Wow, 2010 was the year of portable electronics, 3D devices and just outright cool gadgets that made all of us go “wow I want that right now.” From the iPad to 3D camcorders to cool flying devices with augmented reality, here’s our Top 10 Tech Gadgets Of 2010.
10. Panasonic TX-P65VT20B 3D TV
10. Panasonic TX-P65VT20B 3D TV
There were a slew of 3D TV’s to hit the market in 2010 and while some were better than others we found the best to be the Panasonic TX-P65VT20B. At 65-inches the TV gives the full effect of 3D without feeling limited by at-home use. Panasonic even throws in two pairs of 3D glasses. While the glasses do let considerable light in, the huge black level response cuts way down on crosstalk issues compared to other less friendly 3D LCD 3D TVs. Users may not appreciated the lack of 2D-to-3D conversion circuitry, but with such an immense display this TV offers the best 3D TV pictures in 2010.
9. Panasonic 3D Camcorder
With full 3D filming capabilities the first ever Panasonic 3D Camcorder for mass production is a very cool looking binocular based design that will definitely have you standing out in the crowd, there’s just one problem, the list price of $21,000 is less than consumer friendly. Having played with this camcorder, I have to admit, the outcome is very nice when held steady or with smooth transitions, but it still leaves something to be desired with fast motion movement. Either way, consumer 3D video footage is still uber-cool.
8. Nook Color
When Barnes & Noble announced they were releasing an eReader with Google Android capabilities and a secondary color display, I was immediately sold. When they announced discounts on books published by B&N I was in and when I actually held the lightweight B&N Nook unit in my hands with it’s six-inch E Ink display and WiFi + 3G capabilities I was hooked. I’m still a fan of Amazon Kindle devices for what they did to the market, but the extra Android based features and cool design of the Nook showed that even the late comer to the market could bring a new sense of cool to a rather boring gadget.
7. 11″ MacBook Air
Just when it looked like netbook sized devices were about to be devoured by the Apple iPad, Apple themselves released a tiny version of their popular Macbook Air series. With it’s 11.6 inch high-resolution LED display with widescreen capabilities, NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM, up to 30 hours of standby time, multi-touch trackpad and plenty of other tricks up it’s sleeve, the MacBook Air revitalized the series and gave Apple’s own iPad a run for their money.
6. Microsoft Kinect For XBox 360
Motion gaming was laughed at by Microsoft, Sony and other gaming outfits when the Nintendo Wii was first announced, but in 2010 Microsoft took the concept one step further, completely eliminating the need for controllers. While the Kinect is a fun addition to the Xbox 360, it does require plenty of room and a quite atmosphere to work as advertised, which pushed this top selling gaming peripheral down our list. With many more Kinect supported games due out in 2011, it should only become more popular with time and availability.
5. Samsung Galaxy S Series – Google Android Smartphones
Samsung managed to surprise everyone in 2010, releasing the most popular Google Android phone series to date. The Galaxy S Smartphone lineup features one of the best displays on the market, offers super fast processing speeds and comes equipped with a very manageable 5MP camera. Having used one of the devices in Vegas during BlogWorld I have to admit, it’s my personal favorite toy of 2010 and well worth a closer look if you’re jumping ship from the AT&T based iPhone series.
4. iPhone 4
I’m actually a bigger fan of Google Android than the Apple iOS, however the iPhone 4 has their amazing LCD based retina display with 960-by-640 pixels of resolution which boasts a pixel density of 326 pixels per inch and unlike the Galaxy S series, the battery on the iPhone 4 can last an entire day, even with constant data use and talk time. Throw in the Apple A4 processor, a 5MP camera and a cool design and it’s easy to see why the iPhone 4 is now the best selling in the company’s series.
3. Google TV via Logitech Revue
How could you not want Google TV? Using Google technology TV surfers can simultaneously search television stations, the web and apps to find the content they want. In a short one year period Google has transformed the TV into an extension of the web and the web into an extension of the TV. While some providers such as Hulu have had issues and banned Google TV, the technology is top notch. Heck you can even use your phone as a TV remote and use dual TV output to watch shows as you overlay show information, an option perfect for watching sporting events while tracking down scores from around the league. Whether your a sports enthusiast, web geek or avid TV watcher, Google TV offers something for everyone. What really makes Google TV worth the buy however is the Logitech Revue which provides a companion box with keyboard controller that allows users to connect any TV, cable box or satellite to the system via HDMI and high speed internet to receive Google TV capabilities. Google TV is one of the best tech inventions for 2010, but Logitech turns that software into a hardware package worth the buy.
2. Parrot A.R. Drone
Everyone loves an underdog, so when Parrot, a company mostly known for creating Bluetooth devices decided to show off a flying drone system that can connect and be controlled by an iPhone at CES 2010 it was a huge surprise and an immediate smash hit. Throw in augmented reality and new features being released on a regular basis and the A.R. Drone is one of the coolest things to be released for iPhone use since Apps.
1. Apple iPad
Starting with the tablets 9.7-inch (diagonal) multi-touch display it’s easy to see that the iPad is an oversized iPhone, it also features a 1GHz Apple A4 processor and support for Wi-Fi and 3G (select models). The ability to choose between 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB hard drives is also a nice touch, while the huge (and growing) iPad App store makes finding the perfect apps and games easy and fun. I don’t think I have to say much about the Apple iPad, it’s been everywhere and over 11 million people own one. For it’s ability to disrupt the netbook industry and scare the crap out of computer manufacturers it takes our number one spot as the best tech gadget of 2010.
So there you have it, from Mobility to 3D Products, 2010 will be remembered as the year when electronics manufacturers watched their industries take on entirely new directions as they attempted to grab new consumers with new innovations that had never been released for mass consumption.
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