A huge thanks to everyone who came out to gdgt live in San Francisco this past Friday. Nearly 1,000 people came to the SFDC Galleria to check out goods from 49 different companies, making this our biggest and most successful gdgt live event yet! It was a fantastic and welcome homecoming.
So, if you went and got your hands on some cool gear, what did you think?
My impressions:
Windows Phone 7 absolutely blew me away. The interface looked really slick and it seems like it will be a dream to use. It's quite a welcome departure from the old Windows Mobile phones. They may lack some features at the moment, but the polish is there. Can't wait to see what developers and Microsoft do on this platform. The hardware was solid too -- HTC and Samsung were there, showing off some of the latest WP7 devices. They're gorgeous.
Samsung Galaxy Tab - This was my first time getting to play with one in person. I was insanely impressed with the size. It's basically the same size as the Amazon Kindle. I wasn't so hot on this device when I first heard about it, but I do like it's portability. The screen was gorgeous as well. Not so hot on Android and its performance on the device, but this could be a pretty interesting gadget to watch as future versions of Android are released. Sadly, the device ran out of power toward the end of the show.
Boxee was there, showing off the new interface on the Boxee Box. Along with Logitech, Western Digital, and Sony, we had a lot of great companies showing off what they believe to be the future of television. I think people had a blast being able to check out Boxee's hardware and walk across the room and directly compare it to the Google TV experience.
AT&T was there. Big props to them for willing to show up and talk to the public here in San Francisco, which is an especially hostile environment for them. Anyway, they were there to answer questions, talk to people, and show off a bunch of old and awesome vintage gear.
There are too many companies and people to thank, but to everyone who helped, came out, took photos, tweeted, chatted with us, and just had a blast, thanks a ton!
Lastly, if you missed gdgt live in San Francisco, Tom Merritt and Sarah Lane were there, broadcasting it live for TWiT. You can catch it via the TWiT archives!
twit.tv/specials47
Thanks everyone!
Discussion about
gdgt live in SF impressions: What were your favorite gadgets?
Yeah, I know where they were located. I just didn't get a chance to swing by and say "hi". I started on the 2nd floor to check in with the vendors and by the time I got to the 1st floor I had to go back to the front table and begin helping with tear down. *sniffles* At least I got to look around! At Seattle and Boston I didn't.
The big winner for me was the Dell Venue Pro. It's the only Windows Phone that didn't look like it was an Android phone, and I really liked WP7 in my first chance using it.
I was thoroughly unimpressed with the Galaxy Tab as an iPad owner. Browser performance (esp scrolling) was poor. I tried searching the Android Market for tablet apps and got a lot of nonsense. It feels like a shanzai iPad, but it costs just as much as a genuine one.
I was thoroughly unimpressed with the Galaxy Tab as an iPad owner. Browser performance (esp scrolling) was poor. I tried searching the Android Market for tablet apps and got a lot of nonsense. It feels like a shanzai iPad, but it costs just as much as a genuine one.
Windows 7 was a real eye opener for me. I've seen pictures and saw a few clips, but it's really something to experience.
Dave is right, the polish is there. Sometimes I wonder if it really was as awesome as I remember. The OS is really refreshing, after seeing ipod/iphone/android/webos/treo icon grids. It blends the ease of use of layered menu's (that we all remember from dumbphones) with the eye candy and slickness of a modern smart phone. It remains to be seen if Microsoft is able to support this new operating system as well as apple/google, but I was very impressed with what I saw.
Too bad I didn't win one, but the T-shirt was accurate. "WANT"
Dave is right, the polish is there. Sometimes I wonder if it really was as awesome as I remember. The OS is really refreshing, after seeing ipod/iphone/android/webos/treo icon grids. It blends the ease of use of layered menu's (that we all remember from dumbphones) with the eye candy and slickness of a modern smart phone. It remains to be seen if Microsoft is able to support this new operating system as well as apple/google, but I was very impressed with what I saw.
Too bad I didn't win one, but the T-shirt was accurate. "WANT"
The coolest thing there was probably the gdgt Dave running iOS 5.
But in all seriousness, the Dell Venue Pro and other Windows Phone 7 devices were some of the coolest things I saw there. Using the Galaxy Tab in person didn't really change my mind about it. It still felt kinda cheap and plastic-y compared to the nice aluminum feel of the iPad. I still think that the Dell Streak is a better tablet size and overall device but I guess that's just me.
Talking to some of the people at the booths was definitely rewarding, especially the guy at the Windows Phone booth who answered a lot of my questions about the Venue Pro and the whole microSD debacle. The guy at Seagate had some cool stuff to say about SSD's and their new hybrid drive while the Kodak guy reminded me of Billy Mays and Oxyclean but I guess that was his job. And last but not least, the HTC guy let me use his personal Desire HD, which is only available in the UK as most of you guys know.
The giveaways were definitely super cool and I enjoyed playing SCVNGR to earn prizes. Peter is definitely a cool guy in person and he told my friends and I a bit about the event itself. I'm definitely already looking forward to the next gdgt live in SF event.
Oh yeah, and there were free tacos there. :)
But in all seriousness, the Dell Venue Pro and other Windows Phone 7 devices were some of the coolest things I saw there. Using the Galaxy Tab in person didn't really change my mind about it. It still felt kinda cheap and plastic-y compared to the nice aluminum feel of the iPad. I still think that the Dell Streak is a better tablet size and overall device but I guess that's just me.
Talking to some of the people at the booths was definitely rewarding, especially the guy at the Windows Phone booth who answered a lot of my questions about the Venue Pro and the whole microSD debacle. The guy at Seagate had some cool stuff to say about SSD's and their new hybrid drive while the Kodak guy reminded me of Billy Mays and Oxyclean but I guess that was his job. And last but not least, the HTC guy let me use his personal Desire HD, which is only available in the UK as most of you guys know.
The giveaways were definitely super cool and I enjoyed playing SCVNGR to earn prizes. Peter is definitely a cool guy in person and he told my friends and I a bit about the event itself. I'm definitely already looking forward to the next gdgt live in SF event.
Oh yeah, and there were free tacos there. :)
