Back in the home office of LAPTOP magazine, a lot of us are jealous of Jeffrey and Joanna, because they get to attend CES while we stay here in New York. I know while I’m sitting here in front of the same old computer screen on January 7 - 10, I’ll be cursing our two CES virgins for having the opportunity to listen to keynotes from leaders like Bill Gates, view new gadgets before anyone else does, and oggle celebrities like Jerry Seinfeld and Vanna White.

On the other hand, I’m a little less envious of our CES virgins after reading about the size of the convention and the sheer number of vendors.

According to the official CES site:

• • Exhibit space for CES covers 1.7 million square feet (35 football fields) of show floor. Imagine Jeffrey and Joanna trying to race from one end to the other, just to make an appointment with a vendor. Paging Dr. Scholl!
• • CEA expects 140,000 attendees. And we New Yorkers think that Times Square is crowded. Our CES virgins will no-doubt be stepped on, bumped, blocked, and otherwise trampled as they weve their way through walls of people. Just thinking about 140,000 people in one place makes me start feeling agoraphobic!
• • CES has 2,700 vendors. That means there are probably around 2,700 booths. How will Jeffrey and Joanna know which ones are worth visiting? They have lots of appointments, but they’re also going to miss some really cool booths, because there’s no way they can see it all.