This year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is not short on innovation, and companies from all around the world display their finest products at stands throughout the exhibition. But among the latest-generation computers and handheld devices, a new class of gadgets started getting a lot of attention – the one dealing with the needs of young children and seniors, for which the modern times mean a lot of fancy equipment that is not always very user-friendly, and can be difficult to operate at times.

Among the top gizmos presented at CES there were several medical instruments, designed to monitor the health conditions of babies or elderly people. Basically, heart rate monitors, or surveillance systems could be installed in rooms, to detect if a person stops moving for a pre-determined amount of time, if a baby cries, or if an older person slips.

The elderly could also benefit from new classes of hearing aids, designed specifically to boost the sounds coming from television sets or telephones, so as to allow them to watch your average show or to be able to hear the person at the other end of the line in a conversation.

Plantronics-owned Clarity, for example, showcased a mobile phone that has a very loud speaker, and only four large buttons, so operating it is very easy, even for children or impaired adults. Numbers can be programmed in its memory, and the buttons act as speed dials, reducing the risk of people getting puzzled by numerous keys on standard QWERTY keyboards.

WowWee exhibited a device known as a 'Spy Ball', which the company says will have a tremendous success with children. The ball can be thrown down the stairs, or strategically placed in a circulated spot, and then it can be remote controlled, while the handler watches what happens in the other rooms via a display. The corporation also announced that it would introduce new animals in its robotic toy collection, including Husky dogs, leopards and koalas.

These are but a few of the marvelous things that CES 2009 has to offer to two of the most often disregarded categories of the general public. Undoubtedly, future editions will see an expansion of companies' interest in these segments.