High school student and DST correspondent Tony Brown made his first trip to the International Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas earlier this month and relayed the exciting sights in several DST posts. Here, in his concluding CES-related post, he highlights a few more hot CE devices and reveals what he sees as the secret for manufacturers and service providers racing to tap the lucrative 15-to-24 demographic: “If it doesn’t roam, it’s worthless.”

Imagine a world in which all of the electronics in your pocket are linked wirelessly in a grand share-all, play-all network. Better yet, imagine every gadget in your pocket integrated seamlessly into an intuitive and trendy yet sophisticated, powerful device. That future is upon us, on the verge of market integration.

Where the integration begins with consumer electronics is at the base: the 15-to-24-year-old demographic. Teens and young adults, who together control $485 billion of the consumer electronics market, are the obvious target for gadgets. Take, for example, the Apple iPod, the flagship of Apple Corp. and the model product in mobile electronics. The iPod’s stylish package, intuitive interface, universal connectivity and solid quality caught on first with high school and college students looking for a functional fashion statement.

The iPod’s success is no secret. With over 5 million units sold during the first three quarters of 2005, and 42 million sales overall since it was unveiled in 2001, the iPod controls more than 80% of the personal digital music player market. The underlying yet still apparent theme of the International Consumer Electronics Show was that to be successful in the mobile market, you have to beat Apple at its own game and ultimately make it into the pockets and wish lists of teens.

The key to the teen market is mobility. The teen creed is this: if it doesn’t roam, it’s worthless.

The Mobile Future

The CES is a testament to the wireless future, and Bluetooth is the Yellow Brick Road leading to the Emerald City of complete wireless integration, and it’s finding its way into the least expected facets of daily life.

Motorola and Oakley have joined forces to create the first Bluetooth-enabled sunglasses for the active outdoorsman looking to get away from civilization—but not too far away. Much like the Oakley Thump line of sunglasses, the RAZRWire integrates an adjustable ear bud into the sunglass frame and allows the wearer to answer cell phone calls hands-free. The FCC has approved the RAZRWire, and it is expected to hit the market over summer for around $300.

The hassle of answering a cell phone while driving has been resolved with hands-free Bluetooth headsets. Beyond driving, is there any time that answering your cell phone is more of a hassle than when you’re skiing and snowboarding? Bulky gloves, zippered pouches on jackets and freezing fingers are enough reason to grin and bear hearing the entire sequence of your ring tone. Fortunately, the makers of Burton snowboard jackets have a seamless integration of Bluetooth technology into a high-end line of winter parkas and headwear. It’s called the Audex Collection.

The Audex jacket features a built-in control pad on the forearm with controls for iPod playback, as well as controls for switching to incoming calls. Two speakers, integrated into the collar, throw an extreme stereo soundtrack into an already extreme sport. A small microphone is incorporated into the collar next to the zipper in front of the wearer’s face—you won’t be dropping any more conversations when you decide to throw your signature 270-backside lipslide. The jacket is available now for about $600 from Burton and Motorola.

In addition to the parka, Burton offers Motorola-outfitted beanies and ski helmets that have the same Bluetooth-enabled features. Neither is available yet, and prices aren’t settled, but expect a release sometime in the second half of this year between $150 and $200.

Bluetooth isn’t the only wireless technology receiving attention from companies looking to target the young adult crowd. LG Electronics introduced an innovative product that alerts a college student that his or her laundry has completed its cycle. The gadget works by plugging into the washing machine (exactly how it “plugs” into the washer is unclear to me at this point) and using the campus Wi-Fi network to alert the student via e-mail. Of course, actually getting a student to do their laundry seems to be a whole new problem.

Xbox 360 Finds a Home

Some of the biggest buzz at CES followed the opening keynote by Bill Gates. In his speech, Gates highlighted features in the new Windows OS, Vista, due to be released later this year. Vista embraces all things networked, especially Microsoft’s recently released Xbox 360 gaming console. Windows Vista is the first OS that truly has a potential to find itself as the centerpiece of the living room entertainment center. Networked in a two-way stream of music, movies, and photos stored on the PC, Windows Vista and the Xbox 360 together will become the powerhouse digital center of the home.

Along with serving as a powerful media server, the Xbox 360 remains the most powerful game console on the market currently, and will go head to head with Sony’s PS3 console when it is released sometime later this year. The PS3 was a disappointment at CES due to the lack of a fully-functioning game play demo, leaving attendees to marvel only at beautifully rendered videos of what the PS3 is supposedly capable of. Rumors on the show floor said a redesign of the poorly received “half-moon” design for the PS3 controller was the most likely reason for the lack of a playable demo.

PC gaming and audio received a boost from the Creative release of XFi audio cards. Shuffled into mock theaters with the promise of cheap prizes, I found myself surrounded by sounds so real I wanted to reach out and touch. Or, rather, crouch as I watched a sword come toward me—and heard it fly over my head.

Two days of CES, countless hours on the show floor, and a once in a lifetime experience tell me that the future is here: the technology is ready for the taking and the next generation is in its infancy. Adopt early, adopt often, and take new technology home today.

Tony Brown lives in Centennial, Colorado and attends Arapahoe High School. He is a senior and Editorial Editor of the Arapahoe Herald, the school newspaper. The National Scholastic Press Association has recognized his work nationally, and he recently won a 3rd place national award for News Photo of the Year (sponsored by the NPPA). The Arapahoe Herald was named a National Scholastic Press Association Pacemaker, which has been called “the high school equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize.” It is only the second high school newspaper in Colorado to win in the award’s 15-year history. Tony has been accepted into the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has received a scholarship for entrance in the fall of 2006.