Are you an Electronic Electrical Engineering (EEE) major or interested in things related to them? If so, there’s no doubt that participating in the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) held in Las Vegas, U.S. will provide you with an unforgettable and invaluable experience. First of all, I express my appreciation for the support from the POSTECH EEE department, for providing us with a new program “Global exploration to CES 2020” for EEE junior students. The program not only gave us the precious chance of visiting CES, but also offered tours of the most popular places in neighboring regions, such as the Grand Canyon, Nevada, Hollywood, and Los Angeles. The seven day trip actually was my first time visiting the U.S. and CES, thus I was expecting something unforgettable. Frankly speaking, it was more than I expected, and I was thoroughly impressed and gained many new perspectives.
CES is the world’s gathering place for all those who thrive on the business of consumer technologies. It was first held in New York City in 1967 and over the years, thousands of products that have changed our lives have been announced. It has also served as the proving ground for innovators and breakthrough technologies for 50 years – the global stage where next-generation innovations are introduced to the marketplace. CES showcases more than 4,400 exhibiting companies, including manufacturers, developers, and suppliers of consumer technology hardware, content, technology delivery systems and more.
Apparently, CES is the perfect stage for major companies such as Google, SAMSUNG, Amazon, and LG, etc. to display the superb quality of their incoming products and brand-new technologies. I was extremely impressed by the rather grand-scaled showcases of such companies. I was more attracted to Sands-expo, however, where start-up and venture companies are gathered together and share their adventurous and experimental ideas. It is undeniable that the overall quality of smaller organizations’ products were below the level of well established companies, yet I believe that I saw several sprouting seeds with potential to develop into a full bloom, and such expectations were enough to inspire this future engineer.
I am researching on communication system architecture these days, and CES further offered me an opportunity to become aware of today’s astonishing playing field. Actually, I was able to see that things in every field are developing at breakneck speed. In other words, the trip to CES allowed me to become a part of the widest community in a brief space of time. This short but startling time provided me with powerful motivation and inspiration for further advancement. 
Before we wrap things up, here are a few small tips that will make your journey to CES and California more colorful. First, before getting onto the stage, you should download the CES app in the Appstore which gives you detailed information about where the target companies’ exhibitions are located. Since there are so many exhibiting companies, you should set up your schedule carefully. Second, please enjoy the Casino, but just for fun. I was over-excited and ran through all my money while playing the slot machines. I just meant it for a joke ;).
To conclude, I’m grateful for the POSTECH EEE department for offering us such a great experience, and I would like to strongly recommend that you participate in future CES conferences if at all possible