Disappointed to hear that one of the world's largest electronics shows has just plowed through town? Well, don't fear, if gadgets are what you're after, there are plenty to be found in Vegas.
The Discovery Channel Store (Desert Passage at Aladdin) is a sure bet for kids of any age. Is your family's resolution to get fit in the new year? Include your minds, too. The electronic 20 Questions game is a great brain workout -- choose an answer obscure enough to stop the gadget from guessing it. A smaller handheld version is also available. "CSI" have you intrigued? You, too, can have your own forensic or DNA lab in your home, complete with high-tech instruments and case files ready to solve.
Brookstone (Fashion Show, The Forum Shops at Caesars, The Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian) puts a new spin on baseball with the Radar Pitch ball. An internal sensing device displays the velocity of the pitch via the built-in LED screen when it's caught. Or create your own duplex with Cube World. Each cube has a small screen that a one stick figure lives in. Once stacked, the stick figures interact and play games with one another.
Step into the future at The Sharper Image (Fashion Show, Desert Passage), which serves up a cosmos of contraptions on its frosted-glass shelves. Not ready to commit to a puppy? Robopet jumps, sits, lies down, begs, rolls over, sniffs, shakes hands and scratches with an unbelievable canine likeness. It even chases after the laser light projected from the remote control. Who said robots are things of the future?