CES 2011: Cool and Useful Stuff

Adam Goodman — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 20:58:22 +0000

The Consumer Electronics Show is one large convention. Preliminary numbers after the first two days of the conference had 132,000 people in attendance. Attendees can be found at hotels up and down the strip (hotel prices skyrocket during the convention period). The convention centre itself showcases thousands upon thousands of square feet of exhibit space, not to mention the space used for keynotes, sessions, and other events.

One of my goals was to spend time wandering the exhibits looking for products that are both cool and useful for legal practice. I only spent a few minutes looking at the items, and are not necessarily endorsing any of them. My only criteria was cool and useful.

Here are the items, in no particular order:

Skype Group Video Conferencing

Back in high school, my grade 11 management studies class took a field trip to discuss a business venture with another class abroad (I think they were in the UK). We had this meeting by video. Times have changed – video conferencing can be done from the office using a computer and webcam; there's no longer a need to go to specialized facilities. Skype announced a new program for group video chatting. The price was reasonable (under $10 USD per month, and only one user had to have an account).

Video conferencing may very well change the way we meet clients. Instead of meeting face-to-face, it may soon become the norm for lawyers (no matter if they are solo or practice in small, medium, or large-size firms) to meet clients by way of video conferencing. As can be seen by the photo, televisions can also be used to participate in such conferences.

One thing I wonder is if such technology will be further utilized in courtrooms. Right now criminal courts in Ontario conduct video appearances for persons in custody. The technology utilized, however, is far from perfect, but it's clear it can be upgraded. What about lawyers appearing by video? No doubt an in-person appearance is best for trials, but for things like criminal set-dates, and maybe even submissions, video may be a perfectly plausible option. It may even make the system more efficient.

The iRobot Scooba

iRobot is known for making robots. Their most famous product is likely the vacuuming Roomba, which will wonder around your carpet while vacuuming. The one pictured above is the iRobot Scooba, which cleans floors. While lawyers working in firms or renting space in large buildings have the benefit of a cleaning service, many solo and small firm lawyers don't have that benefit. There's no doubt, though, that clients appreciate cleanliness. A dirty office will definitely leave a bad impression. Products such as those made by iRobot will help get the cleaning done while lawyers can focus on other tasks.

Penpower Scanners

Penpower Inc. makes a number of different scanner products that could be quite useful for lawyers, both in the office and in the courtroom

WorldCard is a mobile business card scanner. What's cool about this device is, once scanned, the contents of the business card will automatically populate into a software program for easy export into your contacts. Somehow the program will know what contact information (phone, fax, email, etc.) belongs in which field.

Below is a video of my business card being scanned by the WorldCard scanner.

WorldCard Scanner video

The company also makes a cool little scanner called WorldPenScan. This looks like a highlighter except instead of highlighting it is scanning the words you go over with the device. According to their web site, there is also the ability to do translation of the scanned words.

Perhaps most useful for the trial lawyer is the WorldocScan. What makes it useful is its portability. The scanner can be taken into court, connected to a computer, and be used to immediately scan documents. This would be great for efficiently storing documents provided while in court or on the go (such as diagrams drawn by witnesses), but also for scanning documents for use in courtroom presentations.

The Fujitsu Scansnap S1100

Speaking of mobile scanners, Fujitsu, a well-known maker of scanners (such as the very popular Fujitsu Scanscap S1500 which is used by lawyers to quickly scan large documents such as Crown disclosure), demonstrated a new portable scanner. Weighing in at 12.3 oz., the Fujitsu Scansnap S1100, which is also capable of reading business cards, may be the perfect courtroom companion.

FocusPay

Adding a credit card machine to my desk was a fantastic business decision. As a solo-practitioner who deals with individuals as clients I would much rather pay a small percentage fee to get money in trust than have to chase after clients in the latter stages of their matter (or when the matter has concluded). The company I use (Helcim) provided me with both a terminal and access to their online virtual terminal so I can process credit cards from any computer with web access. I've yet to try it from a Smart Phone.

FocusPay has developed a device, called a dondle, that connects to your SmartPhone (they support Blackberry, iphone, and Android), that allows customers to make swiped credit card transactions (which means lower fees) on the run. There is also a small printer that can be added so customers can receive invoices. For those not wishing to use the dondle, they also have an app that can be used to manually enter credit card information.

I could see this being especially useful for criminal lawyers who are often in court and on the run and could find themselves picking up an unexpected bail hearing. The ability to just take a credit card is a great alternative to having a potential client run out to find cash.

This device will still require a credit card processing company. The dondle itself retails for $149.95 USD and is supposedly available in Canada.

Powerpak & Battery Boost

No matter how much we try and pre-plan, we've all been in situations where we run out of battery for our Smartphones. This gadget, which can be added to a keychain, provides a one-hour charge for your Smartphone. For it to work, it must stay connected to your Smartphone. It charges through a USB port. Retail price is $30 USD.

The company also sells a full-day charge pack for $50 USD.

WOWee Speaker

The WOWee speaker is a compact speaker that can connect to any audio device using the port used to connect headphones. I know I've been in trials before where the need to play an audio file arises and there is no easy access to technology to play the file (I've even brought bulky computer speakers with me before and played the file off my laptop). The WOWee speaker may very well solve this problem.

I can't speak to how loud the speaker can get as things were noisy on the convention floor, but I was generally impressed with the product. The speaker retails for $80 or $90 for the slim version.

ReachCast

As I mentioned already, I had the opportunity to attend the Mashable Awards Gala at New York New York. Mashable is a media company (that has really impressed me thus far) that reports on technology and social media. One awards category was for "Best Social Media Service for Small Business". The winner was a service called ReachCast.

From perusing their web site, I've learned that ReachCast aims to assist with optimizing the web and social media presence of a business. The service will assist with setting-up social profiles, creating and publishing unique content about the business throughout the web, searching for mentions of the business, as well as tracking and analyzing the "online footprint" of the business.

The service itself looks quite interesting and may be a good way for solo-practitioners and law firms with little knowledge or experience in social media to get started. I may give it a try and come back with a review.

Tablet Stands

Although Apple was nowhere to be found at the show, there was a large-scale presence of products designed for use with Apple products. A whole section of the trade floor was designated the iLounge. Two tablet stands drew my attention.

Dubbed The Ultimate iPad Companion, I liked the Electrostand because of its slick look and feel. The product was just cool looking. It has a built-in lighting system, and the ability to rotate, tilt, and swivel.

Called simply 3 feet, this stand is useful for its portability. It can easily be thrown into a court bag or briefcase to prop up a tablet during court proceedings. The stand can be used with iPad, iPhone, iPod, Kindle, and Nook, and I would imagine will be compatible with other tablets once they are released. It comes in many different colours, and the price is right at only $14 USD. The stand can be purchased on Amazon.

Data Locker

Everyday we are dealing with confidential information. We also need to ensure we properly back-up our files. The Data Locker, dubbed as The Most Secure Portable Hard Drive, is an external hard drive that is password protected. It works with both PC and Mac, has a touch screen, and has a "self destruct" mode that will destroy all data if a non-authorized party attempts to access the device.

For those of us dealing with highly-sensitive information, this seems like an incredible product.

Monitors in Motion

Monitors in Motion, an Ontario company, made some ultra-slick monitor stands. Besides the fact that they look great, the stands actually put the monitors "in motion", meaning you can move them out of the way when you are not using them. Personally, my desk can get quite messy, and the ability to get a computer monitor out of the way would be welcome.

The model shown in the picture is called the BOA II and is designed for two monitors.

LG Thin Monitor

LG, unlike Apple, had a large presence at CES. They were showcasing products ranging from 3D televisions to washer and dryer sets. While I neglected to write-down the model name, I snapped a picture of this monitor because I felt it had a slick and professional look to it that would look great on a lawyer's desk. The monitor is also ultra-thin, so it won't take up too much space.

Wrap-up

Seeing how this was a trade-show, the opportunity to actually tesk out these products was minimal. My goal was just to walk around and find items that I could see as being useful, and were also cool. Some of these products may turn out to be of poor-quality and not very useful at all, while others may turn out to have incredible value.

Next week I will be posting my final CES article (complete with some great video content) where I will explore the various tablets that will be coming on the market in the coming months.

The Consumer Electronics Show: My Legal Business Trip

Adam Goodman — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 22:55:31 +0000

While becoming a lawyer was always my career goal, I always felt one downfall to the career path was the lack of the opportunity to travel. As law is very jurisdiction-specific, we rarely have the opportunity to go on "business trips". This is especially true for solo and small-firm lawyers, however I've heard the same is true for those who practice in larger firms. Some lawyers certainly get the chance to appear before international tribunals, however this is clearly unique and not something most lawyers will experience. While those in other professional fields like accounting and consulting will be quick to say that business trips become tiresome and not at all glamorous, the opportunity to "jet" off to places like London and New York is something I've always wanted to do – at least a few times until I get the point that it's not as much fun as it seems.

The past few years I've been attending the Public Defender's Retreat in Las Vegas. This is a great, inexpensive, CLE that provides relevant sessions and is attended by a number of interesting lawyers from across the United States (recently there has been a growing Ontario contingent as well). It's fascinating to network with those practicing criminal law in the United States. The challenges they face can be quite different in many ways and similar in many others. The Americans also find our Canadian system quite fascinating (our legal aid certificate system has come up a few times).

Right now, I'm in Las Vegas for another conference – the Consumer Electronics Show. This is a massive conference that brings together professionals from the consumer electronics industry. While this certainly isn't my industry, I had heard great things about the conference and felt I could attend to explore how new and emerging technologies could be used in law practice. I will be providing a couple articles for SLAW on what I find. I'd like to thank Professor Fodden and Connie Crosby for providing me this opportunity to contribute to SLAW.

I was wondering if other legal professionals have been able to incorporate business travel into their practice. My experiences have been more conference-based, but are there opportunities out there involving client meetings and professional networking? I'd say in litigation type area, probably not, but how about those practicing in areas like business, immigration, and real estate?

So I don't leave anyone hanging, here are a few observations and tidbits from the conference thus far (also check out my Twitter feed: @aglawoffice):

This was expected to be the "year of the tablet", and there are certainly a number of these devices on display (notably the Blackberry Playbook, tablets using Google's Android technology, as well as those using Windows 7 and Palm OS). I plan to prepare an article on the use of the tablet in legal practice with a particular focus on how it can be used in the courtroom. The industry leader, however, is absent from the conference. Apple is nowhere to be found, although there is certainly no shortage of products designed for the ipad, ranging from skins and stands to speaker systems. No doubt this is a deliberate marketing move on Apple's part. Very few, if any, other companies could get away with not being here.
Based on some discussions with employees from 3D TV makers, it may be best to steer clear of this first-generation technology for the time being (unless you're a gamer). There just isn't enough content, and the glasses are ugly.
Mashable is a great company that reports on social media news. Be warned, going to their web site could result in hours upon hours of reading. The content is just that good, and highly relevant to professionals. Last night I attended their awards gala at New York New York. Angry Birds, another time waster, won the award for best mobile game app. The popularity of this game is clear as Mattel was showing a board game version.
An interesting comment was made by an employee of Kodak who does social media for the company. He stated that, at first, their lawyers wanted to approve every tweet. For obvious reasons, the lawyers were overruled, but instead a social media policy was developed.

Slaw» Adam Goodman

CES 2011: Cool and Useful Stuff

The Consumer Electronics Show: My Legal Business Trip