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.

SPIE Optics + Photonics

The SPIE Optics+Photonics conference is set for August 1-5 (Exhibition is August 3-5) at the San Diego Convention Center. Attendees will get the latest news and research on the solar, nano, optical and photonics technologies that promise improvements to our communities and our planet. Along with access to almost 2,800 papers in the various aforementioned fields, and 22 plenary talks by experts, conference goers will enjoy unparalleled opportunities for networking and bridge-building.

Interactive poster sessions, as well as group discussions focused on specific technical topics, enable you to join your peers and colleagues in delving deep into important subjects, and are open to all paid attendees. Wi-FI laptops or tablet PC rentals may be just the ticket for your conference team, whatever your goal at the conference. There will also be general admission and invitation-only admission to various social, networking, professional development, student and SPIE membership events, where digital recorder rentals might come in very handy.

If your goal is to spread the word on your own product or service, presentation aids like plasma rentals are easily arranged. If you want to capture contact information and develop prospects, you might avail yourself of CRE’s interactive kiosks, now with 17-inch touchscreen interfaces. Whether bringing a message, gathering information or both, CRE can equip you to succeed.

ASR Access

From August 13-15 at the San Diego Convention Center, ASR Access will be where over 400 surf and skate lifestyle brands preview their 2010/2011 collections to international buyers. With over 18,000 people from over 60 countries, 7,000+ buyers/distributors of lifestyle products and some 450 exhibiting manufacturers representing over 700 brands, ASR Access is a product-focused event with plenty of variety.

ASR Access features range from a fashion show and centralized lounges to business seminars and places where you can meet, network, make buying decisions and gain valuable insights. Whether you need a full-size exhibit space with plasma rentals, or some audio visual rentals to lead a breakout session, CRE is prepared right now to prepare you right.

CLASS@ASR runs concurrently with ASR at the Convention Center with over 100 designers that cross over from surf/skate lifestyle lines into the prestigious fashion market. Also staging across from ASR in the Petco Park parking lot is Crossroads, committed to the independent nature of skateboarding culture and a uniquely relaxed format. It’s almost like three conferences in one, but if you get the right  convention rentals from CRE Rentals it can be one big success.

NACDS Pharmacy & Technology Conference

The NACDS Pharmacy & Technology Conference, also at the San Diego Convention Center from August 27-31, is where leading retailers meet with suppliers of healthcare products, pharmacy technology, software and a wide range of other innovative goods and services. With strategic reports, educational sessions and insider insight into pharmacy operations, clinical issues, marketing and distribution, this is one conference that delivers unique, usable information.

To reach the decision-makers of over 130 retail companies – chain drug stores, supermarkets and other mass merchandisers with some 80,000 retail outlets and $200+ billion in annual sales of prescription medicines, OTC preparations and home healthcare goods – the dramatic, colorful plasma rentals still cannot be beat. If you will be having key meetings with others in the exhibit area or the “Meet the Rx Market” sessions, consider outfitting your team with laptop rentals.

No matter what you need to accomplish at one of August’s San Diego conferences, CRE is here to help. Whether you’re attending, exhibiting or both, we have the hardware, software and know-how to make your presence a success. Call, send an e-mail or fill out our Quick Rental Quote form and let our experienced Account Executives help prepare you for a successful conference (or two, or three).

In every phase of your business now – from marketing and prospecting to R&D, from attending trade shows to exhibiting and making presentations at them, as well – you can avail yourself of today’s potent interactive and collaborative technologies. With wireless mobility and real-time connectivity come faster product development and better feedback from clients and prospects, which is good no matter what industry you’re in. CRE can help you leverage this technology to great benefit, no matter where you are or what you are doing.

Apple’s iPad has been getting a ridiculous amount of press, but precious little has been said about serious, productive uses (even in our own first look). Its size, about midway between a smart phone and a netbook, means it has enough screen real estate to do real browsing, writing (with a nice on-screen keyboard or a Bluetooth wireless one), reading and document handling (PDFs, photos, video, etc.). With WiFi-only and WiFi-plus-3G connectivity, you can stay in touch with one, two or 200 colleagues, customers, clients and/or coworkers, wherever you are, to accomplish pretty much whatever you need to do. When the “excitement of the new” wears off, the iPad should be standing tall, regardless, as it really can be a great tool for you, as Adobe proved this week with its release of iPad-specific publishing tools.

Tablet PCs running Windows have been around forever, it seems, and have been refined over the years. It can be argued that the humble tablet PC was a precursor to the iPad, as it combined Wi-Fi, handwriting recognition, a good bit of audio-video capability and ease of use in a mobile (if not pocket-sized) form factor.With CRE’s tablet PC rentals, conference teams or salespeople can run PowerPoint presentations, maintain contact with headquarters, stay abreast of breaking news or take handwritten notes. On site or on the go, a tablet or pad can be a true collaborative tool. Although Windows tablet PC’s typically run a special version of Microsoft Windows XP, CRE can configure your tablet PC with the ever-popular Microsoft Office, or even the Ubuntu version of Linux. CRE features award-winning tablets from Motion Computing, which can also run Windows 7 if you’re a Top Geek, like the fellow in this YouTube video.

A recent CRE blog discussed some of the new technologies finding their way into Audience Response Systems. In addition to tighter integration with MS Office applications, particularly PowerPoint, the leading ARS makers are making much more capable keypads and are allowing input from more and more wireless devices all the time, from smart phones to (yes) the iPad. There are few better methods for getting real-time input from your audience than one of CRE’s Audience Response System rentals.

Despite CRE carrying a number of interactive, collaborative devices, our interactive kiosks are the only products in the CRE lineup that feature “interactive” in the name. Standalone kiosks let you multiply your presence at trade shows, conferences or your own annual shareholder meetings. They can be set up remotely, as well, to run product demonstrations, capture contact information from interested parties, feature surveys, connect job seekers to your firm’s online employment application and 1001 other things.

When it comes to helping you meet the challenges of today’s marketplace, whether it’s with a number of iMac rentals for post-production or some audio-visual rentals for that conference or presentation, CRE Rentals is ready to help. Send an e-mail or make a call to our experienced Account Executives, or fill out our Quick Rental Quote form, and we will get you “interactivated” and “collaborational” in no time.

The old saying, “There’s nothing new under the sun,” is a good one to remember when we start hearing about the “latest and greatest, newest and truest” in any field. It is important to remember that principles are eternal, however – for example, we’ve known for a couple of millennia that communication is essential in society, it’s the means that have evolved, from stone tablets to iPads. In the realm of business management, the eternal principles are clear to anyone who devotes time to finding and studying them. Still, we seem to be experiencing a real upsurge in new buzzwords that describe them.

There are scores of acronyms now being used by hard-sell business consulting firms, as if they represent breakthroughs of some kind. The trend may have begun with CRM (Customer Relationship Management) in the 1990s, but has since expanded into a long list of puffed-up phrases — Business Process Management (BPM), Enterprise Architecture Patterns (EAP), Business Process Transformation Framework (BPTF),  Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and the like. (Shouldn’t the Department of Redundancy Department be on there, too?)

Who holds the buzzwords keys?

Should you be concerned if you are not buying the books or paying the consultants who hold the keys to the secret meanings of these success formulas? No, you shouldn’t.

In fact, there is both a lot more and a lot less to this issue than first meets the eye. The “more” comes down to “more work,” as in, you need to do more work finding out what people mean when saying all these things. You will discover that there are really no startlingly new concepts being introduced, just different methods for accomplishing the same commonsense goals that businesses have been setting for centuries – efficiency, meeting customer needs, good communication channels, quality products, good marketing, attentive customer service, straightforward accounting practices, etc. And the “less” part? There is a lot less new thinking here than the consultants would have you believe.

CRE has a lot of different customers, in a lot of industries, but because of our Southern California location we are privileged to support many creative firms working in movies, TV, radio, the media and Web-related enterprises. Companies that need cutting-edge Mac Pro rentals for post-production or sleek iMac rentals for a new marketing department project are typically full of bright, forward-thinking, tech-savvy folks who are used to an acronym-heavy vocabulary (RAM, SCSI, SATA, HTTP, etc.) and may give unearned respect to the aforementioned business buzzword abbreviations. This would be a mistake.

Understanding the acronyms

The important thing is to look beneath the “marcomm” (marketing communications talk) and search for the actual, definable principles that are involved. You will find that BPM, Business Process Management, is pretty much just what it says – managing your business processes. Okay. If you have good managers, they are likely keeping up on the literature and using their heads as it is. Your IT people already know if CRE’s Xserve RAID rentals are what they need in a pinch, and won’t learn that from an acronym, no matter how expensive or impressive. If they think there is something worthwhile in a new BPM approach, they will use it. Trust your in-house experts to separate the wheat from the chaff – or get new experts, if you don’t think they’re up to it.

You probably don’t need to buy a Software-Enhanced Interdepartmental Efficiency-Boosting Total Process Management System, or SEIEBTPMS. You just need to stay plugged in, to the leaders of the industry you’re in, to the trade magazines, to the evolving best practices of your particular field. This does not mean there is no value to the business consultants who ply their trade with an ever-changing cast of acronyms and trends. There is much good sense and solid advice to be had there, certainly. The point, though, is that there are many less expensive ways to stay abreast of those best practices, from conventions and conferences to continuing education in the appropriate disciplines. You can do it yourself, most likely, and save money in the process.

CRE is in the solution business, and one of the things we help companies do is manage change – including sudden change, like getting a new production deal without having the eight workstations needed to pull it off. When you need to expand into a new project, equip a conference booth or outfit your convention team with WiFi-enabled tablet PC rentals, give our Account Executives a call, send an e-mail or fill out our Quick Rental Quote form online. We won’t bombard you with buzzwords, just straight talk that gets you the solutions you need.

Along with all the amazing labor-saving advances in computing and networking technology over the past decades have come some serious challenges. For whatever reasons, there will always be some people that want to bend and twist technology to destructive purposes. Computer users, both individuals and companies, are now faced with the task of protecting themselves with anti-virus tools and spyware removal.

All of CRE’s computers, from tablet PC rentals to the latest Mac Pro rentals, are certified to be free of malware, viruses, spyware and other “rogue code.” However, we cannot control the environment into which you bring them, so to keep them safe from external threats, you need to follow some simple steps. Many of these you are already doing, most likely, while some (we hope) will be good new additions to your security regimen.

Online and off, be wary of security breaches

Companies may be targeted by competitors that want to hack into financial records or trade secrets. Therefore, network security is a must. In addition to cyberstealing, outsiders may also spread damaging viruses or install various kinds of spyware. Removing these “invaders” requires state-of-the-art knowledge of the threats as well as up-to-date software tools. You, your IT manager, some other employee or a respected consulting firm must be at least as good, if not better, or you’re may have problems. Step one should always be to ensure you’ve got current anti-hacking expertise available – every day.

However, not all threats come from outside. Most companies lose more from employee theft than robberies, burglaries and hacking combined. An employee who makes off with a computer is not just taking the device, but everything that’s on it, including mission-critical work. If you have one of CRE’s iMac rentals and it is stolen, insurance will take care of the physical loss, but the computer files – new product designs, important presentations, legal documents – could be gone forever. Step two is ensuring daily backups to a central server or remote drive, and regular offsite storage of backups, as well. Backing up protects you against more than just computer crashes.

Security benefit of computer rentals

Once again, as we continually remind our clients, there are some very compelling reasons to rent some or all of your computers. Ready or not, we are all on the way to the world of the virtual office, and the cost savings for your business can be substantial if you get ahead of the curve and stay there. Step three, then, should be a complete review of your TCO (Total Cost of Operation) for your computing assets. If you have never done such a study, you may be surprised how much it costs to stay current with, and regularly replace, high-tech equipment at the level of CRE’s powerful computer rentals.

When you don’t have to keep buying new equipment, repairing it, maintaining it and replacing it every year or two, you have additional time, money and energy to do what’s really important. That means growing your business, of course. There is also a security benefit to renting, since you are assured of first-rate equipment operating in a first-rate manner. In addition, whether it’s computers or office equipment rentals, this benefit (combined with possible financial incentives) makes a good case for renting some or even all of the tools you need.

CRE has Account Executives who know the hardware, the software and the safest, most effective ways of using them. Call, send an e-mail or fill out our online Quick Rental Quote form. We can help you work more efficiently, as well as more securely, which is more important with each passing day.

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.

CRE Rentals provides news and highlights from two recent trade shows: CES and Toy Fair.

2010 CES Trade Show

During the January 2010 CES show, over a dozen e-readers were displayed from both major firms (Audiovox and Samsung) to a number of smaller companies. The devices represented different approaches to the e-reader product. There were various form factors like clamshell cases and ultra-thin tablet PCs, not unlike the tablet PC rentals available from CRE,  and different levels of functionality including touchscreens and handwriting capture. There were even choices of connectivity, including Wi-Fi, 3G and Bluetooth, and some with combinations of these protocols.

“Content is king” for E-Readers

Don’t forget the mantra of the Internet and all connected devices: “Content is king.” Most products in this category will have to go a long way to match the content available from the market leaders, Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s Reader. When considering content along with the tech specifications, and trying to gauge the ever-tickle consumer’s interest, one new entry does stand out. It’s the Skiff Reader, from a subsidiary of media heavyweight Hearst.

When announcing its product, Skiff also announced a comprehensive content strategy to support it. In addition, the Skiff Reader is the first e-ink product (all using licensed technology) built to display magazine and newspaper content, and both its service model and digital store are built to allow swift, simple, wireless consumer access to free and paid content from news organizations, magazines, blogs, books and other publishers. It will all be delivered fast-fast-fast over Sprint’s existing 3G, and upcoming 4G, networks.

Big and “bendy”

The Skiff Reader is a mere quarter-inch thick, 11.5 inches diagonally, weighs just under pound and is housed in a remarkably flexible magnesium frame. For reading and interacting with the device, the Skiff Reader uses a flexible 1200 x 1600 pixel (UXGA) touchscreen manufactured by LG from stainless-steel foil. In addition to 3G/4G service, the unit is Wi-Fi-capable, lasts over a week on a single charge and will be available at Sprint’s online and retail stores. Pricing has not yet been set.

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A Few Laughs from Toy Fair 2010

The recent New York Toy Fair 2010 showcased scores of new toys for all ages, a few of which should put a smile on your face. One for example is the Marshmallow Blaster which is the only thing better than Nerf guns and ammo for indoor shoot-outs. The best marshmallow-shooting device at the Fair, it can fire 20 puffy rounds in a five-second burst, with a range of 40 feet. Fun!

The new Hot Wheels RC Stealth Rides (image 11 of 20 in this slideshow) are Mattel’s popular radio-controlled (RC) cars scaled down to the size of a domino, and fit in a case the size of a cell phone that doubles as charger and remote control. Is there a better workplace distraction than this?

Amazingly (or not), Mattel also makes an electronic dog tag that you hang on Poochie’s neck. Puppy Tweets (image 15 of 20 in the slideshow) will sense the dog’s activity levels, motions, barking and such, and transmit pre-set tweets to its own Twitter feed. You read that right. Now you can teach your dog Stupid Human Tricks!

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CRE does not rent blasters, RC cars or canine Twitter-enablers, but we have the leading-edge all-in-one touchscreen computer rentals, LCD monitor rentals and other high-tech equipment you need to get your work finished. Deadline moved up? Hire a Final Cut expert, get one of CRE’s potent Mac Pro rentals and get the job done, bing bang boom. Know what you need already? Then use our Quick Rental Quote form and get to work fast, or contact an experienced Account Executive and figure out a solution together. We’re here to take care of business – yours!

CRE Rentals highlights the upcoming Trade Shows and Conferences in April.

IPC APEX EXPO 2010

IPC, the Association Connecting Electronics Industries, is holding its annual conference April 6-8 at Las Vegas’ famed Mandalay Bay resort. For electronics industry firms seeking new solutions in a tumultuous global economy, IPC’s APEX EXPO 2010 will offer answers as well as access to experts and engineers. Various venues – from the exhibit floor with over 300 suppliers to breakout sessions and an “Online Exhibit Hall” – will cover today’s critical areas, from reliability and decontamination to such emerging technologies as embedded devices and new solar panel technology.

The EXPO features the industry’s best standards development discussions, technical conferences and professional development training, as well as an exhibition featuring the industry’s top suppliers.  If you are exhibiting, you need to grab the attention of the thousands of passersby, which can be done with plasma rentals displaying your company products, Web site or even a live webcam feed.

NAB 2010

Called the NAB Show, the National Association of Broadcasters’ annual conference will take place April 10-15, with exhibits opening on the 12th, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It is the world’s premier electronic media event, covering filmed entertainment as well as the creation, management and distribution of content across all media. The NAB Show is putting into practice many of the same “green meeting” ideas discussed in this blog, making it a living laboratory for continuing progress.

The Show was promoted with electronic communications instead of direct mail, social networking sites were leveraged for publicity and registration took place online. Post-consumer recycled materials are being used for conference bags and the limited amount of printing required. CRE can supply exhibitors with energy-effective rentals for NAB, from modern LCD monitor rentals that draw half the power of 5-year-old models to wireless tablet PC rentals for taking notes, downloading conference materials and communicating with others via Skype, chat or e-mail.

The NAB Show’s famous annual exhibition features some 1,500 companies covering over 800,000 square feet. Special pavilions include Destination Broadband, with more than 50 cutting-edge firms and a theater, which will showcase the online video experience and map out the “broadband ecosystem” from basic infrastructure to the latest home entertainment technologies. Other technology-focused pavilions include the 3D Pavilion, Mobile DTV Pavilion, Technologies for Worship and Content Central.

Interop

Interop, being held at the Mandalay Bay resort from April 25-29, is the best event for getting a comprehensive, unbiased view of all the latest IT innovations, from cloud computing and virtualization to security, mobility and data center innovations. A member of the TechWeb family, Interop drives adoption of new and emerging technology by providing expertise, insight and hands-on investigation of products that help IT managers and company decision-makers succeed.

For exhibitors who need to be in two (or more) places at once, CRE interactive kiosk rentals are a good move. You can capture attendee contact information, offer product specs and maximize your conference investment. If you have a booth, nothing grabs and holds attention like touchscreen feature available in the all-in-one computer rental with some “push-button fun.” You could also plug a laptop, a DVD player or a home-theater system into a plasma rental to present a PowerPoint slideshow, Flash animation or multimedia brochure.

You will also see new technology being deployed, as the InteropNet will be offering a stable high-speed network for attendees and exhibitors, from the conference rooms to the exhibition floor. InteropNet will showcase leading technologies in a live environment, with “virtualization in action” and information on bringing the same cost-effective power to your company.

If your company is exhibiting at any of these events and needs technology rentals, partner with CRE Rentals – your one-stop conference and expo shop. Fill out the Quick Rental Quote form and one of our expert Account Executives will work with you to ensure you get the gear needed to make your conference presence a success!