Engadget Show Prompts 'Wow' From Techies

Engadget’s inaugural 'Expand' show in San Francisco was held at Fort Mason’s century-old Festival Pavilion, March 16 and 17. It was the perfect setting for showing off 21st century drones, electric cars, and the latest in electronic gadgets that literally elicit ”wow!” out loud.

Some of the products are already on the market, while plenty of entrepreneurs wandered the show floor making new contacts and getting advice about crowd sourcing.

Los Altos

ZSpace, whose CEO Paul Kellenberger is a Los Altos resident, bowled over attendees with its revolutionary 3-D product that allows you to pick-up and manipulate objects, via a stylus, on a computer screen. Whether a patient’s own heart, a product design, a mutated gene or architectural plans, the uses for this product are astounding. To make it even cooler, it has a “camera” that you can fly through the objects, allowing you to see them from the inside.

Chief Technology Officer David Chavez delighted in watching the reactions of Expand attendees, who were often left speechless or reduced to the one-syllable “wow,” whispered reverently.

According to Chavez, the product is already being used by the government, oil & gas industry, by the auto industry for product design, by companies designing new drug therapies, and more. He says it’s important to attend shows such as this because simply reading about zSpace or seeing a video isn’t enough.

“It’s a dilemma—people have to see it, then once they do, they can’t believe it.”

Engadget Expand

Engadget is an online magazine focused on happenings in the world of technology, gadgets and consumer electronics. Engadget Expand featured speakers, cool tech stuff and a competition, Insert Coin, for $20,000 in startup funds for new ideas.

Several companies displaying their products were focused on reducing energy consumption—Nest of Palo Alto, and Insert Coin challengers Radiator Labs and Observos.

Another amazing product was Ziphius, an aquatic drone controlled by smartphone or tablet. It won the $20,000 grand prize in the Insert Coin competition, topped off by another $5,000 for being the fan favorite.  Ziphius’ inventors came all the way from Portugal to show their product. Other long-distance commuters included Scubo 3D from Spain and an entry from Manitoba.

Engadget Expand’s sponsors all had extensive displays of their latest products, including Lenovo , Outlook and Toyota .

Editor’s Note: Engadget and Patch are both owned by AOL.

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