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CES 2018 kicked off this morning with the always entertaining, always optimistic Monster Press Conference hosted by head Monster Noel Lee, who launched the company's 39th year in the industry with the motto "Takeover 2018." Along with an array of new speakers and headphones, Monster announced a variety of new products that will capitalize on the popularity of smart speakers and headphones with MonsterTalk, powered by Speak Music’s Melody voice service.

CES has come a long way since its humble beginnings in the summer of 1967 as a TV/audio show staged at New York City’s Hilton and Americana hotels. The inaugural show featured 250 exhibitors and attracted 17,500 attendees, eager to check out the latest color TVs from the likes of RCA and Sylvania, pocket transistor radios, and hi-fi gear from Fisher, Marantz, Acoustic Research, KLH, and many other now-iconic brands.

“Here for today and ready for tomorrow” is how China-based Fibbr is positioning the imminent launch of Ultra 8K, a “plug-and-play” 8K/HDR-ready fiber-optic HDMI cable said to support transmission speeds up to 56 gigabits per second (Gbps) over distances up to 164 feet (50 meters).

I typically tend to bash films that rely on hackneyed plot devices and laughably implausible action sequences, and Disney’s latest escapade in their beleaguered Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is guilty on all charges. The entire series has anchored its plot lines to a host of supernatural elements like cursed pirates, leviathan sea monsters, and homicidal mermaids.