Television screens are seen in the Panasonic booth at the Las Vegas Convention Center during the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show on January 10, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A back-to-basics version of the historically glitzy Consumer Electronics Show ends Sunday after four days of deal-making and gadget-hawking.

A back-to-basics version of the historically glitzy Consumer Electronics Show ends Sunday after four days of deal-making and gadget-hawking.

Lacking were lavish parties, frenetic crowds, and seductively clad "booth babes" common at the annual international event in previous years.

In their places were low-key networking soirees and hot product showcases with names such as Digital Experience, ShowStoppers, and Unveiled.

A circus-like tent city that traditionally handled overflows of exhibitors from packed Las Vegas Convention Center halls was mostly deserted this year.

Also gone was the frenzied crush of people on CES showroom floors.

Preliminary estimates place attendance at this year's CES at slightly above 130,000, which would be 10,000 fewer people than came last year.

The number of exhibitors in the cavernous 1.7-million-square-foot space dropped to 2,700 from 3,000 at last year's CES.

People walk near the Samsung booth at the Las Vegas Convention Center during the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show on January 10, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A back-to-basics version of the historically glitzy Consumer Electronics Show ends Sunday after four days of deal-making and gadget-hawking.

And those in attendance weren't in Las Vegas to play. They were under pressure to make deals and win fans for new products on which their companies' fortunes hinge.

"Our world, our nation and our industry face some really big challenges," Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said while addressing a packed audience at CES.

"All of us, we are all feeling it, and its impact will likely be with us for some time. At the end of the day, it is the power of ideas and innovation that drive us forward regardless of economic environment."

CES seemed part pep rally as Ballmer, Consumer Electronics Association president Gary Shapiro and others urged device makers to believe that technological innovation can heal the world's ailing economy.

"After a tough 2008, I'm ready for some optimism," Shapiro said.

CES was rich with new products, most of them improvements on previous models instead of revolutionary creations.

Ballmer used the CES stage to reveal details of a Windows 7 operating system being readied to replace Vista software.

Microsoft computers were overwhelmed on Friday by people rushing to download a test version of Windows 7 that will be available until the end of January.

CES was also a coming out party for Yahoo! software that makes televisions portals through which viewers can easily access Internet videos, movies, and other digital content.

Sony, LG Electronics, Toshiba, Samsung and Vizio showed off attention-grabbing new flat-panel television models embedded with the Yahoo! "TV Widget" software offering links to popular websites.

Yahoo! has built 20 widgets to link television viewers to Internet destinations including YouTube, Twitter, eBay, MySpace, Amazon, CBS, and The New York Times and expects that number to grow to 50 by June.

Flat-panel televisions were once again a major theme at CES, with designs incorporating wireless connectivity, 3D imagery, or Blu-ray high-definition DVD capabilities.

Blu-ray DVD hardware and disc sales have boomed despite the drubbing the tough economic times are giving the consumer electronics industry and Blu-ray technology was rife in new-generation televisions, computers and DVD players touted at CES.

CES also abounded with touch-screen mobile telephones aimed at competing with Apple's popular iPhone.

A Palm Pre smartphone was declared the best product in the show and received the most votes in a "people's choice" Internet poll.

"Palm is on the comeback trail, it would seem," said Brian Cooley, an editor-at-large at Internet news agency Cnet, which jointly handed out the awards with the Consumer Electronics Association, host of the CES.

Palm was once a pioneer in handheld devices but it has been suffering hard times lately.

A Computer and Hardware category award went to the Sony Vaio P Series Lifestyle PC as "netbooks" turned out to be CES darlings.

The small laptop computers designed primarily for accessing the Internet and tending to light tasks typically sell for only a few hundred dollars, making them attractive items in tough economic times.

A green theme that took root at the annual event last year continued to grow. Global makers of electronics touted recycling programs along with cuts to the amount of power used by devices and toxic materials in components.

LG Electronics had pyramid-shaped SkyCharger tents where sunshine and wind are converted into electricity to charge LG mobile devices carried by CES goers. Motorola touted a Renew mobile phone made of recycled material.

A Sustainable Planet zone on the show floor featured creations such as fuel cells and ELV electric bicycles.

© 2009 AFP