CES 2015: From Smart Belts to Smart Pots
It’s that time of the year again. While most of us are still recovering from the holiday season and working on our New Year’s Resolutions, the consumer electronic and technology tradeshow has kicked off again.
Here are a few of the most strange and amazing things we’ve seen so far:
ChihiraAico
Toshiba has launched a machine that is designed to ‘achieve heart-warming communication with human-like facial expression’, according to the tech company.
Once perfected, the creators hope she will be able to work in people-friendly environments as a health-care professional, for example.
Well.. Ok.
F 015 Luxury in Motion
We all know that self-driving vehicles will be part of our near future and with this ‘visionary concept’ that Mercedes-Benz launched on Monday, we don’t mind not driving at all. The car functions as a symbol of the sort of ideas that Mercedes-Benz envisions for the future.
The company thinks that looking forward to 2030, in which self-driving vehicles will be common and used in day-to-day travel, it will become more than just getting from Point A to Point B. Cars will be ‘exclusive cocoons’.
Too bad we have to wait for at least 15 more years until we, the regular people, can get to work in a car like this.
E Ink’s Dynamic Wall
The time where you had to decide what colour the wall of your bedroom would be, is over. The maker of the Amazon Kindle e-reader display now comes with a patented technology that gives you control on individual pigments. The technology is similar to what you see in most E Ink displays, but the possibilities will be endless. The display that you will put on the wall is low-powered and if you’re not changing the color, the wall won’t draw any power at all. It maintains its current look by default when switched off.
The Smart Belt
Do you always unbutton your pants after a big meal? Well, that’s so 2014.
A new product called Belty will replace that habit with their smart belt. The sensor-equipped smart belt automatically adjusts itself throughout the day, depending on how much you’ve eaten and how much exercise you’ve done to compensate. It connects with an app that charts the data it collects throughout the day, sending feedback to the motors, which expand and retract in response. The prototype still looks like a big piece of scrap metal taken from a 80's car model, but the company, Emiota, says it aims to make Belty a ‘high-end product’.
Parrot Pot
Good news for all people who can’t keep a plant alive for more than a month! The company Parrot has created a flower container that is enabled with Bluetooth. You might think this is as useless as a empty toilet paper roll, but here’s the good news: it tells you when your plant is thirsty and then waters it for you. The tall white pot has built-in sensors that can read the level of fertilisation, temperature and level of moisture in the soil and notify you when the plan needs water.
Who needs neighbours after all?!
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Annet is a Hyper Island alumni, currently living in Amsterdam and working as a Brand Strategist.
Also gives workshops in various creative methods, productivity & team development.
