A Rocky 2008 Forecast for Consumer Tech

As the tech industry prepares for two huge events—the Consumer Electronics Show and Macworld—MarketWatch’s Therese Poletti takes a look at the year ahead, and has little nice to say about consumers’ continued appetite for buying. Few big products are expected to debut—“the commonly stated mantra for expectations is ‘evolutionary, not revolutionary’”—and recession fears may well be realized in 2008.

Consumers ignored gas prices and foreclosures in 2007 to help send the S&P’s tech stocks up 15.4% in the year of the iPhone. But now analyst reports warn of “nowhere to hide” in the sector, as those same mortgage woes come home to roost and investors inch toward the exits. Brace yourselves, warns Poletti, “because it's probably going to be a bumpy year.” (More Apple stories.)