BUZZWORTHY
Compiled by Andre James and Bridget Williams
One of the largest gatherings for those who thrive on the business of consumer technologies, the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this past January drew more than 4,500 exhibiting companies and 175,000 attendees, representing 160 countries. First held in New York City in 1967, some 700,000 products have been launched at the show in the ensuing decades. From the VCR in 1970 to this year, where Tokyo debuted plans for a "Woven City" at the base of Mount Fuji, technology continues to evolve at breakneck speed. With 2.9-million-square-feet of companies vying for our attention, for our CES roundup, we eschewed the outlandish in favor of technology most likely to make it into daily life.
WHAT'S COOKING
CookingPal Julia is an intelligent autonomous cooking system. Its voice-enabled tablet suggests meals and provides step-by-step recipe guidance and works in tandem with a Smart Kitchen Appliance that handles every element of prepping a meal, from chopping and kneading to stirring and steaming. It even cleans up after itself! With a built-in camera and AI food recognition capabilities, it can suggest what to make based on what you have. Available in late 2020, Julia is expected to retail for under $1,000 (cookingpal.com).
The Kitchen Hub from GE Appliances is a first-of-its-kind, over-the-range interactive smart kitchen and ventilation system. The second-generation iteration includes a built-in microwave with a camera inside that syncs with AI computer vision cooking technology, to create a cutting-edge digital cooking experience. Available in late 2020, pricing is yet to be announced (geappliances.com).
Drinking beverages from plastic bottles uses up to 32 times more greenhouse gas emissions than drinking from your tap. Designed to eliminate single-use plastic bottles, the Rocean One is a stylish countertop device that filters, flavors, and carbonates water directly from the tap. You can sign up for the waitlist at rocean.com.
For Weber's debut at CES, the barbecue grill brand showcased its Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub. This first-of-its-kind grilling assistant sends notifications directly to a smartphone on everything from grill set up, to when food is ready to flip, serve, and eat ($130; weber.com)
SOUND DECISIONS
Upstart Cleer Audio is challenging the notion of boxy sounders with its Crescent range, an array of eight custom 40mm full-range drivers, and two 3.3" subwoofers (cleeraudio.com).
Altec Lansing unveiled new speaker models for its line of Everything-Proof Bluetooth speakers. "Play Your Way" technology allows users to play the device vertically, for true 360 omnidirectional sound, or horizontally, for front-facing stereo sound (from $40; alteclansing.com).
AfterShokz showcased bone conduction headphones. Their military-grade technology keeps the eardrum open to ambient noise, giving the wearer situational awareness that traditional headphones lack (from $80; aftershokz.com).
FIT BITS
Technology is often blamed for making us sedentary. At CES, it had big plans to get us to move more and keep us apprised of our health stats with noninvasive wearable tech.
Circular is a lightweight, seamless, and comfortable hybrid smart ring with interchangeable shells that uses cross-correlation, precise captors, and machine learning for laboratory-level accuracy. It has six features, an artificial assistant and an intuitive mobile app that analyzes users' day and night data for personalized wellness suggestions. https://circular.xyz/.
Amazfit HomeStudio is a connected fitness treadmill mated with a 43" HD screen (called the GLASS), and surround-sound JBL speakers to provide an immersive and highly personal boutique fitness experience. Amazfit HomeStudio utilizes AI-powered computer vision to detect and help correct form (pricing yet to be announced; en.amazfit.com).
Withings ScanWatch is the world's first clinically validated hybrid smartwatch to detect both risks of AFib and sleep apnea – all from the wrist (from $249; withings.com).
Tonal is a sleekly designed, at-home workout machine that combines cutting edge tech with personalized, expert-led fitness programs. Tonal's AI. Coach software is intuitive and learns from users to adapt guidance in real-time and provide a highly personalized workout ($2,995; Tonal.com).
Power Plate demoed their new Power Plate MOVE. This lightweight and portable vibration trainer boasts a large platform area and six variable frequency modes to accommodate exercises from weight training to HIIT workouts ($2,995; powerplate.com).
The Muse S meditation headband utilizes passive advanced signal processing used by neuroscience researchers to interpret mental activity. Working in tandem with the Muse Meditation app, once you've finished your session, you can access real-time data to track your progress ($210; choosemuse.com).
SEE THE LIGHT
Developed by Mark Zuckerberg for his wife, the zLight functions as a sleep box that emits a faint light at a set time to let you know whether it's time to get up or fall back asleep. zLight can also be used as an audio sound system, a minimalistic wireless charger, and an environment controller with temperature, humidity, and CO2 sensors to guarantee top air quality in any bedroom. (preorder at indiegogo.com).
The Nanoleaf Learning Series includes hexagon-shaped Unified Light Panels, the first-ever modular smart lights with shape interconnectivity. Available in summer 2020 (nanoleaf.me)
LIFX Filament represents the growing trend towards vintage Edison-type smart lights. Available in smoky, amber and clear glass versions, the bulbs support all voice assistants, cloud connectivity and remote on/o and dimming functionality (lifx.com).
SEA WORTHY
Brunswick unveiled its SLX-R 400e Outboard. The "e" designates a first-of-its-kind boat electrification feature—the Fathom e-Power system. Developed by Brunswick, the high-capacity lithium-ion battery pack with an intuitive power management system is capable of powering all of the boat's accessory systems to enjoy a longer, quieter, and more eco-friendly day on the water.
The Manta5 Hydrofoil eBike replicates the intuitive cycling experience on water using carbon fiber foils (the wings) and a fully waterproof eBike battery and motor. With variable pedal assist, cyclists can reach speeds of up to 12 mph ($7,495; manta5.com)
Waydoo took the wraps off of its updated e-Foil "flying surfboard." The carbon-fiber Waydoo Flyer has a 6,000W battery that gives users a steady ride of up to 75 minutes on a full charge and a top speed of 28mph. It's controlled by a wireless Bluetooth hand-held controller with five-speed and proficiency modes ($6,495; waydootech.com).
DOGGONE SMART
SpotOn Virtual Fence gives dogs the freedom to be dogs and owners the peace of mind to let them. The only genuinely wireless containment solution, SpotOn replaces buried wires and base stations with GPS technology. Simply use the collar to walk a perimeter anywhere, creating an instant containment area. SpotOn's satellite tracking notifies owners via the phone app when a dog leaves the area and allows them to locate their dog in realtime with turn-by-turn directions (spotoncollar.com).
ABOUT FACE
Opte from P&G Ventures scans, detects, and corrects hyper-pigmentation with precision application of an Optimizing Serum that reduces the appearance of spots over time. Join the waitlist at opteskin.com. IONIQ showcased the first smart skincare sprayer. Using magnetic skin technology, users can spray skincare products, such as sunscreen, onto their whole body without the need to rub-it-in. The product is scheduled to launch in June 2020 (ioniqskin.com)
Y-Brush, an auto-cleaning electronic toothbrush, claims to simultaneously deep-clean all of your teeth in just 10 seconds using sonic vibration technology (from $125; us.y-brush.com).
WATCH LIST
The W81 series from Skyworth, China's leading TV brand, created quite a stir with their paper-thin OLED TV (4.6mm at its slimmest point) in 65" and 77". The screen seamlessly attaches to the wall with help from a powerful magnetic fixture and an invisible wall mount for added stability (from $3,599; skyworthusa.com)
Infinity announced a new line of InFocus 4K HDR smart TV with a slim, frameless infinity screen. They will be available in retail stores across the US in March (infocustvs.com).
Eight of the 13 TVs on display at the LG booth were Real 8K TV models. A new Filmmaker Mode disables certain post processing effects while preserving correct aspect ratios, colors and frame rates to faithfully replicate the original vision of the director (lg.com).
Samsung growing its portfolio of Lifestyle TVs with an expanded rollout of The Sero. The Sero, which means “vertical” in Korean, has the ability to pivot between horizontal and vertical orientations – just like a smartphone or tablet. Following its initial rollout in South Korea last year, Samsung is set to expand The Sero’s availability to several global markets in 2020 (Samsung.com)
NOT LOST IN TRANSLATION
The Lingolet One is an industry-first smart translation device offering both AI-based machine translation between 12 languages in near real-time with 97% accuracy and on-demand human interpretation service (starting at $59 on amazon.com)
CONNECTED DISCONNECTION
TOTO's Flotation Tub simulates zero gravity by eliminating the mechanical energy/ load on joints. The experience is enhanced by specialized massage jets that produce a therapeutic fl ow of warm air bubbles ($18,799; totousa.com).
Swedish luxury bedmaker DUX launched its new Element bed. Its DUX Smart Module encompasses an integrated Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled speaker that is Amazon Alexa compatible. Users can tap into their home's IoT system to play music and make other adjustments to create an optimal sleep environment (duxiana.com).
SOMETHING TO WINE ABOUT
Designed for the serious wine enthusiast and collection, the WineStation Cellar combined the powerful WineStation Intelligent Dispensing System with a high capacity wine cooler, allowing collectors to keep their stored wines in pristine condition for years to come. Able to store up to 80 bottles in a temperature-controlled environment, an argon gas preservation system can keep open bottles fresh for 60 days inside the unit and 14 days outside (napatechnology.com)
