Macworld Expo 2008: 5 ways Macworld Expo is better than CES

I've been inside the halls less than three hours, and already I'm more at home here than I was at CES. Maybe it's because I'm famously Mac-happy. Maybe it's because CES gave me a warm up. Or maybe it's because I'm sitting in the best damn blogger's lounge ever and my badge doesn't say "blogger".

So, number one will come as no surprise:

1. Press Registration

Okay, Macworld could do better. Registering in time to get access for the keynote is next to impossible if you're not planning this a year in advance, but nevertheless it is a great pleasure to have a badge that says "Alexandra Roumbas, Deputy Editor, Shiny Media" and nothing much else. No segregation, no confusion. And registering bloggers are, obviously, asked to present different credentials that are relevant to their medium.

2. Blogger Lounge

On top of the usual press rooms, to celebrate the launch of Office for Mac 2008, Microsoft laid on a blogger's lounge. And what a bloody lounge it is. Comfy chairs, bright light, relaxing surroundings, reliable WiFi and it's right in the middle of the action, not an afterthought at the back of the LVCC. It's so good people are just wandering in and having to have "blogging" explained to them! And, actually, WiFi is reliable and free throughout the building as well, which makes impromptu blogging a dream.

3. San Francisco

And... speaking of LV. Look, I'm lucky, I know that. Las Vegas is a crazy place and I can't exactly say I was uncomfortable there (no one else was as Coyote Ugly, right?). But it's nothing compared to a real, working city that's a stone's throw from the biggest concentration of geeks IN THE WORLD. The day before yesterday I got taken on the ultimate geek's tour of the Valley by an employee from a certain Java-bustin' company down there and it was Geek Heaven.

4. The MacBook Air

Oh, come now... what announcement at CES could possibly generate the same enthusiasm? Panasonic and the big-name CE boys entering into a "my Plasma is bigger than yours" willy-waving contest is great fun, and I wouldn't ask them to stop doing it, but this is undoubtedly more exciting. Plus, look! There was no string of ultra-slim laptops hanging from the ceiling at CES that I saw!

5. Half the size, twice the excitement

To a certain extent, there's nothing CES can do about this. Because of the single focus of this show, the few exciting products become even more so. And there's also more carefully channelled and managed expectation. There we were in Vegas, squinting at each other and wondering why we were all writing about some fairly blah spec as if it was the Second Coming, and here we know there will be much less to write about - probably only one really good offering it really is pretty damn good. Of course at an event like this, every other thing you look at is an iPod dock, but I've got a clutch of interesting product releases I'll be slinging out over the next couple of days of the small-but-useful variety.

Alexandra Roumbas is wearing her credentials on her chest and her Mac-loving heart on her sleeve.