IFA: special extended report

The stands may have been a little less exuberant than in previous years, but this year’s International Funkausstellung (IFA) in Berlin once again proved its worth as Europe’s best consumer AV event.

It was smaller than in 2008, but only by 1,000 square metres - barely noticeable for the many international dealers and journalists tasked with tramping around the entire show in an effort not to miss anything new.

With the recession pressing on R&D budgets, this year’s IFA was always going to lack the usual spate of new technology previews. There was scant mention of OLED, and very little news on the coming era of 3DTV. No, IFA in 2009 was more about refinement; perfecting existing technology, and making it smaller, sleeker, eco-friendlier - and more appealing to consumers. The pre-IFA conference circuit was thus quieter than usual, though the Presidents of Panasonic, Samsung and Sony all spoke.

For our extended IFA 2009 special report please click here