David Politis

A word to the wise. If you ever book a flight a long time in advance, make sure you verify the departure time before arriving at the airport.

My reservations for traveling to Las Vegas from Salt Lake City said the departure time with Delta Airlines was at 8:20 a.m. However, the original reservations had been booked 4+ months in advance.

Had I checked with Delta in advance, I would learned that the departure time had been switched to 8:05 a.m. As it was, I missed making my flight by five minutes. AAARGHHH!

Unfortunately, every single SLC to LAS flight with both Delta and Southwest Airlines that day were not only full, but overbooked. My colleague made it out on the next flight; I did not, missing it by one person.

I finally decided to forego spending the day at the Salt Lake International Airport a la Tom Hanks’ character in The Terminal, and moved my reservation to the next day at 1 p.m., the soonest I was able to guarantee myself a seat.

Twenty-three Utah-based companies are signed up as exhibitors at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show which starts next Monday, January 8 and runs through Thursday, January 11.

CES has become the largest annual technology tradeshow in the United States, and I will not be surprised to see final attendance numbers approach 200,000 unique attendees flooding the Las Vegas metro area and clogging the roads in and around the Strip.

If you are planning on heading to Vegas next week, I’m including below an alphabetical breakdown of the official Utah-based companies slated to exhibit at CES 2007 next week. The company name is shown first, followed by the booth and/or room location(s) where the company will be located during CES.

Here’s the list: 

1. Alpine Innovation, Sands 73041
2. Angel Hotline International, Sands 72634
3. ClearOne Communications, Sands IP293
4. ClearPlay, Hilton 304
5. Control4, LVCC South 1 21407 & 21413

6. EarHugger, LVCC Central 8259

7. Escalante Design, SandVenetian Veronese 2401B and Venetian Tower Ven 29-323

8. Handstands/American Covers, LVCC Central 8541 

9. ifrogz, Sands 72841
10. IsoMike, Venetian Tower Ven 34-207
11. Kimber Kable, Venetian Tower Ven -207, LVCC South 1 21713 and SandVenetian Toscana 3703
12. Me Inc., Sands 72234
13. MotoSAT, LVCC North 6035
14. RBH Sound, Venetian Tower Ven 29-318
15. Sequoia Media Group, Sands 68543
16. Skullcandy, LVCC South 1 35308
17. Sound Lab, Venetian Tower Ven 34-207
18. Surround Air, Sands 73040
19. UniwaveTek, Venetian Tower Ven 30-217
20. Ventana View, Sands 72141
21. Wattgate, LVCC South 1 21713

22. Wilife, Sands 68934, Sands IP278 & IP279

23. Wing Entertprise, LVCC South 21768

NOTES: The term LVCC above stands for the Las Vegas Convention Center. Central, North and South are individual halls within the LVCC complex. Sands refers to the Sands Convention Center. Several companies will be found in multiple locations, while three related companies will be sharing the same booth space (Venetian Tower Ven 34-207), specifically IsoMike, Kimber Kable and Sound Lab.

For additional information about these Utah-based firms, visit the following link within the CES Web site (https://myces2007.bdmetrics.com/Portal/GeneralSearch.aspx) and search for the term Utah in the Search Criteria section, then click on the respective Preview tab for extra details about the companies.

As I wrote last Friday (”Bad SkyWest / Delta service!“), we did not have a very good experience after my wife and I arrived in Oakland International Airport on Delta Flight #3957 as we had to wait 45 minutes for our baggage to make it to the Baggage Claim area. (Well, to be precise, we and 48 other unhappy passengers.)

So today I decided to reach out this morning to both SkyWest and Delta via the appropriate feedback pages on their respective Websites — the SkyWest Corporate Communications feedback page and the Delta Email Us page, something I did this morning.

And, as anticipated, I got automated email responses from both companies within the hour letting me know that my email had been received.

However, I received a personalized email this afternoon from Janice Street, Manager of Customer Relations at SkyWest Airlines, in response to my feedback (which was a pleasant surprise).

Janice apologized for SkyWest for the delays we endured in waiting for our luggage and let me know that she has contacted the Regional Director who oversees the Oakland operations. Janice also clarified that Oakland operations are handled solely by Delta on a contract basis and not by SkyWest.

Janice further added that she was forwarding a $50.00 travel certificate to my wife and I as a goodwill gesture, something that was totally unexpected.

This response has gone a long way towards restoring my faith and positive feelings towards SkyWest. Thank you, Janice.

On the other hand, I’m still waiting to hear from Delta. 

So for now, a tentative Thumbs Up for SkyWest and a Thumbs Down for Delta.

Not only is it hard to imagine that 2006 has come and gone, but it’s also mind-bending to realize that CES starts this coming Monday.

With the death of COMDEX (the COMputer Dealer EXposition) a few years back, the annual Consumer Electronics Show has now become the largest technology tradeshow in the United States, if not the world.

Slated this year for January 8-11 in Las Vegas, CES will attract a truly worldwide audience of manufacturers, distributors, engineers, marketers, retailers, gawkers and more to the annual geek fest in glitter gulch. Oh yes, and journalists galore — probably 5,000+ this year coming from places as widespread and diverse as Salt Lake City and Singapore.

Based upon last year’s attendance figures, I will not be surprised to see total attendance surpass 200,000 unique visitors to CES this year.

As for me, I’m headed down to slot-machine city on Sunday with several members of the Politis Communications crew and major media events slated for both Sunday and Monday nights.

Look for more on CES between now and mid-January.

Lest you think this past weekend’s trip to the S.F. Bay was a bust (service-wise), let me note that the staff and management at the Oakland Marriott City Center were topnotch.

We asked for and got a very nice room with a view of the San Francisco Bay, and the overall service from everyone was very good. Thumbs Up!

Additionally, our first night in town we ate at the Caffe Verbena, which was right across the street from the Marriott and reasonably priced for a downtown restaurant.

The marinated hangar steak with salsa verde and polenta souffle was quite tasty, as was the herb roasted chicken with creamed spinach, cippolini onions and roasted potatoes.

I’ll definitely return to both establishments on my next trip to Oakland.

Thumbs Up for both!