As does everything, the Consumer Electronics Show of 2008 is nearing its finale, and the Adult Video News movie award orgy is kicking into gear. And what do the two have in common? Silicon.

Thank you, I’m here all week.

Now, this being our first time at CES, we’ve had to rely on whatever direction and advice being been thrown our way. If we’re told, “The show starts at 10 in the morning,” we get there at 10. We were, and we did. It actually started at 8. “Monday will be the busiest day.” It wasn’t. “Wednesday will be really slow.” It wasn’t. In fact, Wednesday, today, was the busiest day by far, and it was in the form of the media, and of course the occasional stray and weathered veteran porn star.

PC Magazine’s Lance Ullanoff covered VholdR again, this time with a live network appearance on FOX, and not the local affiliate either but the national feed. With the relative small size of our product, I thought it wise to deliver the unit for it’s on-air appearance attached to something big and eye grabbing – in this case a beautiful flaming blue Troy Lee Designs helmet sure to nab our fair share of real estate amongst a toy robot with a Dolly Parton figure, a $2500 ten-inch DVD player, and a taser gun complete with an MP3 player designed to muffle the teeth-grinding screams of your next victim.

I was afraid the producers might request that the camera be removed from the helmet, but was delighted to see it in clear view on a lion’s share of the counter just moments before we went live. Just before Lance started his broadcast, I asked him to give Troy Lee a mention, to which he lightly scowled. I felt bad for asking. But at the end of the segment, he gave the helmet a glowing mention and even a tilt to the camera. The guy’s a pro. Thank you Lance, and thank you Troy Lee Designs for sending us such wicked-looking gear.

I thought for sure my day was about done, expecting to return to a couple of sleepy girls (Lia and Beth dragged themselves home at 4 a.m.), and Jason and Marc chasing autographs. Instead the booth was surrounded by camera crews, lookie-loos and remote control airplanes dive-bombing into out plasma screens. “Remote control interference,” the guy said . . . whatever.

Marc was being nabbed by TV crews left and right. People were storming the counter with questions. And we couldn’t keep the cameras charged long enough for demonstrations. At some point heavy hitters started cruising through as well.
“Wednesday will be really slow.”
Whatever.

From the floor of the 2008 CES convention in Las Vegas, this is Digital Media Director and all around action video soldier Anthony Godoy. Traffic around the VholdR booth has been constant and furiously curious about the new wearable camcorder, a product far removed from the myriad of electronic gadgets native to the show. In a nutshell, this isn't your average geek's toy.

CNN, CNET, PC Magazine and others agree that VholdR is putting a unique spin on consumer goods, combining futuristic technology with action and lifestyle. CEO Marc Barros himself was put before the broadcast cameras, appearing on CNN's morning report with Veronica De La Cruz. Even Lance Ulanoff, editor-in-chief and VP of content for PC Magazine appeared before the cameras of CNN and MSNBC, expressing his thoughts on VholdR.

Jason Green, Twenty20 CFO and development director has been busy bridging big picture business development with the minutia of electronics convention mechanics, as well as handling the ongoing release and delivery of the first pre-sale units, which are currently inbound with daily shipments from the assembly plants. In fact, production team directors as well as Ziba design leaders are here at our both as I write. Let me snap a picture. Hang tight people, cameras are on their way.

Working the floor with me are the ever energetic Lia Barros and Beth Thomas, two Seattle residents familiar with the demands of the active lifestyle and how VholdR fills the need for capturing it on video. And the questions people come up with! "What's the battery life?" "What if I drop it?" "Will it run on biodiesel?" and the most common, "Can I have one?"

Buddy, please, you see that line?

Between Marc and Jason, as well as numerous Twenty20 board members attending the show, meetings with potential distribution and manufacturing partners are taking place at all hours, from early morning coffee chats to late night conversations over drinks. That's simply how business is done in Vegas.

http://www.cnettv.com/9742-1_5...

The above link will take you to CNET's segment on VholdR, delivered by our new pinup dream . . . well, we don't even know her name but hats off to CNET for pairing our sleek and sexy video camera with this up and coming little gadget muffin.

Beth Thomas preps for a long day of Q&A at the VholdR booth at CES 2008.

Jason Green preps the counter at the VholdR booth at CES 2008.
The VholdR booth in the quiet early morning hours before the rush of suits, briefcases on wheels, and questons, questons, questions.

Jason Green, Lia Barros and Beth Thomas at the VholdR booth at CES 2008.

Facing a mob of product thirsty industry types, Lia Barros dishes the rundown on VholdR.

Lia Baros, with CEO Marc Barros in the background, face a wave of interested industry types at the VholdR Both at CES 2008.

Marc Barros, Twenty20 co-founder and CEO, demonstrates VholdR software at CES 2008.

Steve McCallion, executive creative director of Portland's Ziba Design, is seen here with Jason Green and Mark Barros. Ziba was integral in the design of VholdR.

                                                                                                          Look Ma, No Hands 

Many digital video cameras fit comfortably in the palm of your hand. But sometimes you need your hands for other things, like steering a bike.

The VholdR camcorder from Twenty20 lets you skip the hand-holding by clipping it right onto handlebars, helmets or googles to record action video as you see it.

The VholdR, which weighs 4.8 ounces, records TC-quality video to a MicroSD card.

It can record about two hours of video on a battery charge, and comes with a USB cable and desktop software to watch, tang and share your video on the web.

The camcorder is encased in a brushed aluminum body  with a grooved base designed to fit a camera mount.- NYTSF

www.vholdr.com

VholdR sports camera gets the 360-degree treatment

By Design Zealot

What do you get when you combine a skateboard wheel, a length of PVC pipe, a driveway marker, a handful of screws, a bolt, washers and nuts, and some Gorilla Tape? Not much, until you throw an awesome new wearable camcorder in the mix. Then, you have one crazy POV video camera system.

That’s exactly what happened when Olympic Snowboarder Graham Watanabe hooked up with the guys who came up with the rugged new VholdR outdoor camera from Twenty20.

Using a design that would make MacGyver proud, the improvised «Granthony Cam» (named for Graham and Twenty20’s Anthony Godoy) screws on top of Watanabe’s helmet as he snowboards downhill, capturing a wild, 360-degree video effect that not only gives you a great sense of motion, but is also some of the wildest camera work this side of a Raising Arizona. The 2 minute video clip is definitely worth a watch, so be sure to check it out.

The VholdR camera at the heart of the rig comes encased in a rugged anodized aluminum shell, and is splash proof, dust proof and dirt proof. Designed to mount just about anywhere, the camera is perfect for sports-nuts or anyone else who wants to capture action video in challenging locations. The whole lens and image sensor can even rotate up to 192-degrees together, and a pair of lasers automatically guide the camera to frame the image properly. The company even offers specially-designed mounts for helmets, bikes, goggles and roll bars… but I still prefer the ingenuity of the Granthony Cam.

At $350, it’s not the cheapest digital video camera out there, but you also wouldn’t want to strap your mom’s HandyCam to your head and go jump out of an airplane with it on.

From Park City, we watched as a storm front headed toward the coast. Lots of moisture, lots of cold, running toward the Central West.

The night I arrived it started, and before it left in the morning it dumped some 30 inches of snow on Sugar Bowl, stomping grounds of multi gold champion Daron Rahlves.

We threw VholdR into some really flat light conditions, and still walked away with footage.

There’s something about how Daron skis – he hits some switch and he’s gone in the blink of an eye. Following him wasn’t much of an option, so for a few runs I had him follow me – a challenge for Daron as he’s simply built for speed, and I am built to crash through trees and crowds at the cafeteria.

We’ll be looking to test more with Daron when conditions develop where we can send him to do what he does best – break speed limits. And we definitely look forward to going back to Sugar Bowl, which had some of the best-looking terrain and developing snow conditions around. Check out their killer interactive trail site at www.sugarbowl.com.

Twenty20 VholdR Bikemag Helmetcam Demo Video:

Click Here to see the video

                                                                            The Invention of the 'Granthony Cam'

Seattle, WA — Seattle Internet startup Twenty20’s newest product, VholdR, is set to officially debut at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on January 7, 2008. But, a limited quantity of the wearable, hands-free video cameras are already leaving the factory and heading for customers. One VholdR “hit the road” just after Thanksgiving with

Twenty20’s Anthony Godoy, to meet up with athletes who will put the camera to the test and invent new ways to use it.

That’s how the “Granthony Cam” was invented.

On the slopes near Park City, Utah, Anthony Godoy, of Twenty20, and Graham Watanabe, of the U.S. Snowboard Team, invented and tested the “Granthony Cam.” The Granthony Cam mechanism enabled the very lightweight VholdR to freely circle around Watanabe as he moved down the slope, yielding a surreal, 360-degree, “Surround-Me” view of the action.

The amazing video, set to music, is posted online here.

“This is exactly what we want to see happen,” says Twenty20 CEO Marc Barros. “Our video sharing site will be unique, because the videos that VholdR owners will upload will be unique. The community of people on our Web site will be sharing something special: videos episodes from inside the action–their experiences from their point of view. And, the elegant simplicity of VholdR unleashes creativity. We expect to see some amazing videos. This is just the first one!”

Twenty20’s VholdR (www.VholdR.com) weighs just a few ounces, fits in the palm of your hand, but it’s armored: with its brushed aluminum body the camera works in rain, snow, and mud. VholdR records video to an internal SD card. Small grooves on VholdR’s body are designed to couple with various mounts so the camera can be used anywhere–or even worn. A single on/off button makes VholdR the ultimate in simplicity to use, even with gloved hands. Easy-to-use software quickly organizes the video and offers a “Click-to-Share” option to post the video online.

And the Granthony Cam? Twenty20’s Godoy explains: “Our idea started as an offhand remark, which started the two of us thinking seriously about it. As the idea gained momentum, we looked at each other and realized we had one hell of a workable concept, and we made a beeline to Home Depot where we theorized and schemed. Two hours later, the design was a reality.”

Parts? The Granthony Cam is constructed of a skateboard wheel, some PVC pipe, a driveway marker, some screws, a bolt, some washers and some nuts, and Gorilla Tape.

After seeing the incredible videos made by Watanabe using the Granthony Cam, Godoy said: “I couldn’t sleep, imagining all the videos we could make with this thing!”

Seattle-based Internet startup Twenty20 invents easy ways to “Shoot and Share” video in motion. Twenty20 products are sold through a network of sports retailers and also online. For more information visit www.VholdR.com.