IFA 2012: What to expect?

IFA 2012: What to expect?

In just a few days, one of the biggest European-based technology exhibitions will commence and this once again marks the stage for companies to showcase their latest and greatest offerings. The event kicks off on August 31 and will last till September 5, which would attract all the big names in the consumer technology space. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the exciting gadgets we can expect to be unveiled at IFA 2012.

More powerful smartphones While MWC is usually the place where all the big mobile announcements happen, top players like Sony and Samsung are all set to unveil their next-gen smartphones at the event. Sony should pull the wraps off the Xperia T, the successor to the Xperia S that has been floating around on the Internet as the Xperia Mint. It should have the same 4.3-inch display, dual-core PCU, ICS and an upgraded 13MP camera. There are also rumours that it will announce a new tablet, which is said to be 40% thinner and lighter than before. Samsung will use this platform to launch the Galaxy Note 2, a larger phone/tablet hybrid with Wacom’s pen technology used in the Note 10.1 and a possible quad-core CPU. LG should also be ready to unveil the Optimus Vu2, a successor to the Vu and a rival to the Note 2. While HTC has been quiet about their tablets, it is rumoured that it will launch a 5-inch phone at the event. Windows 8 hybrid PCs Computex just gave us a brief glimpse of what’s coming in terms of Windows 8 tablets and hybrid PCs. The Microsoft Surface will make another appearance here, along with all the other hybrid PCs and tablets from OEMs like Asus, Dell, HP, etc. Acer has the Aspire S7 while Asus will be launching a fleet of its Transformer hybrids. Intel is also expected to show more than 60 Ultrabooks and around 20 Win 8-based tablet PCs, according to various sources. Next-gen LED TVs Televisions are one of the main attractions of IFA and this year, we expect to see some new arrivals. Sony should once again show off its Crystal LED technology-based TVs. With its recent acquisition of the online gaming service, Gaikai, we could expect to see some of its models with that embedded in it. Samsung should also unveil their next-gen ES9000 range of LED TVs with a 75-inch screen size. Toshiba will also show off its glasses-free TV, hoping that it picks up. Philips will be showing off its new range of TVs that’s co-built by TP Vision and it’s also rumoured that LG will showcase its new TV technology that will debut in their 2013 line of televisions. Also, expect more models of 3D televisions and Smart TVs to be showcased at the event.