Just sitting down to gather some thoughts and observations from the SCAA show in Houston. My trip was planned at the very last minute, so didn't see or do quite as much as I had in previous years, but I did see some stuff that I'd like to share.

Great as always to catch up with my bX friends (and meet some for the first time).

Here's what caught my attention:

1. Multi-colored LED and touchscreens everywhere! Seriously, anywhere a manufacturer could put an LED or touchpad it seemed like they did... whether it was the full-width strip and glass touchpads on the new UNIC, the lights on the Mythos grinder, the trim on the Rancillio Classe 9, etc. LOTS of iPod-esque graphical interfaces too. A mix of functional lighting and pure flash-factor.

2. Paul Yates (after sacking me for abut 5 yards!) practically dragged me over to see a nifty electric kettle with skinny s-curved pouring spout. I like this idea for home use, a lot... especially at the pretty reasonable price point they were talking. It's a new product for them (company name escapes me at present), but I think they got a great response. Looking forward to hearing what others thought about it.

3. The Rancilio temperature profiling system. It brings a multi-boiler system to their lineup, albeit in a slightly different way. If I recall correctly, it employs both heating elements and cold water mixing just prior to the group, allowing the user to select a flat, increasing, or decreasing temperature profile. Different settings and temps can be chosen for each group. Interesting stuff.

4. The Bunn Trifecta team has rolled out a site to help users find and share recipes and secrets for dialing in coffees. This seems like a good way to address what has surely been a challenge for new Trifecta users - figuring out what to do with all of those variables.

5. Scales on grinders. Both the team at Baratza and the team at Bunn now have weight-based dosing systems. Didn't stop to play, so hoping others can jump in here.

For other attendees, what caught your eye?