So I just got back from an exhausting trip to CES. CES is always fun, but my feet will be mad at me for a week. A lot of what you see is kind of the same old same old and some stuff has a high propensity of becoming vaporware (stuff that’s cool to talk about but never really comes to fruition) (like a charging device that doesn’t use wires, but who knows…).

Somewhere in between, though, there are products that are both very cool and very practical. I’d classify Polaroid’s new Freescape Digital Media Exchange as one of these. Polaroid probably doesn’t see the same attention as one of the big exhibitors (like Panasonic, who was highlighting a 150″ flat screen TV - just gaudy), but I think they had a product that, if word gets out, should be a hot seller.

The Freescape system is a DVR that records TV shows in high def. It stands out from similar products, though, in three main ways.

First, it will do near-instant synchronization to an iPod or your PC (via WiFi). The iPod conversion idea is amazingly clever. In under 1 minute, it can encode and transfer a 1 hour TV show to your iPod through a built-in iPod dock. That means you can watch *any* of your shows you record and are no longer at the mercy of whether or not Apple has your favorite show. Plus, you’re not paying $2/episode for shows you get for free. Genius.

Second, remote access via the Internet. The unit gives you the ability to connect to it from anywhere you have an Internet connection. It also does a fast MPEG4 compression at VGA resolutions (which still looks like a standard TV signal) that lets you download your recorded TV shows from anywhere in the World. It’s kind of like TiVo and Slingbox hooked up and had a kid.

Third, no monthly fees. At an MSRP of about $500, it’ll take a while to pay for itself, but it’s still neat. The Freescape system uses an open directory of show listings that is 100% free. That means you never pay that $5 to $20/month subscription fee like with other DVRs.

Pictures below courtesy of Polaroid: