The giant annual Consumer Electronics Show is just two months away, and NY1 attended the preview of 2010's new gadgets in Manhattan's Flatiron District. NY1's Technology reporter Adam Balkin filed the following report.

A recent preview exposition in Manhattan's Flatiron District is a warm-up held two months before the giant Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where tech manufacturers show off their goods that will become must-haves by year's-end.

Though organizers of this year's CES say participation in the show is is strong as ever, the sluggish economy has helped reduce the show from absurdly huge to just ridiculously huge.

"Sizewise, it'll be smaller in terms of the absolute footprint because we've decided to centralize the show in the Las Vegas Convention Center and the Hilton," says Gary Shapiro of the Consumer Electronics Association. "But in terms of excitement level, introductions of things like mobile TV, 3-D TV, all sorts of cool products, eBooks, things like that, we're doing fantastic. Every major company and many more are back at the show, plus we have a record number of new exhibitors -- 330 companies are coming that've never been to CES before."

The show will include a new "iLounge" area, dedicated exclusively to those developing hardware and software for iPhones and iPods.

Another device, the Viper SmartStart, can start a car from anywhere in the world. A webcam showed that an iPhone in New York can start up a car in California.

"You get a device installed in your car, then you can start your car from virtually anywhere in the world with your iPhone," says Kevin Duffy of Directed Electronics. "Warm it up, cool it down, defrost the windows, lock your doors, unlock your doors, pop the trunk, even do panic if you want to."

The Viper SmartStart is available for $500, including installation.

As always, there's more timesaving devices, traditional tech wrapped in less traditional design and plenty of gadgetry that try to make life more comfortable.

For example, a massage chair made by Inada USA can collapse into a compact cube.

"The Inada Cube tucks away very neatly in a compact, stowable package and when it's unfurled it offers a spectacular foot, calf, back and seat massage," says Cliff Levin of Inada USA.

The chair launches in limited quantity at the end of the month. It's not only smaller than other massage chairs, but at $800 it will take a smaller chunk out of your paycheck.