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North Jersey companies on stage at international electronics trade show in Vegas [The Record (Hackensack, N.J.)](Record (Hackensack, NJ) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jan. 08--From "smarter," thinner plasma TVs to futuristic devices that let you use your finger as your wallet, North Jersey electronics companies are debuting their latest innovations for the new year at the annual International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Almost two dozen North Jersey companies are exhibiting in Sin City from Tuesday to Friday at the world-famous show, which expects more than 3,260 exhibitors -- up from 3,230 last year -- and around 156,000 attendees. Panasonic, whose North American headquarters is in Secaucus, announced on Monday a range of new tech products for 2013, including a way for YouTube to connect from your smartphone directly to your TV, and wireless bone conduction headphones that sit on top of the head -- rather than over or inside the ear canal -- to transmit sound vibrations through your skull, freeing up ear drums for other sounds, like the voices of colleagues. Panasonic also unveiled 32 high-definition TVs -- 16 plasma and 16 LEDs -- including the new Smart Viera flatscreen, which comes with customizable content settings for each viewer and voice interaction. Samsung Electronics, whose America division is based in Ridgefield Park, also unveiled its 2013 flagship TV, the Samsung LED F8000, which has extra processing power to make it faster and smoother for viewers to switch from watching content on the TVs to their tablets or to stream content from the Internet. It also has "S-Recommendation," which understands voice commands and can recommend content. "Your TV is almost human," said Tim Baxter, president of Samsung Electronics America. But big-name consumer electronics companies aren't the only ones showing off their gadgets. Aimann Rasheed, co-founder and chief executive officer of PulseWallet, a Clifton-based startup, will be debuting his company's point-of-sale device at the trade show. PulseWallet is a payment platform that uses a customer's finger to make a transaction. Instead of using fingerprints, which can be lifted, PulseWallet reads the unique vein patterns beneath the skin to make a transaction, once an account is activated. "We want to network with angel investor and capitalists, and just to get overall feedback to see if people like the prototype and how it works," Rasheed said. Ramsey-based iBattz, which makes iPhone 4 and 5 cases with back-up batteries that users can remove when they can't be charged anymore, also will debut technology that allows for "wireless charging," and their Aqua Seal technology that protects phones when dropped in liquid, said Richard Martin, president of iBattz USA. Martin said technologies like this are growing in importance as smartphones become ubiquitous. "Most people get a case for protection," he said. "You not only need protection, but you need extra power." Email: [email protected] ___ (c)2013 The Record (Hackensack, N.J.) Visit The Record (Hackensack, N.J.) at www.NorthJersey.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |