CES 2010: Microsoft keynote

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer officially kicked off the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show tonight in Las Vegas, as Ballmer gave the opening keynote speech for the popular electronics event.

Speaking during the event, Ballmer showed off a handful of products that didn’t require the use of physical keyboards.  As expected, Microsoft showed off a new Hewlett-Packard tablet PC that will be released in 2010, as Ballmer applauded the company for choosing to use Windows 7.

The unnamed HP device also ran the Amazon Kindle for PC software, and then showed several features consumers can expect when the device is released.

“PCs should take advantage of the touch and capabilities of Windows 7,” Ballmer noted during his speech.  “It’s perfect for reading, surfing the Web and taking entertainment on the go.”

I’m interested to see how the Microsoft/HP tablet product compares to the rumored Apple tablet that is expected to be announced later this month.

The voice and gesture-controlled Natal controller for the Xbox 360 also was announced during Ballmer’s keynote in Las Vegas.  The 3D camera motion control system will be available in time for the 2010 Christmas holiday shopping season, and will work with current Xbox 360 units.

Working with HP will give Microsoft the opportunity to partner with the leading PC manufacturer, and will have its Bing search engine the default home page for HP PCs, netbooks and notebooks.

The Redmond-based company must adapt as an increasing number of consumers begin to use mobile phones, HDTVs, game consoles, and other technologies that use the Internet.