This complete technology event coverage documents the second installment of pinglio's reporting from gdgt Live Chicago 2011, showcasing diverse companies demonstrating emerging technologies and services that would shape consumer technology adoption. Patrick Bisch provides detailed coverage of six distinct companies spanning education, device recycling, inflight connectivity, storage solutions, e-readers, and camera technology, reflecting the broad technology ecosystem that characterized early 2010s innovation. The multi-part series shows technology journalism's role in connecting consumers with emerging products through hands-on demonstration and expert analysis.
The educational technology coverage highlights Code Academy's innovative 12-week programming bootcamp offering Ruby on Rails, HTML5, and CSS3 training for $6,000, representing the early coding bootcamp movement that challenged traditional computer science education. The Gazelle coverage documents the pioneering electronics recycling and resale platform that addressed growing e-waste concerns while providing consumers financial incentives for device upgrades. The Gogo inflight internet service demonstration captured the transformation of airline travel through connectivity, showcasing their Air-To-Ground network and Vision streaming service that anticipated modern inflight entertainment expectations.
The professional technology analysis covers G-Technology's media-focused storage solutions with advanced cooling, networking, and RAID features targeting photographers and filmmakers, reflecting the growing demand for high-performance creative tools. The Barnes & Noble Nook coverage documents the competitive e-reader market during the period when dedicated reading devices competed with multipurpose tablets before smartphone reading apps dominated. The Olympus camera demonstration emphasized durability and versatility through dramatic testing that showcased waterproof, impact-resistant camera technology for adventure and professional photography.
This technology trade show coverage captures the dynamic innovation period when diverse companies competed for consumer attention through hands-on demonstration and direct engagement, before digital marketing and online product launches became primary discovery mechanisms. Looking back 13+ years later, several trends documented here proved remarkably prescient - coding bootcamps became mainstream educational alternatives, device recycling platforms became essential for sustainable technology consumption, and inflight connectivity evolved from luxury service to basic expectation. The professional storage solutions highlighted anticipated the massive data needs of modern content creation, while e-reader technology influenced modern smartphone reading experiences despite dedicated device decline. The social reading features mentioned in Nook coverage anticipated modern reading app social connection and recommendation systems. While gdgt itself eventually discontinued operations, the hands-on technology demonstration format influenced modern tech conferences, product launches, and influencer marketing approaches that now characterize technology product promotion. The multi-company format documented here reflects the diverse innovation ecosystem that existed before major platform companies consolidated market power and reduced the prominence of independent technology companies in consumer consciousness.
This summary was created by Dave Rogers. The original post was written by Patrick Bisch and published on September 1, 2011.
If you'd like to view the original post, you can find it here.