Dubai: CES, the world’s largest consumer electronics event, has now wrapped up for another year, leaving Las Vegas in its wake, and sending hundreds of thousands of visitors home, bleary-eyed and full of inspiration.
As always, the show highlighted a huge variety of impressive, useful, and downright weird gadgets.
From medical equipment to enormous TV screens, tablets to talking tables, autonomous pizza delivery vehicles and cameras, there is something for everyone at CES.
Here, we cut through the buzzwords to bring you the best products on display at CES this year, some of which may go on to become the cornerstones of people’s homes.
Aibo
One thing likely to catch peoples’ attention from Sony’s otherwise lacklustre press conference on Monday was the appearance of Aibo, the recently-resurrected robotic dog, which Sony famously launched over a decade ago.
Previously announced in November 2017, Sony chief executive Kazuo Hirai said that over time, Aibo will now recognise its owner, and deepen its emotional bond with them. The robotic canine, which is now 4G and LTE enabled, also features cloud backup services, OLED eyes, deep learning AI, and a camera with which to take photos.
Kohler Numi intelligent toilet
Despite showcasing a number of crafty and useful home appliances such as fridges and ovens, it wasn’t just the kitchen that saw an increase in IQ at CES: The bathroom, too, is about to get a bit smarter.
For those who need entertainment while sat on the toilet, this absurdly expensive toilet ($7,500) offers personalised settings that let you fine-tune every option to your exact preferences, from ambient coloured lighting to wireless Bluetooth music sync capability to the heated seat and foot warmer.
The loo allows you its occupant to play their favourite music and podcasts, either streaming wirelessly, through stored MP3 files on an SD card, or through a plugged in device via the auxiliary cable.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga
Many of us use the Lenovo ThinkPad at work, the most common model being the T440s. But banish those thoughts of clunky keys and shoddy screens, because Lenovo’s latest models are truly something to behold.
With a sharp HDR screen, a fingerprint reader, great keyboard and a next-generation processor, this is surely the laptop of the future.
LG’s 65 inch rolling TV
With user presets for up to six people, recalling individual saved preferences, this is very much a toilet for all the family.
South Korean electronics giant LG has developed a stunning 65 inch, 4K OLED TV that has one extremely unique feature: It can be rolled up like a giant newspaper. LG say that this will allow customers to make the most of living space without the need for it to be dominated by a large screen.
The TV simply unrolls when needed. Sadly this is just a prototype at the moment, so there is no pricing or release date, but such an innovative technology is bound to see the light of day sometime in the near future.
HTC Vive Pro
Seen by many as the strongest virtual reality device of the show, the HTC Vive Pro offers an exceptional improvement to VR hardware in both resolution and audio, clearing up many issues that plague its competitors.
The headset is likely to become the gold standard going forwards.
Panasonic’s next generation Living Space Autonomous Cabin
Japan’s Panasonic showcased three next-generation cockpit/cabin system concepts to meet vehicle advances expected over the next decade at CES 2018.
When the need for a driver is eventually phased out by autonomous vehicles, the space inside a car can be opened up for a number of uses by its passengers.
Panasonic offered three different configurations at this year’s show. Firstly, what it calls the living room style: The comfort of the cabin space is equivalent to that of a home living room by providing a digital sunshade, seats and a cabin air conditioner equipped with an air quality controller, living room lighting, and an agent function achieved by AI and cloud connectivity.
Next is the car’s business set up: The seats swivel around to face a desk and an L-shaped monitor, with privacy shades elevating to help concentration. Lastly is the company’s configuration designed for relaxation.
This style features a multichannel surround system with 22 speakers, huge 77 inch all-around screens, and relaxing lighting, air conditioning, air quality improvement, and aromas.
Samsung’s smart home appliances
The South Korean company was displaying its full suite of intelligent home devices, all now enabled with its personal assistant Bixby.
Fridges, air conditioning units, TVs, ovens and washing machines can all now be controlled by voice, and work in unison to make the homeowners life that much easier. Seeing them all work together at the request of a voice was highly impressive.
