Bob Zelin’s NAB Show 2017
By Jim Bask
Every year, I write about the new cool toys at the NAB Show in Las Vegas. Because my background is video engineering, I realized that the NAB show is no longer a video trade show, but a computer products show (at least in the lower South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center where I spent most of my time). I decided to try to observe general trends in what is happening in our business, rather than to focus on every little new product that comes out.
As an overview, it’s a bunch of generic computers, running different software applications, connected to a bunch of storage arrays. That’s modern post production – not routers, scopes, distribution amplifiers, converters, and all the “old stuff” that I had been brought up with.
This overview was most noticeable from looking at monitors being used for demonstrations. I think back on recent shows, where everyone was raving about OLED monitors, or how they really needed CRTs to really see an accurate image.
Well, those days are over. I was shocked to see that almost NO BOOTHS (other than the manufactures of broadcast monitors) had a broadcast monitor in their booth. There were overwhelming amounts of computer monitors with HDMI or Display port inputs being used at EVERY booth from companies like Dell, HP, or Eizo. And if a large 4K monitor was shown, it was a good quality consumer monitor from LG or Samsung. ..[continue reading]