Digital experience gets the electronics going before International CES

The night before the International CES opens, there's something like a mini consumer-electronics show held in a hotel on the Vegas strip. True, there are many, many CES-related events held in hotels on the Vegas strip. Even the 2 million square feet of floorspace in the Las Vegas Convention Center can't accommodate every widget- and gizmo-maker that wants to show off a product. This particular event is called Digital Experience and features somewhere around a hundred technology makers, most of whom have nothing to do with cars. But there's a small handful of automotive things on the Digital Experience show floor every year, so we always go.

Chrysler parked a Ram 1500 Laramie on the carpet to demonstrate its new UConnect Access Via Mobile that brings several suppliers of Internet radio into the Laramie and the SRT Viper. Availability on other models will follow. Available apps include Aha, iHeart Radio, Pandora Internet Radio and Slacker, but the system can be upgraded. More apps and more models are forthcoming.

Chrysler also showed how customers can now use UConnect to have their dealer retroactively install navigation in certain models that weren't sold with it. Should be a good feature for used vehicle sales and anyone who had buyer's remorse for not checking the NAV box at time of sale.

Across the room, Chevrolet parked a 2014 Impala and showed off the next-generation MyLink infotainment system that will be available on that fine automobile, the first GM product to get the new system. It has what Chevy calls Natural Language voice recognition, which Chevy says does not require key phrases to operate. To further reduce distractions, in addition to voice control the new MyLink can be adjusted via steering-wheel controls and big, fat touchscreen buttons on the console. It stores up to 60 radio stations, contacts, destinations, music and whatever else you want to store in it. You can even customize the background into one of four designs available.

On the gadget front, Cobra previewed two new takes on connected radar detectors with iRadar versions called ATOM, which is 35 percent smaller than a typical detector, and the Cobra AirWave device, which connects media devices to older-generation stereo systems via Bluetooth.

Radar-maker Escort, which introduced connected radar at last year's show, introduced a miniature digital TV receiver called MobileTV, which works with a free iDTV USA app available from the Apple App Store to allow consumers to watch digital TV on iPhones, iPads and iPods. Don't watch while driving, okay?

Garmin's Nuvi PNDs (personal navigation devices) now incorporate friendlier voice directions such as, “Turn left at that Starbucks.”

Magellan showed PNDs with its new SmartEcosystem capability that integrates social, local and mobile content.

GoPro showed its new line of next-gen HERO3 cameras, which it says are 30 percent smaller, 25 percent lighter and two times more powerful.

NVIDIA demoed the detailed graphics available on its new processor chip.

That was all the night before CES opens. There'll be more tomorrow.

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