Market opportunity: "Your Neighborhood CE Consultant"

I expect consumer electronics to get more complicated before they get simpler... this helps to explain the big push by Best Buy, CompUSA, and others to sell installation services into the home. I think there is a much bigger market opportunity. I think there is a chance for a firm to become "Your Neighborhood CE Consultant". This service would be everything from education before purchase, to installation, to support. Consumers could be billed on a "per use" or "annual" basis. Here is proof that this type of service is needed:

I love gadgets. I read Engadget, Gizmodo, and I often hop over to C|NET just to check out the latest and greatest gear. I often give friends advice on buying computers, DVD players/recorders, HDTVs, etc. Well today I felt like the average Joe shopping for consumer electronics.

As some of you know I am expecting my first child soon. Today I started looking at the camcorder market because the minute my girl enters the world I want to capture all the important moments. I figured this would be a quick little exercise in which I could jump to a few review sites and find the best camcorder for a dad to be on a budget. Holy S**t was I wrong.

I knew from the start that I wanted a Mini-DV camcorder, but after that I kept an open mind in terms of design, features, and price. I quickly learned that the camcorder market is harder to decode that then the dead sea scrolls. I found myself swimming in CCD chips, effective megapixel resolution, low light conditions, etc. I have NO IDEA which of these characteristics is important to me. I have no idea how I will use the camcorder other than I will be taping my baby girl. Do I need a camera which tapes well in low light conditions? How many effective megapixles do I need?

One day there will be a consumer electronics company that understands consumer marketing. Instead of creating products called "Sony DCRHC40 MiniDV" they will create the "Mid range - good for parents & average use". They will also come up with some standard ways to measure the performance.... no more "poor in low light levels"... it will say something like "Scored a 5 out of 10 in low light level performance, which correlates to 'this type of image' in 'this type of light condition'" All I know is that after hours of research I feel like I should just throw up my arms and buy what ever consumer reports suggests.