CES 2012: Windows 8 Tablet, PlayBook 2.0, 3D Without Glasses and More

The Consumer Electronics Show 2012 kicks off in Las Vegas on January 10; manufacturers and journalists the world over will flock to the U.S. for the biggest tech show in the world.

Here at the International Business Times UK, we've got a sneak peak of what to expect from the four-day show.

3D Television - without the glasses

We've all been blown away with 3D television and cinema over the last two years, but wearing glasses in our front room causes the neighbours to give us funny looks; but not anymore. Stream TV Networks has developed a range of 3D televisions that work without the unsightly glasses.

Stream describes the new tech: "Ultra-D 3D without glasses technology, a completely proprietary and unique platform that surpasses any other 3D without glasses viewing experience to date."

Described as "the most advanced 3D without glasses technology," the tech has been in the works for years and Stream TV Networks believes that it is now ready for the consumer market.

Glasses-free 3D technology from Stream offers real-time, high definition 2D to 3D conversion of content from cable, fibre, optics, PC gaming, games consoles and the web.

A range of 3D televisions without glasses will be debuted at CES, then made available to the public "shortly after" in the first quarter of 2012.

Sony Ericsson - "Something big is coming!"

Smartphone manufacturer Sony Ericsson has told us to "stay tuned for some exciting news next week" - this of course means that they have a big product announcement to make at CES.

Using the same teasing line that Samsung did when building anticipation for its Galaxy Nexus, Sony Ericsson has said that "Something big is coming!"; and we believe that it'll be a flagship smartphone packing a pocket-stretching 4.55-inch high definition screen and 13 megapixel camera.

LTE (long term evolution) is also on the cards for the as-yet unnamed smartphone. LTE is another term for the super-fast 4G networking, set to roll out over the coming years to replace the current 3G mobile networks.

PlayBook OS 2.0

It's been an awful 12 months for BlackBerry and its manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM), so the company will be hoping that the launch of a significant software update to the struggling PlayBook tablet will restore some faith in the brand.

OS 2.0 for the PlayBook is likely to bring access to the Android app store, meaning users will have a much wider range of applications made available to them. Also, there's expected to be a native email client for the PlayBook and other UI changes.

Windows 8 tablets

Kupa LLC will be showing off a new tablet running a preview of the upcoming Windows 8 operating system. The Kupa X11 tablet will offer pen and touch inputs and an impressive 10-hour battery life.

Windows 8 Tablet is expected to unify the desktop, laptop and tablet experiences into one familiar user interface, paving the way for Microsoft's re-entry into the tablet market, after its previous attempts have been pushed aside by the iPad, Kindle Fire, Galaxy Tab and others over the last two years.

CES 2012 kicks off on January 10 and runs until January 13; the International Business Times UK will be keeping you to-to-date will all of the major announcements, keynotes and product launches throughout the week.