The consumer electronics convention (called the IFA) in Berlin must have been heaven for gadget geeks, since even my not-so-tech-savvy self found it interesting. There were at least a dozen exhibit halls, packed with everything from the biggest, flattest, most high-definition TV screens to odd little items like a toothbrush sterilizer.
The prize for weirdest exhibit could easily have gone to the "high-tech clothing" display, which consisted of a creepy-looking army of white plastic mannequins decked out in outfits that included built-in controls for personal electronic devices. My favorite was the lederhosen with an iPod holster -- you could adjust the volume by pressing a button on your thigh.
I guess it is normal at conventions like this, but I was amazed at how blatantly sex and sales are tied together. Nearly every exhibit included a beautiful woman in a slinky dress (or at least a tight shirt) who, frustratingly, was unable to answer most questions I asked about the products. And then there was "Miss IFA (click for photo)," a pretty young woman in a cherry-red dress with hair dyed to match. The press materials said she "was transformed from a virtual figure into a real-life one" in 2005. Wow, that is quite a trick! Is she related to Pinocchio?
The press release also said that Miss IFA's look is meant to represent "the latest innovations and technology." Yeah, a hot girl in a red dress...very innovative indeed. Why couldn't they at least invent some more comfortable shoes for the poor woman, who spent her week trekking through endless concrete halls on painfully spiky heels while maintaining a perky smile at all times. If I were her, I might want to go back to being virtual!
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