Oracle OpenWorld

We’re headed toward Fall, which means it’s time for Oracle OpenWorld, being held September 19-23 at San Francisco’s Moscone Center. As the most important meeting for Oracle users and experts, Oracle OpenWorld is the premier place to meet business leaders, researchers and innovators from all kinds of industries and scores of countries around the world. If you want to master the Oracle technology stack with which your run your business, then more than 1,800 sessions, a full Saturday of MySQL offerings, 400+ exhibits, scores of Oracle demos and keynotes from global tech leaders will make the event a surefire winner.

For years, CRE has been providing solutions for presentations, breakout sessions, networking and everything else you need to do at conferences. We have Oracle OpenWorld plasma rentals for dramatic displays and signage if you will be exhibiting, and tablet PC rentals to ensure your conference team captures all the information your firm needs. Our wireless gear will help you take control of session notes, manage downloadable conference materials, save prospects’ contact information – and get maps to find your way around The City by the Bay if you don’t know the lay of the land. Oracle promises “five days of education,” with insights and connections that will “transform your business.” Don’t miss it!

Interbike 2010

Interbike 2010, set for September 22-24 at The Venetian & The Sands Expo in Las Vegas, is North America’s largest bicycle trade show and a key event for the entire global cycling community. There will be over 1,000 top brands represented, showing wares and sharing insights with some 22,000 attendees from 60+ countries. Industry leaders, R&D innovators, parts suppliers and bike enthusiasts will mingle and converse at breakout sessions, following keynote speeches and around the hundreds of exhibits.

If you’re exhibiting at this year’s show, CRE has special Interbike plasma rentals to help you make your best impression to buyers, first-tier retailers and product experts from around the world. Get some laptop rentals and you will be equipped to fill an array of monitors with your PowerPoint presentations, Flash animations and digital signage to make booth your a surefire hit.

Make sure your team members have the tools they need to interact with the hundreds of journalists expected at the event, like digital recorder rentals for audio notes and office equipment rentals to print, fax or copy press and marketing materials. Whatever you need to succeed at this important venue, which is co-located for 2010 with the Health and Fitness Business Expo, CRE has it, ready to go.

Digital Video Expo 2010

Digital Video Expo 2010 will be “Delivering the Digital Video Industry” to some 6,500 attendees at the Pasadena Convention Center from September 28-30. Digital video professionals from around the world will discuss current issues, network with experts and check out the latest and greatest processes and products. If you are attending in any capacity, you have to put your best foot forward, because this is the number one must-attend event for production, post-production, storage and IT experts.

The 2010 event dedicates more hours to “show-floor time,” scheduled and ad hoc meetings for building newpartnerships, hands-on product demos and educational sessions right on the exhibit floor. Representatives from the leading publications, blogs and Web sites in the digital video marketplace will cover all that’s new and exciting in videography, broadcasting, digital video, TV and film, computers and display technology.

Last year’s Digital Video Expo 2009 made a big upgrade by moving to the state-of-the-art Pasadena Convention Center, a comfortable and classy destination for So Cal’s (and the world’s) legions of digital pros. Among the top focuses this year is networking, so consider both presentation technology (LCD monitor rentals) as well as two-way technology like interactive kiosk rentals that can both make presentations and capture prospects’ contact information.

Whatever event you are planning to attend, and whatever you need to accomplish, CRE is ready to support you with a iPad rental or a thoroughly outfitted exhibit area. We’ve got you covered from iMac rentals for your digital control center to audio visual rentals for making a powerful impact. Contact one of our experienced Account Executives today and see what kind of power and control CRE can put in your hands for conquering a convention or two.

Our recent gadget blog mentioned a potent hard-drive-based media player that could connect with CRE plasma rentals to create a low-cost, high-impact presentation system. For all of you who use PowerPoint, we’re going to share some creative and cost-effective ways of bringing a presentation to your seminar or breakout session.

You could present the PowerPoint show from your connected laptop – or from a CD or DVD containing the presentation and the standalone PowerPoint Viewer application – but PowerPoint is notorious for its propensity to stutter and crash. The most dependable playback format is a universally supported video format like AVI, where you will have a smooth, flawless presentation with no glitches. With an AVI file of your presentation, you can then leverage the power of a neat piece of equipment we found in a rather unexpected place.

Convert PowerPoint presentation to video

Literally scores of applications, from freeware and shareware to commercial packages, can convert PowerPoint presentations to AVI. Most allow a trial period before buying, although they might watermark your video, so find out about that. PowerVideoMaker Professional, for example, converts PowerPoint files to AVI , MPEG or WMV formats, while PPT To Video Scout will convert to AVI and over half a dozen other formats. There are plenty of converters to choose from, and several Web-based conversion sites, as well.

Mention “karaoke” and most people think of rolling carts full of audio equipment. You can still have a big rack of karaoke gear if you want, but the high-powered, handheld Acesonic PK-6000 Pocket Karaoke Entertainment System can replace all of it. If it didn’t have “Pocket Karaoke” stamped on it, it could just as easily be called the “Presentation Player with Voice-Over.” The PK-6000, an iPod-ish media player with a 2.8-inch color LCD screen, stores 2GB of MP3 and MP3+G files in internal memory (plus up to 16GB more on a MicroSD card). It also has native support for AVI video files – and fits in your pocket.

Flexible power with AVI movie

Convert your PowerPoint file into an AVI movie and load it on the PK-6000 via USB. A touchscreen with great navigation tools offers intuitive control, and the PK’s mini-gooseneck microphone lets you speak over the program material as it runs. The device has a built-in FM transmitter so you can use it as a PA, but you won’t need to if you connect it via the included RCA cable to one of CRE’s LCD monitor rentals or other big displays. In addition to its presentation chops, the PK has a digital mixer for tweaking mic volume, echo level and tone settings.

You can make an honest case that the Acesonic Pocket Karaoke was made for presenters as well as singers. There’s nothing in the manual that says you can’t talk instead of sing, or play business presentations instead of Toy Story. At CRE, we don’t let any obstacles get in the way of working smarter as well as harder, and can offer you creative solutions to even the most daunting audio, video and post-production challenges. If you need meeting rentals,  simply fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we will get you what you need to capture the meeting presentation on video.

Design Automation Conference (DAC)

The 47th Design Automation Conference (DAC) is set for June 13-18 in Anaheim, California. DAC is the world’s premier technical conference and trade show covering electronic design and design automation. It is where the many members of this technological niche gather to learn, network and conduct business. CRE can help you stand out in this milieu, as we are intimately familiar with it, providing more rentals to DAC exhibitors than anyone in the business.

There are a number of different ways to showcase your company and your product, from the exhibit/suite space and the IC Design Central Partner Pavilion to special promotional opportunities and scores of customer meetings, Exhibitor Forum Presentations and social functions. From plasma screen rentals displaying your company presentation in the exhibit area, to all the audio-visual rentals you need for breakout sessions, CRE can get you set up for success.

Whether you’re leading a workshop or making a special invitation-only presentation, CRE has the projector rentals and every other presenting aid you need to keep your audience focused. To “stir the pot” and get the creative communication flowing, DAC increased the number of User Track sessions, workshops, discussion panels and co-located events. For electronic design and design automation, DAC is definitely the place to be.

Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3)

The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is the world’s premier trade show for computer and video games, plus related products. It is being presented in Los Angeles on June 15-17 by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the U.S. group that supports the business and public affairs needs of member companies that publish games for video game consoles, personal computers and the Internet. With such members (and 2010 exhibitors) as Activision, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, Sega, Sony, Disney, LucasArts Entertainment, Nintendo and Warner Bros., the E3 will doubtless be full of new product releases for the 2010 holiday buying season.

In addition to leveraging both presentation and info-collection tools – from mac rentals to interactive kiosks – a conference team would be right in the spirit (and the “spec”) of the event by getting some high-end desktop rentals and hooking these gaming-grade PCs to some nice, big, bright monitors (LCD monitor rentals or the ever-popular plasmas). What better way to hawk your visual wares than to make a bold visual statement? But remember, too, that a big part of the thrill in electronic gaming is from the “sound design” – not just the composed music, but the tight, story-enhancing arrangement of crashes, booms, glissandos and orchestra hits that give life to the animation and action. So some capable, decibel-bangin’ audio-visual rentals would combine with your big screens for a dramatically effective company display. CRE really does know how to make your E3 appearance a hit.

Cisco Live 2010

Cisco Live 2010 take place this year from June 27 to July 1 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. With over 400 technical breakout sessions covering four groups of (overlapping) roles – Networkers, IT Management, the Cisco Developers Network and Service Providers – attendees can formulate customized educational experiences that will pay off handsomely on the job. If you are exhibiting, CRE has vast experience with Cisco events and can ensure a successful presence.

Various Super Sessions will highlight how Cisco works with its partners to advance technology and deliver innovative solutions, while you can capture contact info from the swarms of sessions participants as they pass by one of your interactive kiosk rentals on their way to and fro. The World of Solutions Expo is where your conference team can avail yourself of plasma rentals and other tools CRE has specifically tailored caching peoples’ eyes at this event. Finally, the breakout sessions include model-specific instruction – Cisco Catalyst 3750 Switch Architecture, for instance – as well wide-ranging discussions on innovative approaches to social media and Web 2.0.

CRE has long-term, intimate experience with these trade shows and can set you up to be a powerful presenter and exciting exhibitor. Send an e-mail, make a call or fill out our Quick Rental Quote form online and we will get you “trade show ready”!

One area area of interest to many CRE clients is graphics performance. Designers to graphic artists doing Web work, and engineers developing circuit boards, need the best possible graphics processing, as they rely on precision, accurate color and consistent performance. So, what’s new?

Not the good old “color card” days

In most early computers, you had to specify what “color card” you wanted, first of all. In 1987, the industry settled on IBM’s Video Graphics Array (VGA) as the model for the image output. After trying various adapters and connections, cards were eventually mounted, in most cases, in PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) slots. The Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) was introduced in 1997, to offload processing of graphics to a device closer to the core functioning of the computer. Several forks in the road later, there were solutions based on varying customer needs for precise imaging – from “not much” on the low end to “all you can get” at the leading edge – offered by such manufacturers as ATI and nVidia (often all-caps, NVIDIA) which CRE Rentals stocks.

What finally evolved was a way in which systems could “share” some of the CPU’s memory, RAM, with the graphics processing circuitry. This model is still in place in low-end computers. Potent PCs like the HP 8600 computer rentals and the awesome Mac Pro rentals have fast graphics processing units (GPU) mounted in PCIe (PCI Express) bus slots for maximum bandwidth. With all the graphics number-crunching (of which there is a lot) happening on a dedicated subsystem, the CPUs in these high-end computers can devote every single clock cycle to doing the unseen work.

Onward graphic processors!

Like everything else in computers, the graphics processors are getting faster, smaller and more precise. The color performance we take for granted was a far-off dream just a decade ago – and compared to the early computers’ graphics performance, today’s top performers are downright miraculous. With color calibration equipment, artists can certify that their computer is displaying (and their software generating) the precise colors called for in a particular design.

Many of those working with high-end graphics today are too young to remember how nearly impossible it was to get color consistent throughout a device chain. The advances in the unseen heavy lifting done by GPUs – combined, of course, with the progress represented by LCD rental, plasma, LED and  Apple Cinema Display rental– promises a very colorful, cost-effective future for digital artists of all kinds.

Not sure what you need? We work with you to solve production bottlenecks, help plan your conference or convention, deliver the workstations you need to take on more business – and maximize your every opportunity.  We’re ready to help, right now. Call or send an e-mail, any time, for a swift and thorough reply – or complete the Quick Rental Quote form if you know what you need.

Rent high-def plasma for May 2010 Trade Shows and Conferences.

Web 2.0 Expo

Web 2.0 Expo will feature the latest Web 2.0 business models, design strategies and development tracks for building the next-generation Web. From May 3-6 at Moscone West in San Francisco, this year’s multi-track conference brings together people, ideas, connections, products, contacts and companies to nurture stronger Web 2.0 communities.

The Web is still a powerful engine of economic growth, continuously fueled by a host of evolving business, development and design ideas that collectively fall under the umbrella of Web 2.0. The Expo features influential keynotes and speakers, info-packed workshops, an Expo show floor where your CRE interactive kiosk rentals can capture contact information from attendees of all types and the freewheeling Web2Open “unconference” and other rich, rewarding networking events. The event-wide WiFi network will allow your team of attendees, exhibitors or both to stay in touch with tablet PC rentals and leverage the network to gain even more from the event.

2010 ISRI Convention & Exposition

The scrap recycling industry’s businesses, customers and vendors will be attending the 2010 ISRI Convention and Exposition from May 4-8 at the San Diego Convention Center. They will come together to define the meaning of “success” in coming years, attending workshops and general sessions that will equip them with knowledge that will be key to success in today’s, and tomorrow’s, business operations.

Networking time will provide many opportunities to find new partners, clients and customers, while the largest scrap recycling equipment and service expo in the world will introduce attendees to new tools and technologies. It’s a perfect opportunity to deploy plasma rentals in a “TV wall” or set up the all-in-one computer rental with multi-touch screen  for crowd interaction.

The Cable Show

Billed as the event that brings together “Hollywood creative visionaries and Silicon Valley technology leaders for a one-of-a-kind convergence of ideas and innovation,” The Cable Show runs May 11-13 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The conference, presented by the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), will touch on all the program delivery models – cable, mobile, portable content, Web – where technological advances and new business models are creating new opportunities and synergies.

In addition to sessions on everything from customer service, e-care, IP (Internet Protocol) service delivery and social media, Brian Roberts, the chairman and CEO of Comcast Corp., will headline an exclusive Newsmaker Brunch on the future of entertainment. Both cable company executives and content creators attend The Cable Show, and you should consider plasma rentals or LCD monitor rentals from CRE to catch their attention at your exhibit booth.

CLEO/QELS 2010

The Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO), held in conjunction with the Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference (QELS), yields CLEO/QELS 2010. The conference attracts top talent from the fields of optical devices and fibers, lasers and photonics. This year’s conference will be held May 16-21 at San Jose’s McEnery Convention Center.

Attendees from around the globe come to hear from leading authorities as well as new innovators, and this year CLEO will include emergent applications related to lasers. The event is organized into four main segments, the first of which is the conference itself. The second segment is CLEO: Applications, where the focus is on practical demonstrations. The CLEO Market Focus sessions, segment three, will be held on the exhibit floor (a perfect place for interactive kiosk rentals) and deal with commercialized applications in such fields as energy, defense, security and biophotonics.

The CLEO: Expo segment, where over 300 companies from around the world will exhibit their new products and demo their latest innovations, is where you want to be equipped with CRE audio visual rentals and the biggest, brightest CLEO/QELS plasma rentals to showcase your company’s offerings.

Wherever you need to make an impression as an exhibitor, CRE can outfit you just right. Call or send an e-mail to our Account Executives, or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we will take care of you quickly and professionally. With CRE., you are always equipped to win.

As discussed in our  April 8 blog (”Computer Security, Online and Off”), it wasn’t long before the computer revolution gave rise to the kind of negative, destructive activity that infects all other human endeavors. Hackers became the new anti-heroes – they destroyed research, stole credit card account information, brought down communications infrastructure and generally made a (costly) nuisance of themselves.

To combat these so-called cybercriminals, new technologies and techniques were developed – and are continuously updated and improved – to provide security for both information and the systems that store it. As the technologies are in a state of constant improvement, IT security professionals must be involved in ongoing education or risk catastrophic losses. The previous blog told you what expertise you needed, while this one tells you how to get it.

The SANS Institute

Founded in 1989 to undertake collaborative research and provide state of the art education, SANS (SysAdmin, Audit, Network and Security) Institute oversees programs that reach some 170,000 computer and network professionals worldwide every year. From auditors and system operators to network administrators and chief information officers (CIOs), increasing numbers of IT professionals are sharing insights, learning lessons and finding solutions to a never-ending stream of security challenges.

SANS brings together security professionals from a diverse array of global groups – including corporations, think tanks, universities, government agencies and trade associations – to benefit everyone concerned with information security. It is among the most trusted, and without question the world’s largest, independent source for IT security training and professional certification. The group is a fabulous resource for everyone, from small TV post-production firms with CRE Mac Pro rentals to financial institutions running huge databases on IBM iSeries servers.

In addition, SANS creates, maintains and distributes the most extensive set of research documents available regarding information security. Many of these valuable resources are free for the asking, including use of the Internet Storm Center (an “early warning system”), a weekly news digest called NewsBites, a weekly vulnerability report entitled @RISK and timely security alerts available by RSS  or e-mail.

Annual training conference

In San Diego, from May 7th to 15th, the group will be holding its SANS Security West 2010 training conference. To benefit fully from over 20 top-rated course offerings presented by expert instructors, make sure your show attendees pack our convenient laptop rentals to take notes, stay in touch via Wi-Fi and download course materials.

Security West 2010 is the place to be for security pros and business owners, and CRE can outfit you for attending, exhibiting or making a presentation. If you’ve reserved a spot at the Vendor Expo, we can set you up with touchscreen LCD monitor rentals, interactive kiosk rentals or anything else you need to present and promote your product or service.

Diverse and comprehensive

SANS veterans will recognize both classic, always-relevant offerings as well as exciting new courses in the comprehensive lineup. From SANS Security Essentials Bootcamp Style, Intrusion Detection In-Depth, Computer Forensic Essentials and Developing Exploits for Penetration Testers & Security Researchers to Comprehensive Packet Analysis, Security Architecture for Systems Administrators and Virtualization Security Fundamentals, the course offerings are both diverse and comprehensive.

The conference will also feature special events, a Vendor Expo/Reception and SANS@Night talks, all absolutely free to registered attendees. There are many informal yet enriching networking opportunities at SANS training events where you can forge valuable professional relationships that can last for years. That’s the kind of relationship that CRE has with many of its valued clients and customers. Whether you’re an old friend or a new one, call or send an e-mail to our experienced Account Executives (or use the Quick Rental Quote form) for all of your computer, networking, storage, presentation and event management rental needs.

One great thing about the blog format and hyperlinking is the ability to simply link to good information that is already available in the “‘virtual world”.  That said, we will  “review the reviewers” and recommend where the best information is. We want to point out some great sites where you can get the very best insight into LCD monitors and monitor rentals that are being developed around the world.

TFT Central is a British Web site with some of the very best reviews of LCD monitors. The site has added visual documentation to increase its credibility and explain its ratings. While most Web sites view (and review) LCD monitors from just one or two perspectives – say, gaming or watching movies – the thorough evaluations at TFT Central cover the kinds of different uses found in today’s businesses, including color performance for designers, stable imaging for technologists and video playback for media professionals.

The estimable Government Computer News (GCN) Web site is a similarly trustworthy and dependable with reviews. It covers, along with its print magazine, government, technology and a wide range of products and solutions, including in-depth monitor reviews. While it also delves deeply into PCs and Apple computers, like Mac Pro rentals, its monitor reviews are particularly well-regarded by the tech press pool.

Other top LCD monitor sites

Another well-known Web site, X-bit Labs, may justly lay claim to reviewing the greatest number of LCD monitors. With thorough, formal testing and precise documentation, its reviews tend to be technical and sometimes opaque to non-techies. PC Magazine’s site also has excellent reviews, and they are written for the average user. Although the site lacks the technical depth of some other recommended reviewers, it is possibly the best starting place, and reviews all other computer technology, too. If you are looking into LCD monitors but want the specs on an iMac rental, it’s the place to go.

One thing to remember when reading any review is that one person’s dud is another’s star performer. Because of different ways of testing, and people’s natural subjectivity, you will find the very same monitors being hailed and panned. The best thing to do is read a number of competing reviews, or stick with a reviewer or review site that you have come to trust. Regardless of how you learn the inside scoop, on monitors or other displays like CRE’s plasma rentals, the more you know which monitors are best for each kind of work your business does.

Don’t have the right monitor to get the project done? Rent monitors from CRE – you’ll get exactly what you need.  Call or send an e-mail and we will help you. If you already know the monitor you need, even a non-LCD type like our LED-based 30-inch Apple Cinema HD rentals, just fill out a Quick Rental Quote form and you’ll be plugging and playing (well, “plugging and working”) in no time.

The standalone kiosk has become a mainstay of conventions and typically consists of  a computer and touchscreen monitor, housed in a (usually) vertical cabinet. In some models, the kiosk will also contain credit card readers and printers. They can be deployed to deliver or capture information on various products and services. Outside of convention and corporate use, kiosks have literally hundreds of uses, and can be found in airports, malls, retail stores, hotel lobbies and corporate foyers.

Kiosk rentals in the convention space

CRE’s interactive kiosk rentals are used by companies in many ways, particularly as a way of deploying additional “virtual employees” at conventions and events.  Some of the obvious uses at conventions include:

• collecting names and addresses of people interested in your product or service
• dispensing information directly
• displaying a slideshow or playing a video presentation.

The newest kiosks include Web connectivity so that a marketing team with their tablet PC rentals can actually update the kiosk contents, download captured data and otherwise manage the device’s various tasks. In fact, quite soon many kiosks will be more akin to what IT people call “thin clients,” meaning there will be limited computing horsepower and storage in the physical unit, and it will take its orders and get its presentation material over the Internet.

Kiosk (rentals) in the future

With continuing advances in multimedia processing, new generations of ever-more advanced tools will further reduce development costs of kiosks while increasing their capabilities. A range of other new technologies – like signature cards, smart cards, 3G/4G cell phone connectivity, etc. – will lead to kiosk solutions yet to be imagined. While this is happening with the standalone kiosk rental model, there are other interesting “kiosk-ish” things happening as a result of touchscreen technology coming to PCs.

For one example, CRE has touchscreen LCD monitor rentals and the all-in-one desktop computer rental (Sony’s VAIO L model) that can be used in kiosk-type ways. By installing some special software, you can create your own kiosk and station it at your exhibit booth’s entrance or on a second table. Your “virtual partner” will help you capture more information from more people, perhaps twice as much, since you would be able to assist more than one person at the same time. There are other creative ways to employ kiosk technology that we will address in a future blogs (so check back).

CRE’s Account Executives are up to speed on all the technologies you need for success on an trade show exhibit floor or convention. Call, send an e-mail or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form and we will help you find the solutions you need to the challenges you face. With CRE, you are never in it alone.

A major advantage of renting or leasing technology is keeping up with the accelerating progress in computing and communications. As soon as a workstation or device is installed, it starts obsolescing, and is outdated within mere months (or faster). When firms make huge investments in buying computer systems, taking advantage of better and newer technology is prohibitively expensive.  This is why rental companies continue to excel and expand, and their trade group (now called the IT-RA) continues to grow.

Apple is a good example of a firm that is forever pushing its own envelope. Sometimes the firm gets on the wrong side of its own customers when it introduces a replacement early in a product cycle, as happened throughout the 1990s. Today, the company is somewhat more careful about new product introductions, spending millions on “pre-announcement” research. Still, you may have purchased a new iMac less than a year ago only to find that you now want one like the new 21.5 inch iMac rentals from CRE. Buying all the new models would be a swift road to insolvency.

Software evolves, too

It is not only hardware that evolves. With the Windows OS, three different eras are now overlapping with the widespread use of XP, Vista and the new Windows 7. Rental companies like CRE need to update customer information and preferences continuously to stay abreast of what the market demands. Right now, some customers demand good hardware like CRE’s HP 8600 computer rentals and are less choosy about which OS is installed. Others need certain applications installed, so smart rental firms need to be able to outfit a workstation in the manner the customer needs. It’s a hard balance to strike.

The “name of the game” in rentals, like everywhere else, is value added. Consulting firms like the Gartner Group advise rental and leasing firms to move to a “suite of services” model and educate customers on the different advantages and options. Instead of simply responding to a RFQ (Request For Quote) with a dollar figure and the number of tablet PC rentals needed, firms can take the opportunity to show customers the costs and benefits (and savings) that inure to their advantage. CRE has always led the way in customer education, and both company and customers benefit.

The solution business

Fact is, rental companies, like CRE, need to be in the business of offering solutions that are not cookie cutter simple, but which meet specific requirements of cost, availability, processing power and ease of use. Good rental companies will work hard to maintain the following strengths:

Flexibility – Rental firms should be able to recommend technology equipment based on a particular project need, adjust the rental period if the project wraps up sooner than expected, or  offer to exchange plasma rentals at the first sign of a glitch.

Financial stability – The financial status and length of time in business of the rental firm will assure customers that the company will be in business for the term of the rental and beyond that. CRE has been in business for over a quarter century.

Full service – The expertise of the rental firm’s employees is key to ensuring that all services, from consultation to setup and operational support, are rendered with the highest possible quality.

Know-how – You need to trust that the rental firm has employees that are in a continuous educational process concerning its inventory of high tech equipment. Whether you need audience response rentals or LCD monitor rentals, you must trust that you are getting the right one for your needs.

CRE is serious about “the solutions business,” and part of that means we listen so that we make the right recommendations. When you need an expert to help you solve a production bottleneck or set you up for a new project, call or send an e-mail to one of our Account Executives and get the assistance you need. If you know what you need, simply send a Quick Rental Quote form and we will be back to you quickly.

Mini Projector for iPhone/iPod

Miniaturized projectors are getting popular and  better all the time. Business professionals who don’t want to lug around big, expensive projectors now have another choice. They won’t usurp the projector rentals available from CRE Rentals for conferences and top corporate events, but mini projectors certainly have their place.

The MiLi Pro connects to an iPhone or iPod Touch and projects a 640×480 resolution image as far as 30 inches away. Much farther, and the lumens just dissolve. It won’t work well in a large room, but is fine for small groups where presentations are projected just a few feet away on up to 40 (diagonal) inches of screen area.

In addition to a dock for the iPod Touch and iPhone, the MiLi Pro has VGA and RCA connectors that allow it to work directly with LCD monitor rentals. Its built-in, adjustable stand is easily adjusted to get the image just right, but remember it is only about VHS quality. The device charges in roughly three hours and includes integrated speakers.

Walkie-talkie watches for conventions

Holy chitchat, Batman! The Royal walkie-talkie watches are not much bigger than the first “data bank” watches of the 1980s, with collapsible antennas and permanent rechargeable batteries (AC adapter included). They have 22 channels, each with sub-channels, and once the aerial is flipped out the built-in channel scan will find its counterpart so you can start talking.

There are no buttons to push as the devices are voice activated and an incoming call alert lets you know someone wants to chat. With an impressive range of nearly three miles, these “walkie talkies”  keep you in touch with colleagues at a conference or convention.

A simpler “pad” computer device

It will never be mistaken for the new Apple iPad, as the Adesso CyberPad A4 is an entirely different creature – it is made for taking notes, which it saves to its 32MB of internal memory or SecureDigital (SD) cards in an integrated slot. Connect the included USB cable to your computer and download your doodlings – rather, your mission-critical meeting notes – with the included software.

The utility software is also capable of converting your handwritten notes into text, but like many OCR (Optical Character Recognition) programs it is somewhat of a “lite” version and will need some “on the job training” to work right. Digital recorder rentals from CRE are another way of capturing notes on the fly, but together they could make one complete, seemingly foolproof solution.

“Gadget” technology rentals

At CRE, we stay abreast of all modern “gadget” technologies, particularly those that help busy creative and administrative professionals get their work done more efficiently. From tablet PC rentals to convention rentals, our Account Executives can help you push through any obstacles that are delaying your projects– whatever you need, we’re here to help!

Fill out our online Quick Rental Quote form, and get a swift reply and a thorough solution using the newest gadgets.