LAS VEGAS - PALM took the wraps off its overhauled mobile operating system on Thursday and introduced a touch-screen phone, raising hopes the move can help it win back customers from rivals such as Apple's iPhone.

Palm shares jumped nearly 35 per cent, or US$1.15, to close at US$4.45 on the long-awaited announcements, which were made at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS - VAST, empty spaces in the middle of the show floor. Knots of uniformed salespeople standing idly next to flickering screens. A slow-moving crowd drifting from one display to the next.

Can this really be the much-touted Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the premier global technology showcase that in years past has been described as a war zone, a zoo, an unrivaled extravaganza?

LAS VEGAS - SONY chief executive Sir Howard Stringer on Thursday unveiled prototypes of video bifocals and bendable televisions as he kicked off a gadget-rich Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Mr Stringer, with help from film celebrity Tom Hanks, unveiled the future products after Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) chief Gary Shapiro called on president-elect Barack Obama to support the industry.