I never thought I'd utter the phrase "return to the peace and quiet of the Las Vegas Strip," but today I did.  Rumor has it some 150,000 attendees crammed into the Las Vegas Convention Center and Sands Expo Center for the opening day of CES 2007.  I think I bumped into about 125,000 of them trying to make my way between the various booths.

The theme of this year's show may just well be "Mobile Content."  Along with the 82" 1080p LCD TVs, all of the heavy hitters were focusing on wireless content: Mobile TV, Photo and Video Blogging on the Go, Mobile Internet and Search, GPS, and so on.  I spent time with folks from Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, LG, Motorola, Digit Wireless (Makers of Fastap), UT Starcom, and others, and across the board the message was: More and more people have mobile devices where voice calls come first but data and entertainment are a close second.

I'll run down the specifics on new handsets, content deals, and accessories in the coming days, but suffice it to say a few things rang true for me roaming the show floor and talking to PR reps and mobile industry executives.  Even though Asia and Europe are still get the most advanced handsets first, the US is starting to catch up (at least a little bit).