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My mother likes to tell me that I went to my first tech trade show in a stroller, and that she and my father were inspired to get a VCR that day.

The VCR, for nearly two decades, was the prototypical gadget of tech trade shows. Not only did it make previously inaccessible tech accessible, but it justified the existence of such conventions. Do tech trade shows even matter anymore? attendees grouse now, since so many hardware makers hold their own launch events throughout the year. No, but also yes: every so often, that VCR-like product is there, the one that introduces a new, disruptive format that everybody makes a big deal about.

If the VCR was revealed last week at CES, it would have to be a much smarter VCR. It would have to be...

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via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2BaJ9RC"

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