As a seasoned vet of both the wireless and retail industries, I can recall fondly the arc of popularity enjoyed by the great brands of mobile technology.  For example, there was a time when Motorola was the paragon model of the kick-butt, cell phone company.  The command they enjoyed in the way of market share during the days of, ahem, analog cell service – man, it actually hurt my fingers to type those words – was impressive, to say the least.  Now, and with no disrespect to either industry titan, their star has faded a bit and they may possibly become “GoogleRola”. Alas, poor Moto, I knew ye well….

But my point here is that brand loyalty in some cases can be elusive – sure exceptions to every rule do exist – and consumers as we all know are downright fickle.  So how do tech companies earn and maintain loyalty? How does a seemingly beloved and formidable brand battle back once it has been cast aside?  Remember Nokia?  Granted, they never really went too far away, but, looking back on their history in the U.S., man, they were at one time really impressive.  I mean, they were the folks who stormed into the mobile digital landscape – they did catch Motorola napping on that one – and drove to the top of the heap in the way of market share, if only for a brief moment in the grand scheme of things.  But they did it!  Hey, they had the first camera phone in the U.S. – remember that?  They even sponsored the Emmy Awards, too! Top dog, for sure.

So, I’ll admit that I was pretty psyched when I heard the buzz about their recent release of the Lumia 900 – the Nokia smartphone living on the Microsoft platform.   The pre-release info was great – AT&T Mobility was ramping up at their stores getting the promo materials in place, handsets were being distributed to store staff, the advertising agency was readying their wheelbarrows to carry their fees to the bank – good times. The whole thing harkened back to the golden days of wireless.  >sniff, wipe away tear, sniff<

The early customer reviews on the Nokia Lumia 900 are favorable.  Sales are brisk.  Thoughts of picking one up myself are roaming through my head, but before I do, I’m looking for some feedback.  Anyone of you jumped on the Nokia bandwagon and have one of these beauties?   If so, we’d love to hear what you have to say.  Nokia, I am pulling for you…hope that the Lumia 900 paves the way for much future success. I guess I’ll know for sure when they send me my invite to the Emmy’s….

As times progress, consumers are continuously bombarded with new product concepts using technologies that we didn’t think were possible outside of recent Star Trek shows. While some are interesting and maybe even useful, others are not so much. The latest product concept from Google is designer eyeglasses with a computer screen embedded into the lens. What’s the big fuss, you ask? This isn’t like the other TV glasses that have been around for years. This version will allegedly superimpose mobile phone graphics onto what you see through the glasses. This is practically the same as the “augmented reality” technology that currently exists in mobile devices like Android phones and iPhones. The glasses would use a combination of gyroscopes and accelerometers to project graphics based on where you are looking. For example, if you are looking for the closest Italian restaurant, the glasses could show you the restaurants in the direction where you are looking, with a label next to each one identifying how far they are and what kind of Italian food they serve.

This is just one example of how augmented reality could be used in the glasses. See the end of this blog for a list of a few cool augmented reality apps that are already available for download.

But it doesn’t have to stop with augmented reality. What about getting appointment updates as you are headed to the appointment or having presentation notes streamed to your eyes as you are presenting. You’d never get lost if you had a huge arrow pointing to which street to turn down (but then again you might not see the car behind the arrow and then crash). There are endless applications for this technology, but how Google executes it will play a big role on the success of this new gadget. Many are saying the technology isn’t there yet; that the glasses will be too bulky and too geeky for the common consumer. Until Google officially releases the glasses later this year, we’ll just have to speculate.

However, if you are a retailer, this is one gadget consumers will be itching to try out and you won’t want to wait until Google releases it to think about how to securely display it at your store. With a hefty price tag between $200 and $600 per pair, this is also a device you won’t want to lose! This is why VPG has come up with a practical and non-intrusive way to show powered glasses and charge them while consumers get to try them out. See the image above.

So how about it, are you itching to try a pair out? How successful do you think the Google Glasses will be? Let us know in the comments area below.

Finally, there are many apps and games that use augmented reality to make the areas around the user come to life. Here’s a quick list of some neat augmented reality apps you can try today:

iPhone Apps

1. Golfscape GPS Rangefinder: Golfscape pinpoints your position on the golf course, allowing you to identify potential hazards, choose your desired landing area and see real 360-degree viewing while on the course.
2. DanKam for iPhone: An augmented reality app for those with color-blindness. This one changes the color of the existing view to one that is distinguishable by those who are color blind.
3. Augmented Car Finder: A fun car finder that takes advantage of augmented reality technology to show you where you have parked your car.
4. Panoramascope: This app gives you information about your terrain surroundings (mountain peaks, their names, and valleys). Great for those who are into outdoors, camping and beyond.
5. AR Compass: A smart compass that shows Wikipedia articles and your custom waypoints. Great for exploring the unknown.
6. Star Chart: Look through the eyes of your iPhone to see a virtual window into the whole visible universe. All you have to do is point your iPhone at the sky and Star Chart will tell you exactly what you are looking at.
7. SnapShop Showroom: Visualize furniture in your own home using augmented reality. SnapShop gives you confidence that a sofa or chair looks great in your living room before you buy.
8. AR Basketball: Turns what your phone sees into a mini basketball court. All you need to play basketball is a piece of paper and your iPhone.
9. Sky Siege: A fun game that creates a battle airfield wherever you are. The game superimposes planes and helicopters for you to shoot down.

Android Apps

1. Car Finder AR: A Car finder app which uses Augmented Reality and RADAR to help you reach your car where you parked it. It can even automatically save your car’s location if it disconnects from your phone’s Bluetooth.
2. Wikitude Drive: Wikitude Drive overlays navigation directions onto the road seen ahead. This allows users to literally drive through their phone (although probably not recommended).
3. Yelp: Walk through a new neighborhood and find restaurants and businesses simply by panning your phone around.
4. Zombies, Run! : Zombies, Run is a trans-reality game for the Android platform that pits you against a world full of zombies in a race for your life. Your objective is to run to pick up supplies and to steer clear from roaming zombies.
5. Sky Siege: A fun game that creates a battle airfield wherever you are. The game superimposes 3D planes and helicopters for you to shoot down onto your surroundings.

From February 29th to March 2nd at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas retailers, brand marketers and over 600 suppliers presented and reviewed the future of the retail industry. According to the good folks at GlobalShop it’s the world’s largest annual trade show and conference dedicated to store design, visual merchandising, and shopper marketing. If you didn’t get a chance to stop by the Vanguard Protex Global booth to check out the newest offerings, here is your recap:

Shopper marketing professionals from various industries showed off their plans for 2012. VPG was amidst the action with the new Pivot and G5 tablet solutions on display for event attendees to check out. With the imminent release of the new iPad (or iPad3 or iPadHD if you prefer) on the horizon the show floor was abuzz with tablet talk. The new iPad contains 4G speeds, Quad-Core graphics and Retina display. How does Apple keep coming up with new technology that I don’t even know I want!?

Much like smartphones, one of the greatest features of the tablet is the ability to switch from portrait view to landscape view in just a few seconds. Thank goodness the Pivot and G5 are here! VPG is ready to assist in highlighting this page orientation feature of tablets in the retail environment (smartphone options also available). The Pivot is a fixed mechanical security solution offering various fixture installation options while the G5 tablet charging solution can protect and power all tablets up to twenty-four volts. For more information on either of these tablet solutions contact VPG today! Dial toll free at 1-877-477-4874 to speak with an experienced and professional VPG representative. How can we help you come up with a security solution that you don’t even know you want yet?

You don’t have to look far to find a tablet device pressed into service in some interesting locations. At the library?  Sure.  In a restaurant? You bet.  In the hospital?  Fits right in there, too.

The tablet is such a versatile device that it has quickly transcended the divide between consumer and commercial applications. And speaking of applications, you can credit the Apps for expediting such a swift transition.  Whether used as a reference tool for quick look ups or selecting a wine to compliment your meal, Apps are paving the way for tablets to enter more areas of our daily life…and to make things more convenient for us, too.  Think of it, the iPad has sped into our lives.  Don’t have an iPad? That’s fine, but I’ll bet you know more than a few folks who do.  But it’s not just iPads, right?  Now there are more entrants to the category, more devices, more options and more features.  And one can only imagine what the future may hold.

Where have you seen an iPad recently used in a manner that caught you by surprise?  Do you think the Apps of today have made things more convenient for you?

The employment situation in the United States is beginning to show signs of improvement.  But for some members of our society, the unemployment numbers are almost twice as high as the general public.  You may find it most concerning to learn that the segment being referred to is that of the members of the military returning to the United States after completing service in the current wars.  Faced with this staggering statistic, it was just about one year ago that the US Chamber of Commerce (USCOC) set out to establish a program intended to  aid those veterans returning from current wars.  “Hiring Our Heroes” is a program developed by the USCOC that is centered on helping veterans and their spouses find opportunities for long term domestic employment.  A statement on the USCOC website gets right to the point: “Our aggressive agenda focuses on one measure of success; jobs for the one million unemployed veterans in America”.  With this goal in mind, the USCOC set out to create a series of job fairs in one hundred cities throughout the United States.   For a complete list of job fair dates and locations please visit the Hiring Our Heroes website.

During a recent stop in Tampa, Florida, Vanguard Protex Global was on site to participate in this initiative.  On Thursday, February 23^rd the Hiring Our Heroes hiring fair took place in the Bayanihan Arts and Events Center in Tampa.   There was a constant stream of activity at the event and the Vanguard Protex Global  booth received its fair share of inquiries from many  interested and capable professionals.   When the day’s activities concluded, the VPG representative possessed both a profound sense of pride for having participated in the event as well as brief case full of resumes and applications!  If your organization is searching for skilled and qualified professionals possessing the individual characteristics that help to create strength in your workforce, then we would encourage you to visit the USCOC website to learn more about the Hiring Our Heroes program.   Perhaps together we can do our small part in helping to provide an employment opportunity to some of those Americans who have done so much for us here at home.

Are there employment opportunities in your organization?  If so, please visit the USCOC website today to learn more about the Hiring Our Heroes program.

The e-commerce world is abuzz with rumors about plans for Amazon to open a physical retail location. This goes against Amazon’s current business model, which has been successful since its first online book sold in 1995. Amazon originally started off as an online book store and has since branched out to include music, movies, electronics, groceries, toys, clothing and automotive accessories. The hypothesized test location is meant to support Amazon’s line of e-readers and tablets. There are five different versions of the Kindle, along with countless accessories. “These gadgets are already sold at other retailers, including Target, Best Buy and Staples. If Amazon brings out other gadgets, like a smart phone, or a larger tablet, having an Amazon store will help the company explain how to use these gadgets and the other services tied to them,” says Cowen & Co analyst Jim Friedland.

I embrace the “try it before you buy it” mentality. The most influential sales people in my life are my closest friends. They have become trusted advisers for everything from my cell phone and laptop to my designer perfume. Of course the places where I choose to shop offer up the opportunity to test these things before I buy them… and I do eventually buy them. So go ahead, Amazon, and put your Kindles on display. Vanguard Protex Global is ready to help you design and implement a security system that protects, powers and displays all sorts of gadgets while simultaneously increasing the customer experience (therefore increasing sales). Click here to check out the latest in tablet and e-reader solutions by Vanguard. Or come try them out for yourself at Globalshop 2012 in Las Vegas, February 29^th through March 2^nd, we’ll see you at booth #2259!

There was a time when retail was the de facto, gold standard, only-way-possible to get your products to market in order to satisfy demands of the consumer.  Oh, how the times have changed!  Recent reports confirm the effect of online shopping and consumer empowerment.  The smartphone has created smarter shoppers (there are over 8 million smartphone users in the United States today – and that number is growing).  The impact to retail is noticeable.  While there is no indication of the need to batten down the hatches for rough seas ahead, it’s clear that Retailers need to assess their strategies to address this new paradigm.  What will retail evolve to become in the years ahead?  Who is charting the course for today’s successful Retailers that intend to write tomorrow’s success story?

Each year around this time Global Shop provides an opportunity for the best and the brightest to gather together to share concepts, learn of new developments and envision the future of retail.  Now, with Global Shop 2012 only a few weeks away smart Retailers are making plans to attend this annual event in search of inspiration, innovation and insights.  And to add some more excitement, GlobalShop 2012 will be a celebration of the 20^th Anniversary of the show of shows for everything retail.

This year promises to be another milestone for us as it will be the first GlobalShop we attend as Vanguard Protex Global.  What can you expect?  Well, a visit to our booth would reveal the latest innovations in our patented power and alarm solutions for mobile devices, digital imaging, tablets and more.  Of special note is the additional solutions we can offer as a result of our acquisition of Protex International – industry leading soft goods security solutions are now available through Vanguard!

So, while we are in full preparation mode for the show on February 29 – March 2 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, we wonder aloud about your interests and expectations for Global Shop 2012.  What are you looking to get out of the show? What’s on your wish list and how are you preparing for the Future of Retail?

If you didn’t receive our emails and you didn’t read our blog “Lights, Camera, Daguerreotypes!” you may not know that Vanguard Protex Global attended PMA@CES this year. In January 2012 the Photo Marketing Association (PMA) teamed up with the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) to put on an event where innovation and technology thrive. Our team was on site for the duration of the show with a very specific mission; gather pertinent and innovative information for the New Year.

Vanguard Protex Global (VPG) offers a wide variety of retail security solutions to accommodate an ever expanding consumer electronics market. One of the benefits of working with VPG is our patented cord reel solution that powers AND secures your device. Digital cameras, cell phones, smartphones, laptops, netbooks, ultrabooks, tablets, GPS units and even the new “i’m Watch” can be protected, powered and displayed for the consumer to play with. (The i’m Watch is essentially a phone on your wrist. It works with the Android system via Bluetooth. Check it out by clicking here.) Our team was tasked with the responsibility to seek out the newest innovations and document what may be released over the next twelve months or so. This gives our customers an edge so that when the “i’m Watch” is finally released in the consumer retail market our engineering team can be a step ahead of the game in powering the device.

Some of the new gadgetry on display at this year’s show included; a new camera lineup from Canon, a Xyborg tablet from Motorola, a 3D camera from Panasonic, a phone/tablet hybrid from Samsung, a plethora of ultrabooks and a brand new trade show booth from VPG! We have learned a lot at the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show. PMA@CES has offered up some great new innovations and we can’t wait until they hit the retail market. For more information about how to power and protect your gadgets give us a call at 877-477-4874 or click here to check out the VPG Volt system.

Where did the month of December go? Wasn’t it just Black Friday? Now it’s almost the New Year and we are fully immersed in the holiday season. Retail stores are packed with shoppers looking to pick up the last few items on their list. According to Robert Klara (staff writer for Adweek.com) if there are at least eleven people in that packed store, one of them is leaving with a five-finger discount. Over the past year $119 billion worth of merchandise was stolen from retailers around the world. The top three sectors affected were fashion apparel, health/beauty and home improvement. Electronics dealers, toy stores and jewelry stores were also on the list. The Center for Retail Research says this global shrink costs the average household approximately $200. Let’s restate that – shoplifters worldwide stole $200 from you last year.

This year the iPhone 4 is one of the top items lifted from retailers. Luckily there are ways for retailers to protect their merchandise and in turn protect your bottom line. How do I protect my product without locking it completely out of sight you ask? The answer is simple; you identify the high demand items and formulate a plan to protect them. The ideal plan usually consists of multiple security facets. Supermarkets and retail stores usually employ trained staff to increase customer service, all the while deterring theft. For instance, in comes the supermarket deli staff. They always greet you with a smile and insist you try the newest item on the sample tray. It’s pretty hard for a thief to escape with the filet mignon once they know they’ve been spotted. Similarly in the fashion category you have those tenacious sales clerks who follow you around asking if you need any help. They greet you this way for a reason; to let you know they have their eye on you. The fashion category adds another level of protection by using electronic article surveillance (EAS). Plastic tags or stickers are affixed to merchandise and if they leave the store without being deactivated an alarm will sound. These security methods allow the customer the ability to touch and feel the product before they purchase.

Research shows that consumers are more likely to buy if they can touch, feel and experience the product beforehand. This is especially true when talking about consumer electronics. Nowadays, it’s fun to go cell phone or tablet shopping because you get the chance to test drive multiple devices without having to commit to a purchase. Keep these devices powered up and safe from shoplifters by securing them with Vanguard’s Volt or Vital systems. VPG’s patented cord reel technology provides power and security for an attractive device presentation. Looking to protect your designer hand bags or high end sports apparel? Look no further! Since our merger with Protex International, VPG has been working diligently to re-release our soft good security solutions. Keep an eye out for new updates on our soft goods line in 2012!

Since 1924 the Photo Marketing Association International (PMA) has been the key trade association in promoting the importance of marketing photofinishing and retailing services. They have updated their identity over the past 87 years to include everything from commercial imaging labs and custom frame shops to school, sports and event photographers. The industry has also changed identities over the years. We’ve come a long way since the very first “Camera Obscura,” literally translated from its Latin roots to mean dark room. Does anyone remember Daguerreotypes, calotypes or dry plates? I sure don’t, but I do remember the good ‘ole days of film. Of course today we have everything from digital cameras to cell phones that can capture our memories into a single image for print.

This year PMA will partner with the Consumer Electronics Association at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. The show runs from Tuesday, January 10th to Friday, January 13th, 2012 and will feature keynote speakers from across the tech industry and a plethora of new gadgets for attendees to experience. One of the new gadgets rumored to be displayed at CES is Ricoh’s modular GXR camera which will feature the new 16 megapixel APS-C unit with 24-85mm lens. This interchangeable unit system has been streamlined into a compact size without sacrificing image quality. Talk about a cool modular camera!

Vanguard Protex Global will be attending PMA@CES this year to check out all these new cool gadgets in preparation to protect them and increase their sales in the retail environment. Our team will be located at booth number 72147 in Venetian Hall D at the Venetian Ballroom, Level 2. If you are going to be in Las Vegas in January we would love to see you! Please call 877-477-4874 to schedule an appointment with a VPG representative or click here for more information about Vanguard Protex Global and the International Consumer Electronics Show. What cool gadgets are you expecting to see this year at CES?