Gadgetory

dressing rooms are getting a high-tech makeover I'm Bridget Carey and this is your CNET update as consumers were always on the hunt for new gadgets and sensors to keep us connected or make our lives easier but retailers are also hungry for new tech and how it can be used to track us in stores and get us to spend more I stopped by the National Retail Federation Expo in New York City to see how technology is changing the way we shop Microsoft showed how the Kinect camera can be programmed it's a sense when a customer picks up something from a shelf in this demo when you pick up a videogame the nearby TV instantly plays the trailer for the game you touched the Kinect is tracking the location of what you touch so a store has to put a product in the right pre-programmed spot for this to work future shopping carts could come with tablets Microsoft also hosted a demo of the media cart it lets you scan items as you shop to keep a running tally of your bill and of course ads will pop up on the screen as you go through the store it knows your exact location so you may see a kleenex ad when you walk down the tissue aisle Intel showcased the memory mirror it's now being used at a Neiman Marcus store in Walnut Creek California this mirror is really just a giant video screening camera it records you giving a spin so you can see what you look like from the back or you can show to a Pitts you try it on side by side and you can see instantly what a sweater looks like in a different color as it overlays the new color on you in real time if you're freaking out about the camera keep in mind this isn't behind a closed door dressing room this would be just outside the changing area eBay demonstrated a different type of smart change in room mirror it created for Rebecca Minkoff boutiques there's no camera here but RFID censors know exactly which items you brought into the dressing room and the items show up on the mirror screen if you need another size or color just select it on the mirror and ask for someone on the floor to bring it to you the mirror also lets you change the color of the room lighting and it saves data about your session so the store can give you more personalized service every store wants your phone number these days and even the mirror asks for your digits Intel's booth also showed off ways to keep track of products in real time instead of tracking customers a business will use RFID tags to track where products move throughout a store it knows how often a shirt was carried in and out of a dressing room your local bar can know exactly how much beer is left in a keg using connected scales and if there aren't already enough screens in your life smart drink coolers display translucent advertising that can change in real time to promote your local team's game and of course it tracks how many times you open it at least it doesn't want your phone number yet for seeing that I'm Bridget Carey