Gotta love the opening of this article from the Consumer Electronics Show: “For an industry rocked by recession, consumer electronics firms have really been working hard to improve their offerings,” say the articles authors.

That translates to very good news for consumers who are looking to take advantage of all kinds of digital technologies — from smart phones like the iPhone and NexusOne to digital photography, radio, and navigation. There is awesome stuff for home and office usage.

Here is a review of a digital workout assistant that is within the article by Don Clark and Ben Charny at the Wall Street Journal,

PHILIPS ACTIVA

What it is: A workout companion that pumps you up

Price: $129

Availability: April

Most music players make poor workout companions because all they do is play music, Royal Philips Electronics says. That’s why it developed the Activa, which doesn’t just play pre-selected music as you churn on the treadmill.

Among other things, the gadget can sense a workout’s pace and select songs from a Philips library that tries to match it, using a technology called TempMusic. The Activa also shouts words of encouragement into your ears when it senses you need a boost, plus provides details about your current workout, such as calories burned, time, distance and how the readings measure up to goals you created for yourself.

That sounds pretty cool to me. There are lots of affordable technologies out there that families can use to spend time out there? What are your favorites? The Wii? Using Nav systems on road trips?