The reason this is even a subject again is because of an oddly (and perhaps tellingly) vague piece posted on the the WSJ’s Digits blog by Ben Charny, who flat out claims that that Apple plans to use CES to replace Macworld, which it walked away from some time ago:

Apple plans to attend the show’s 2010 version, marking the first time in memory the Cupertino, Calif., consumer-electronics giant will be there.

That sounds clear enough, but it’s buried in a piece that seems to be about how the chief executive of the CEA, Gary Shapiro, can’t get in touch with Steve Jobs. But hey, he’s probably just being vague, and drew his conclusion from quotes that he didn’t include! That’s what journalist do, sometimes! Except the meeting from which Charny drew his conclusion was a dinner with multiple attendees, one of whom happens to be ex Engadget editor and current CEA advisor Ryan Block, who took issue with his reading of events:

[I]t’s also specious and flatly wrong. I was seated directly across from Gary, and present for the entire conversation, wherein a dozen or so other journos chatted with him and one another. When asked about the CEA’s ongoing contact with Jobs, Gary joked that every once in a while Steve might even return his email — to which we all laughed knowingly. Yep, that’s our Steve. Shapiro went on to mention that Apple was a great and long-standing supporter of the efforts of the CEA, but that their only direct involvement was sending a check each year to pay their membership dues.

As far as the WSJ post goes, this is pretty damning. But it really just rules out Charny’s version of this dinner, not the possibility that Apple will actually go to CES. As far as that question goes, we’re left with the same evidence we had last time rumours like this went around, in January. The verdict, then and still, is that they probably won’t: January’s a pretty terrible time to launch new products, but more to the point, Apple doesn’t even care about industry trade shows—which CES epitomises in all the worst ways—anymore. Their statement from all those months ago hasn’t been followed up:

Apple is reaching more people in more ways than ever before, so like many companies, trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple’s Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways.

Apple would gain nothing from going large at CES, so until a credible story comes along that says otherwise, that’s the word. [WSJ via Engadget]

Apple announced this year that they would no longer attend the decade-old Macworld conference, leading some to speculate that the company would shift their focus to CES. Well, the CEA is now shifting their focus to Apple, but why?

The floorplan for CES 2010 sees the iLounge—the section for Mac accessory retailers—expanded to six times its previous size. Why would they do this? Macworld, despite Apple’s absence, is still happening, albeit one month later, so it’s not like CES is addressing a trade show void. On the surface, it looks like the CEA might actually be trying to seduce Apple into attending their conference.

But just as before, something about such rumours is odd: Apple left Macworld because it didn’t need Macworld, so a move to CES, which they need even less, would be hard to understand. A more likely explanation is that CES is just trying to kill what remains of Macworld. There may not be a void in the Apple tradeshow world right now, but that doesn’t mean the CEA wouldn’t like to create one, which they would gladly fill in 2011. [CNET]

Yep, right before Chevy Chase (sorry, “Ted Roark,” which we’re really, really hoping isn’t an obtuse Ayn Rand reference) walks out on stage, you can hear the strains of “Around the Bend” by The Asteroids Galaxy Tour, otherwise known as “that song from the iPod touch commercial.” Chuck has made their version of Apple, Roark Instruments, a software-only company sort of reminiscent of Google, at least in their casual but high-tech office building, but this announcement is pure Apple. The nerds’ rapt attention is great, but the best line is “Must be my rock star magnetism.” Oh, Chevy Chase, even in your ornery old age you don’t fail to charm. [Official Site, thanks Isaac!]

While Cult of Mac’s–Wired’s Mac centric blog–source says “it’s a done deal” citing “friends who work at Apple”, this doesn’t match Apple’s previous statement regarding trade shows:

Apple is reaching more people in more ways than ever before, so like many companies, trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple’s Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways.

Apple has been steadily scaling back on trade shows in recent years, including NAB, Macworld New York, Macworld Tokyo and Apple Expo in Paris.

If Apple is shifting from Macworld and tradeshows to do their own low cost show-n-tells whenever they want, it doesn’t make much sense to believe they are “going large” at that big mammoth-graveyardish wasteland of electronics and press releases that some people like to call CES. Or does it? Whatever it is, something smells here, and it’s not all that bacon. [Cult of Mac]

With all functionality now integrated into the ball, users can control all the many interface functions that support navigation, media control adjustments, document and photo browsing with the rotation of the ball. And the low profile stationary design with its ruby red ball sitting atop a sleek gunmetal grey base is visually striking, takes up minimal desk space, and enables a relaxed and comfortable user experience, without the need of a wrist pad.

Is the trackball poised for a comeback in an era of touchscreens? I can see how a trackball could make handling digital content easier than a standard mouse, but there is a $US130 barrier to entry when the device is released at the end of January.

Kensington Announces New SlimBlade(TM) TrackBall – Now “The Ball Does It All”
To Turn Savvy Digital Lifestyle Users Into “Smooth Operators”
smart made simple(TM) Breakthrough Design Provides One-Touch User Interface for Navigation, Media Controls and Document, Photos Browsing

Redwood Shores, Calif. – January 6, 2009 – Kensington Computer Products Group, a worldwide leader in delivering smart made simple computing accessories for the mobile consumer, today announced its SlimBlade Trackball for the Mac and PC that brings a whole new level of control, comfort and ease to today’s digital savvy users. Kensington’s breakthrough design combines hardware and software into one integrated interface for smooth operation allowing users, for the first time ever, to navigate and manipulate digital content through the ball itself. With all functionality now integrated into the ball, users can control all the many interface functions that support navigation, media control adjustments, document and photo browsing with the rotation of the ball. And the low profile stationary design with its ruby red ball sitting atop a sleek gunmetal grey base is visually striking, takes up minimal desk space, and enables a relaxed and comfortable user experience, without the need of a wrist pad.

The SlimBlade Trackball is the latest offering in Kensington’s award-winning SlimBlade collection of smart and sleek computer accessories. The unique heads up display user interface shows users – right on the computer screen itself – which mode or function is enabled. This first-ever melding of hardware and software means that a user’s hand never needs to leave the ball and their eyes never need to leave the computer screen. This revolutionary design allows users to focus on enjoying their digital content – not on the interface – and is especially valuable for providing instant feedback for immersive experiences. Navigation mode controls the cursor and scrolling; Media mode controls volume, play/pause, stop and next, while View mode zooms in/out and pans for accurate and efficient photo editing.

Recent CEA research shows that over 70% of the applications used in the home are centered on entertainment, music and media. Trackballs have long been used in the workplace, but as digitally-savvy families are taking advantage of the broad range of Internet-based sharing and entertainment capabilities and increasing the quantity of home computing activities, early Kensington research shows that the trackball is about to become the device of choice for personal use.

“Our Kensington SlimBlade Trackball is a true standout that should become a ‘must have’ for today’s digital lifestyle-savvy consumers,” said Juan Rodriguez, Senior Global Product Manager, Kensington. “We have been known for our trackball leadership for 25 years, so it is only natural that we would be the ones to accomplish this breakthrough user interface, where ‘now, the ball does it all’. And it fits perfectly into our award-winning smart made simple SlimBlade Collection. This product is going to set a new standard for the computer/user relationship from the moment it comes to market.”

The Kensington SlimBlade Trackball

SlimBlade Trackball (SKU K72327US) – Your computing experience just got smoother. With the Kensington SlimBlade Trackball, you’ll surf web pages faster, flow through your MP3 library more easily, and zoom in and out of your photographs efficiently with complete and seamless control at your fingertips. Suggested Retail Price: $129.99

Key Features Include:

• Expand your digital media experience – The multi-function ball lets you easily navigate through your music, pictures, and documents with Media or View mode while the heads-up display allows you to keep your eyes on the screen by showing which function is being performed
• Do it all without taking your hand off the ball- Gain fingertip access to image and media controls as well as control the cursor and scrolling; volume, play/pause, stop, and next; zoom in/out, and pan, all with the ball
• Comfortable for hours – The low-profile shape and sleek stationary design keeps users comfortable while eliminating the need for a wrist pad and saving desktop space
• Mac & PC compatible – Including Mac OS® 10.5X, Windows Vista® and Windows® XP

Designed for Use With:

• Web Browsers – Microsoft® Internet Explorer®, Mozilla® Firefox®, Apple® Safari®
• Graphics – Adobe® Photoshop®, Photoshop® Elements, Lightroom®, Apple® iPhoto®, Apple® Aperture(TM)
• Viewers – Adobe® Reader®, Apple® Preview
• Productivity – Microsoft® Excel®, Word®, Numbers, Pages

Product Availability
The Kensington SlimBlade Trackball is now available for pre-order at Amazon.com and Kensington.com and will be available at major retailers at the end of the month. For additional information on the new and existing line of Kensington products, please visit www.kensington.com.

The new version of the Modbook is made of machined aluminium, finished in black. While its design is clearly not Jon Ive’s, the 2.4cm Modbook Pro is thinner than the Macbook it is based on, and more elegant and straightforward than their previous model.

The new guts include a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and Nvidia GeForce® 9600M GT graphics, but the most important thing in a tablet computer is the surface itself. At 15.4-inch WXGA display, it is larger than the 12-inch Cintiq Wacom I reviewed and it has something that the Wacom or the original Modbook don’t have: Its touch sensing.

The Modbook Pro uses a technology called Synergy Touch, which combines the pressure-pen Wacom system with direct and simultaneous touch input. They don’t say if it supports multitouch gestures in Mac OS X or Windows, but the multiple input is great news.

The only bad thing is its price. At $US4,999 for the model based on the 2.4GHz MacBook Pro, this thing is prohibitively expensive as far as tablet PCs go. It’s not surprising, since they are done by hand–there’s a Modservice Pro that will reconvert your MacBook Pro into a Modbook Pro for $US3,049–but still hard to justify looking at the alternatives from other PC manufacturers.

Hopefully, Apple will eventually supersize the iPod touch. When they do, I hope they go the other way around and add pressure-sensitive pen input to it. [Axiotron]

Yes, now instead of a store in the mall to buy your stepdad a spatula mixed with a thermometer, The Sharper Image is going to be a line of iPod docks sold at places like department stores and Bed, Bath & Beyond.

What I saw were some decent-looking but uninspiring iPod docks. One model rotates your iPod touch automagically into landscape mode for watching movies. Another has a pair of detachable, wireless speakers.

The goal is to sell iPod docks that are cheaper than what’s out there, but with most of the prices hovering well over $US100, they really only seem like they’ll be cheap when compared to something like Bose. In any case, these things won’t be hitting stores your mum shops at until November of this year, so we have a good long while to get excited about piano-black iPod docks again.