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CES 2013: More Gadgets Mind-Meld With Smartphones

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Researchers at Accenture tracked consumers who were planning to buy multifunction devices in 2012, and found the rate rose to 41% form 27% for those buying smartphones, 23% from 16% for tablet computers, and similar jumps for those buying PCs and and HD televisions. Yet there was nominal interest in single-function gadgets like e-books (growth to 9% from 8%) and GPS devices (from 9% to 11%).

"The consumer electronics market is now predominantly a four-horse race among multi-function devices," said Accenture's Mattias Lewren.

Electronics manufacturers are under pressure to make their devices multi-functioning, whether it's web browsing or media consumption, or communication. "Consumers want 'do-it-all' capabilities in various sizes and user experiences," said Lewren.

But there's a saving grace for devices that don't fall into any of the four categories: integrate with smartphones.

CES 2013 has barely kicked off and smartphone integration is already a running theme, suggesting boundless potential for consumer electronics makers -- dozens of firms exhibiting at CES Unveiled on Sunday night relied on the smartphone as a controller or hub that worked with their product. Whether it was a new speaker system, smartphone-controlled drone or weather sensor, many of the products on show were being controlled by a mobile app.

Sphero was one example - the robotic ball acts as a gaming system that works with smartphones and tablets. Around 20 apps are available on the iOS and Android platforms that let owners of the $120 colorful ball move it around augmented reality figures or yank it up when it displays a certain colour.

"It's about leveraging the power of a smartphone and its operating system," said one of the Sphero reps as a traced his finger across an iPad mini and a glowing, blue ball moved around the carpet in front of him. The key is to capitalize on a tablet or smartphone's processing power, he added, "otherwise it's just a cheap remote control."

For full Forbes CES coverage throughout this week, see the special section of our Web site at forbes.com/CES.

See also:

CES 2013: State Of The CE Industry And Trends To Watch

CES 2013 Preview: The Most Innovative Products To Watch