It’s already 2012, the start of a new year and for some, the beginning of a new chapter in their lives.  While everyone is still getting accustomed to the gadgets they received over the holidays, the tech industry is already prepping for two major events: the Consumer Electronics Show in January and the Mobile World Congress in February.  Of the two events, it seems like more manufacturers are prepping for MWC than CES, since CES is more focused on mobile devices and network carriers.

Since the CES will happen this month, let’s focus on that one first.  Last month, Microsoft already announced that this year’s CES will be their last year participating in the show. The event is seen as a hassle for manufacturers since the holiday rush just finished and it’s quite unnerving to prep for an event as early as January.  Aside from that, Microsoft wants to make exclusive product launches, similar to what Apple’s been doing.

Drama aside, lets take a look into what we can expect to see at the 2012 International CES event in Las Vegas.

Motorola

Motorola might be launching the Droid 4 after leaked images of the said smartphone surfaced the web.  The Motorola Droid 4 features a 1.2GHz Dual-Core Processor, 1GB RAM, 4.0-inch qHD display with Corning Gorilla glass, 8 Megapixel rear camera with 1080p video recording, HD front facing camera for video calling, 16GB internal memory, 4G LTE, HDMI out, 1,785mAh battery and will run Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

LG

Aside from launching a 55” OLED TV, LG is also ready set to launch an Intel-powered smartphone at this year’s CES.  The rumored smartphone is the second Intel-LG smartphone attempt as the two also announced a said device last year but that one never saw the light of day.  This device will run on Intel’s next-generation Medfield system-on-a-chip.

Acer

Acer is unveiling the Iconia Tab A700,  a 10″ tablet powered by a Tegra 3 quad-core processor, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 3.0 compatible5 mega pixel digital camera lens in the back and front and will be comaptible with Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade.

Shogun Bros.

In last year’s CES, Shogun Bros. introduced the Chameleon X-1, a computer mouse that doubles as a PC game pad.  This year, they’re sneaking in again at the CES with an updated Chameleon X-1 which will come in “Altair white” and “Ezio grey”.  It will still be the same mouse/gamepad except for the fact that it will have a leather covering on the clicker and will be branded as Assassin’s Creed Revelations Chameleon X-1.

Aside from the above mentioned brands, analysts are expecting more 3D TVs sans glasses, thinner Ultrabooks, tablets that are ICS ready, and more innovations for Smart Homes.

We can expect more news as to what to expect at this year’s CES as the event draws closer.  The 2012 International CES will be held at Las Vegas on January 10-13, 2012.