Vegas attracts visitors from all over the U.S., and from other countries throughout the year. But, for three days, from January 9 to January 12, the city will see each year an influx of visitors for only one reason—the 2018 Consumer Electronics show. An annual event where companies of all sizes flaunt their latest gadgets, toys and other tech, CES is an event to mark on the calendar. Not only is this year’s CES expected to be bigger and better than ever, it is also expected to throw up many surprises. Here are 5 surprises to expect at CES 2018!
With the holidays and new year celebrations done and dusted, it is time to turn out attention to the first major public event of the year—the CES 2018. While the annual event still attracts many visitors from all over the U.S and other countries, it is not as popular as used to be a few years back. However, 2018 could be the year the CES returns to its past glory as the CES is expected to throw up many surprises this year. Attendees were to expect ‘never-seen before’ stuff at the 2018 Consumer Electronics show. However, here are the 5 biggest surprises that were at CES 2018.
Smart Cars
Though they aren’t yet regarded as consumer items, cars could be on show at the 2018 CES as they continue to get smarter and are equipped with electric motors—this could well be the justification cars need for participating in the event. Jim Hackett—the Ford of CEO, is the keynote speaker at this year’s CES and this is reason enough for a lot of car tech manufacturers to show off their gadgets.
Some of the car tech that could be on display at the 2018 CES includes smart-charging devices, cheaper LIDAR sensors, and new driver safety AI systems—all that is required to produce cheaper, faster and more-intelligent self-driving cars. Though all major car manufacturers will be at the CES this year, we won’t be seeing any clash of concepts at the event. However, some of them may well surprise us will ‘out of the box’ technology. Also, since Ford is already partnering with OjO to produce variety of electric scooters, expects many electric scooters at this year’s show.
But, it won’t be just smart car tech or electric scooters on display. Attendees will also come across self-balancing hoverboards, electric skateboards and any other transportation tech that helps you to get around places faster. In short, there will be a lot of futuristic transportation technology on display at the 2018 Consumer Electronics show.
New Smart Home Devices
Smart thermostats and smart doorbells are already a thing and we may soon witness a range of other smart devices in our homes as well. While it will be some time before the smart devices are part of our home, they will be on display at this year’s Consumer Electronics show. Expect to come across improved version of existing technology at the event, with home devices being subjected to the biggest changes.
Amazon and Google have been trying for years to sync Assistant and Alexa work with many different home appliances. We may see a whole host of technology that integrates with the aforementioned-voice assistants at the 2018 CES. Soon, you may be able to open the front door just by speaking. Also, other tech that you may soon see in your home and that could be on display at the 2018 CES includes smart bathroom facilities, connected crockpots and transparent fridges. Major innovations in the smart appliance space is also expected to be on display at the 2018 edition of the annual consumer electronics show.
Augmented Reality
Thanks to the popularity of Alexa, voice-activated assistants were the show-stopper at last year’s CES. However, virtual reality (VR) wasn’t too far behind in the race for the top spot—with the VR press conference hosted by Intel and VR powered roller coaster rides offered by Samsun being the highlights. While VR is still popular among tech enthusiasts, exhibitors are expected to focus on augmented reality rather than virtual reality. This is largely due to the debut of Apple’s ARKit software—tech that help developers to build AR apps for iOS devices. New apps and services that leverage the AR tools offered by Appel are expected to be on display at the 2018 CES.
Robots
2017 was the year AI voice assistant became common in homes. Additionally, robots continue to be get smarter. With this knowledge, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that 2018 could be the year robots go mainstream. From toys to manufacturing plants, robots are everywhere and the appearance of AI chips in consumer-grade products is helping increase the acceptability of robots. So, don’t be surprised if you see a lot of robotic technology on display at the CES 2018.
Wearables
A broad category, wearables at the 2018 CES can include a range of things including AR glasses, brain headbands and GPS watches. A possibility at the CES 2018 is the exhibition of health/ fitness wearables. Spanning more than 60,000 square feet, two areas will be dedicated to health and fitness tech at the CES 2018. Some of the health and fitness wearables you can expect to see at the CES 2018 include sleep trackers, fertility monitors and gluten sensors.
In addition to the aforementioned-things, there are some other new tech-based products that you can expect to come across at the CES 2018. Head to Vegas and wait for out next piece on CES to find out about them. If you can fit the criteria to get in next year, you should go check it out. If you do, look for me. www.ces.tech
by Bobby J Davidson
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