Oof. I think I know exactly how this guy feels after my first day at my first ever CES pretty much kicked my sorry rookie butt. My legs are sore, my brain is fried, and I'm kind of paranoid that at any moment, some guy with a microphone headset is going to pop out from behind the mini-bar and tell me about how room service is going to CHANGE EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT EVERYTHING I KNOW or something. If I'm going to make it to Sunday, I obviously need to be a little better prepared...
1. Bring better shoes.
You know that thing they say about CES being the world's largest consumer technology tradeshow? Believe that, son. It's friggin' huge, and your feet will hate you at the end of the day if you don't have some sturdy kicks. I tell you, I am watching my feet throb, literally pulsating, at this very moment and it is not a pleasant thing. So, yeah, next year? Next year I'm bringing some shoes with better arch support.
2. Free wifi is a scarce thing.
You would think that, at a convention that with this many gadgets, technological wonders, and WIFI ENABLED SMARTPHONES AND COMPUTERS, you'd be able to get wifi somewhere. You would be wrong. And the places that do offer some wifi service are just as packed as the halls are. Tomorrow, I expect to be bloging from a bathroom stall in the Starbucks to get a nice quiet connection.
3. Cash rules everything around me.
Yeah, debit and credit cards are nice and convenient, but at CES, they won't necessarily help you buy a soda when you get thirsty. I know it's a probably a classic rookie mistake, but I couldn't resist an opportunity to throw in a Wu-Tang reference.
4. There is no such thing as personal space at CES.
Seriously, I must have accidentally rubbed the bits of me normally reserved for my wife against over one hundred strangers over the past 24 hours. Well, okay, for at least three of those people, I kinda meant to do it. All I'm saying is I know all this sweat on my shirt isn't mine.
It wasn't all horror, pain, and inappropriate touching. In fact, there was plenty of awesome that happened today. Take my first piece of CES swag, for example.
No one has ever given me a small anti-bacterial gel spray before. It's like I'm living in a dream.
Or is it a nightmare? Read our 2010 CES coverage and decide for yourself.
