking home. But while CES is a showcase for cutting edge gadgets, it’s still possible to snag some decent deals on cool stuff, if you’re willing to look around for the best prices.

The cutting edge in mobile gaming

Among the coolest items at CES this year were new tablets and mobile accessories. The most interesting device on offer was the Edge gaming tablet from Razer, a Windows tablet that can support mobile games and even play PC titles. Razer offers a number of cool accessories, like a keyboard and a controller dock, to augment the tablet’s gaming capabilities.

Also in mobile gaming comes NVIDIA’s Project Shield, a handheld rig that includes a screen, controller and should even be capable of playing streaming PC titles. The Shield won’t be available until the second quarter of 2013, but until then, you can nab Moga’s controller from retailers such as Best Buy, which offers 3 percent cash back, or from Target , where you can get 2 percent cash back.

TVs, accessories and more

Also making a big splash at CES were 4K TVs, or television sets with super-high resolutions that go beyond the current standard of 1080p. 4K TVs offer incredibly detailed picture quality on screens of 50 inches or larger. In fact, most are bigger than 80 inches because the 1080 resolution doesn’t work as well on super-huge TVs.

While there aren’t many 4K TVs available just yet (and they’re very expensive anyway), manufacturers like Sony and LG still have other, slightly older TVs on the market. As new high-def devices become available, 3-D and 1080p TVs will start to drop in price. The best thing you can do, then, is keep your eyes peeled for deals on older models. Walmart is a notoriously good place to grab deals on TVs and offers 3 percent cash back; Amazon also offers a number of good deals and provides free shipping. But the key will be to wait for the deals to avoid paying an arm and a leg.

CES is behind us, but the great gadgets it showed off are likely here to stay. While the devices are hot now, if you wait for them to cool off a bit, you’re likely to find a great price for something new and exciting.