CES 2020: The Kingdom of Concept Tech
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) takes place every year in Las Vegas. It has no limits when it comes to showcasing innovations and the future of technology. In CES last year, we saw mostly viable products and fewer concept tech. However, this year’s show had a completely different theme, the land of concept technology.
This is to say that the ideas and concepts that stole our attention this year, might not be available to use in the near future. Of course, there were some laptops and mobile phones that companies promised to launch in 2020, but there were also concepts like Smart City by Toyota, Samsung’s artificial humans, or Mercedes AVTR, that might never see the light of the day.
So to let you glance through it all, we have created a list of gadgets that had the biggest impact on the attendees at this year’s CES.
Also Read: Ultimate Trends of CES 2020
Mercedes-Benz Vision AVTR
The German automaker’s Avatar-inspired concept car looks like it came to life straight from the movie itself! This car aims to merge the driver and the car, through biometric tech. This car is a result of an actual partnership between Mercedes-Benz and James Cameron’s film franchise.
The shape of Vision AVTR is breathtaking, as it has a badge that lights up and illuminated spokes on its wheels. The car has transparent doors and 33 movable, multidirectional ‘bionic flaps’ at the back, which are meant to look like scales on a reptile. When you sit inside the vehicle, it will detect your pulse and even sense your breathing. With the biometric connection, Mercedes wants to merge the passenger and the vehicle and create a ‘symbiotic organism’. The concept car will also be able to crab-walk from side to side! Although this forward-thinking concept is frankly, outlandish, how cool would it be to drive a vehicle like this!
Sony’s Vision-S
Some companies reveal concept products which are often overstuffed with too many ambitious ideas. However, at this year’s CES, the electronics giant, Sony, surprised the attendees at the show by unveiling an electric concept car called the Vision-S. The company wants to be more involved with the electronic world and autonomous vehicles, giving birth to the concept of a fully functioning sedan.
The Vision-S is fully decorated with Sony sensors, runs on Sony’s software, and evidently flashes Sony’s entertainment products and technologies. The dashboard of the car is surrounded by an ultra-wide panoramic screen, for entertainment and driving information. This concept car can really change the future of autonomous vehicles. Too bad that Vision-S might never be anything other than just a ‘mere concept’.
OnePlus Concept One
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer, OnePlus, unveiled their first concept phone this CES. Concept One was launched in collaboration with McLaren. OnePlus claims that Concept One will be the first smartphone to feature an electromagnetic glass panel, which can turn transparent or opaque, to reveal or hide the rear camera, respectively. It takes just 0.7 seconds for this transition from solid black to fully clear, to complete.
The electromagnetic glass on the rear camera contains organic particles which react to current, hence enabling the transition. This translucent glass also serves a practical purpose by enabling the user to shoot even under harsh lighting! Although, OnePlus didn’t reveal any details about its specifications or even when, or if, they are planning to launch the smartphone.
Toyota’s City of the Future
One of the most ambitious technologies showcased at CES was Toyota’s Woven City, a prototype city of the future, that is designed to be built near Mount Fuji in Japan. Toyota’s ambitious new construction project will have no human-driven vehicles because today’s cities are built around cars, and they want to build a city with more sustainable forms of transportation.
The company is planning to build this city on across 175 acres, and will have self-driving vehicles that run on hydrogen fuel cells, robots, smart homes, and even have some new forms of personal mobility. The coolest part is regular people will be able to reside in the city! The main goal behind Woven City is to create a living laboratory for the development of future technologies.
Samsung’s Artificial Humans
Samsung’s recently unveiled concept, Neon, is a computationally-created virtual being that looks exactly like a human being and has the ability to exhibit emotions and intelligence. Neon won’t be physically present and be able to walk with us but will exist virtually. It will also look and act like real humans.
Neons won’t be AI assistants, but will simply act as a friend and will be able to speak various languages from Hindi to Spanish. This first artificial human will be designed to learn new skills and to form memories and experiences. To make it responsive, it will be enabled for interactions, complete with smiles and even chit chat! The company, however, hasn’t shared any details about how exactly this software will actually work.
The Urban Air Taxi
Hyundai Motor Group has partnered with Uber to build vehicles for ride-hailing services, but in a way that none of us had expected. The Hyundai Urban Air Mobility concept is an air taxi which is designed for Uber’s upcoming urban air travel service, Elevate. In this partnership, Hyundai will manufacture and deploy the air taxis while Uber will provide the air taxi services, connections to ground transportation, and customer interfaces with the help of an aerial ride-share network. Both the companies are developing infrastructure concepts for the take-off and landing of this future air taxi.
The compact aircraft will be able to carry 4 passengers, excluding the pilot. It has 4 vertically placed electronic propellers — much like a quadcopter drone. This will give the aircraft vertical take-off and landing capabilities. The cruising speed of the aircraft will be about 322 kilometres per hour and will have an operating range of about 96 kilometres.
CES surely gets bigger and bigger every year and the tech innovators strive to use this platform to its full potential. They showcase and unveil concepts and products that will revolutionise the tech industry in the future. Every year the companies recognise and sometimes even set the trends that can develop and impact the future, which is one of the most valuable parts of the show. New trends and unimaginable concepts will keep developing, as technology touches our lives like never before.
These were our shortlisted concept products. Apart from these, what according to you were the most interesting and unbelievable concepts at CES, this year? Share with us in the comments.
