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The Hong Kong Electronics Fair showcases a million gizmos vying for attention

The autumn edition of the Hong Kong Electronics Fair has come and gone, but the products on display will be coming to a store near you soon - if they have not already got there.

The fair, along with the concurrent electronicAsia, filled the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, turning it into a gadget lover's paradise.

Stereo speakers stacked floor to ceiling blasted out music, surrounding the thousands of visitors with Dolby delights and sweet music.

Wall after wall of plasma and LCD televisions, DVDs, tiny mobiles, tinier MP3 players and about a million other devices competed for attention.

These fairs require energy, and first stop for a snack was the Princess Worldwide booth. Known for making household appliances, Princess (www.princess.com.hk) is a Dutch company with a strong presence in Hong Kong.

As Michelin-star chef Cas Spijkers  prepared hors d'oeuvres in front of a gathering crowd, managing director Luc van de Kar  explained how the company was promoting 2006 as the year of health, with products such as non-stick grills and others which do not require butter or oil for cooking.

Princess is also working with designer Philippe Starck on a line of beauty products.

Hong Kong company IDT International (www.idthk.com) - better-known as Oregon Scientific - also had an attractive display.

As well as offering weather clocks and blood pressure and heart rate monitors, IDT has modified its Sound Sphere and is calling it the iBall (US$299). This speaker device will fit iPods of any size and comes with a built-in remote.

An Oregon Scientific CD player that makes the Christmas wish list is the Style-fi Music Element 2.1 (US$349), which is black and has slim speakers using NXT technology as well as a sub-woofer.

Moving along, the Atom Industrial  (www.atom.com.hk)  booth caused a double take with its eye-grabbing wireless video baby monitor, which runs on the 2.4GHz bandwidth. Perhaps the idea is a bit too much like the movie The Truman Show, but some parents will probably decide it is a must-have.

Another Hong Kong company, Coulomb (www.coulomb.com. hk), makes a variety of electronic devices, games and accessories such as cables.

The most interesting thing on display at this booth was the world's first wireless remote-control motorised skateboard. The non-flying helicopter CD player looked pretty cool, too.

Also on display was what might be the slimmest - if not the smallest - piano ever produced. Marsilli Technology (http://www.marsilli.com.hk) has created a folding, 49-key piano for kids. It runs on batteries and sounds good.

Strolling through the fair's Hall of Fame was a real eye-opener. The products here were of high quality, with a strong emphasis on design.

The Italian MP3 digital media players are fantastic. Not only do they play music, but it seems Italians are quite taken with the Divx video format and want their video on the go, too.

Another treasure on display was the 'jet ski' from Astone (www.astone.com.au). Astone's Ocean Scooter (www.oceanscooter.net) is an inflatable, battery-operated water toy for people weighing less than 75kg.

Other companies, such as Sunching (makers of Wahoo water devices) and Daka,  make similar products.

Daka (www.daka-designs.com) also makes the world's smallest and lightest folding bicycle, the A-bike.  When folded up, it is 0.03 cubic metres and weighs less than 5.5kg. Not an electronic part in sight, but it drew a lot of attention.

It was not all glamour and sleek devices at the show. One of the quietest booths was Chung Pak Battery Works (www.chungpak.com). Based in Hong Kong, the company sells a zero-mercury battery series called Vinergy. These batteries  also contain no cadmium or lead. A salesperson claimed business was brisk, but the product was just not sexy enough to attract heavy foot traffic.



Wall-to-wall devices are a gadget-lover's dream