This year's Consumer Electronics show has seen the emergence of the first products from some of the UK's longest running startups. Plastic Logic and Light Blue Optics (LBO), both in Cambridge, have raised substantial sums of money to get to this point of launching, if not shipping, products. Plastic Logic was founded in 2000 out of the Cavendish labs at Cambridge, and has raised over $200m over the last decade to develop plastic screen technology and build the factory for it in Dresden. The QUE proReader, one of the many e-readers launched at CES this year will ship in April, at a relatively high cost of $649 to $799, but should be lighter and more robust than other readers.
This is one of the biggest investments in a UK startup in recent years (slightly behind the $213m of fabless chip maker Icera) with ambitious plans to create a UK-based global consumer equipment manufacturing company.
At the same time LBO has launched its first product, the Light Touch interactive projector (see Light Touch projector turns flat surface into touch screen - CES).
This holographic laser projection (HLP) technology turns any flat surface into a 10" touch screen and is the result of six years development and $43m investment, including an extended $15m Series A round last year.
The company aims to license the technology to other equipment makers to include in their products, so it wil be another year or so before HLP products emerge on the market.
Another long term startup is ProVision Communications, launched by two professors from the University of Bristol. It is demonstrating its high definition TV wireless technology at the show this year.
The AXAR1500 streams HD video content from a Blu-ray player, PVR or HD set top box to AXAR enabled TVs or Wi-Fi connected PCs and mobile phones throughout the home. The key is that the real time protocols support fast channel hopping and interactive TV guide operation.
Another startups at the show include OrbitSound from Torquay. Set up in 2007 by British sound engineer, Ted Fletcher, it saw record sales before Christmas and sold out of its soundbar and iPod/iPhone docks. These are based on Ted's patented airSound technology which in 2008 won the Best of CES award.
Nick Flaherty has been covering technology and startups since 1990 and is based in Bristol, where he co-founded the SiliconSouthWest network. During that time he has worked for most of the electronics magazines and newspapers in the UK and several in Europe and the US, covering all areas of the industry. He blogs at The Embedded blog www.embeddedblog.blogspot.com and Portable Multimedia www.portablemultimedia.blogspot.com and at www.flaherty.co.uk.
At the same time LBO has launched its first product, the Light Touch interactive projector (see Light Touch projector turns flat surface into touch screen - CES).
This holographic laser projection (HLP) technology turns any flat surface into a 10" touch screen and is the result of six years development and $43m investment, including an extended $15m Series A round last year.
The company aims to license the technology to other equipment makers to include in their products, so it wil be another year or so before HLP products emerge on the market.
Another long term startup is ProVision Communications, launched by two professors from the University of Bristol. It is demonstrating its high definition TV wireless technology at the show this year.
The AXAR1500 streams HD video content from a Blu-ray player, PVR or HD set top box to AXAR enabled TVs or Wi-Fi connected PCs and mobile phones throughout the home. The key is that the real time protocols support fast channel hopping and interactive TV guide operation.
Another startups at the show include OrbitSound from Torquay. Set up in 2007 by British sound engineer, Ted Fletcher, it saw record sales before Christmas and sold out of its soundbar and iPod/iPhone docks. These are based on Ted's patented airSound technology which in 2008 won the Best of CES award.
Nick Flaherty has been covering technology and startups since 1990 and is based in Bristol, where he co-founded the SiliconSouthWest network. During that time he has worked for most of the electronics magazines and newspapers in the UK and several in Europe and the US, covering all areas of the industry. He blogs at The Embedded blog www.embeddedblog.blogspot.com and Portable Multimedia www.portablemultimedia.blogspot.com and at www.flaherty.co.uk.