My Top 20 pick from Devices at CES 2020

Well the CES is becoming more and more IoT oriented as we see the conversion of every device you can think of into a smart device. From Cars to Cameras to Home entertainment to Health, we have clearly entered an era of 5G. 5G will be critical to support the usage and proliferation of these devices ushering us into the Hyper Connectivity Age.

Here is the list of devices I personally loved and believe will be a great success in the years to come.

The Wall MicroLED TV

Samsung has done it again and delivered the biggest TV ever — The Wall!! It measures a massive 24 feet and delivers 8K resolution using MicroLED technology which illuminates every inch and corner of the screen with a mindboggling picture quality. While it is going to cost a ton, the viewing experience will be outer space and if you can afford it why not.

Delta Airlines exoskeleton

Exoskeletons are a reality and here to stay. They complete the picture of adding superhuman capability to the dexterity and ability of humans. With a lot already happening in this space especially with the Knee-assist exoskeleton device, it was an utter surprise that this battery powered device that can help you lift heavy weights came out of Delta Air’s workshop. Well that is real innovation and maybe a great pivot in times to come for Delta.

Withings ScanWatch

Nothing special about a watch that can monitor your heart rate, take ECG, track blood oxygen levels, arrhythmia, arterial fibrillation and transfer all that health data for the right kind of medication or diagnosis like Apple Watch and Fitbit can do, but what is special about Withings is the capability to detect sleep apnea through deep sleep analysis and help you counter this problem. Sleeping well can itself take care of a lot of ailments and so I think Withings seems to have a winner here.

BrainCo prosthetic hand

Can’t help but remember Terminator and how the hand was showcased in a museum in the movie and how it led to the development of the terminator. BrianCo’s AI-powered prosthetic hand interprets the brain waves and muscle movement to perform all functions of a normal human hand. With the help of AI assisted software a user can train the hand to perform even delicate gestures and finger movements to the extent of being able to even write, paint, draw and count on finger tips. Massively useful as a prosthetic but I can bet it will have many more uses once launched.

Narwal mop and vacuum robot

This is as close at it gets to human mopping the floor using water. Narwal mop and vacuum robot can mop the floor, clear up the dirty water and be ready with clean water for the next mop cycle. Using the app you can feed in the layout of your house and program the cleaning job. Now you can read that book, while Narwal mops your house clean noiselessly.

PowerEgg X drone

A drone that also becomes a selfie camera or a tabletop camera, it uses facial recognition, is waterproof and small. The PowerEgg X can fly in rain, track and keep the subject in the center of the video image, take stable pics both on the table top and while flying and is AI assisted and has learning capabilities. If you like drones, then this is a must have for you.

Hyundai — Urban air taxi

A 5 seater compact aircraft designed for the Uber Elevate service, this is a great air taxi that can cruise at altitudes of upto 2000 feet. It’s a quadcopter that enables it to land and lift vertically and quietly. When in cruise mode the craft converts to a wing configuration making it an efficient airplane which can rapid charge in about 15 mins. This one seems to be an ideal metropolis mobility and transport option.

Bosch Virtual Visor

I love this one because of the utility and simplicity and how it escaped innovation for so long. Bosch Virtual Visor digitally blocks sun glare by using a smart LCD flip screen along with a camera that tracks the amount of sun falling on the driver face and effectively blocks the sun from that area by using AI assisted facial recognition while the remaining visor remains transparent so that driving vision is minimally impacted. This is a good one with clear deployment opportunity across all cars and four wheelers.

Sony electric vehicle

This one surprised everyone. Sony unveiled its electric car concept on the Vision-S platform complete with Sony’s imaging technology prowess. I think the concept car was more to showcase the Vision-S platform capability rather than a signal that Sony is getting into car manufacturing. I think Sony is aiming to play a pivotal role in the connected car space through this platform and this seems to be the best way to showcase what Vision-S as a platform can do — like detecting people in the car, immersive audio experience and intuitive user interfaces with content viewing capabilities.

Mercedes-Benz Vision AVTR

Another car which captured a lot of attention was the Mercedes Benz AVTR which is conceptualised on the movie Avatar by James Cameroon. It is supposed to promote the connection between you and the car, making the experience much more emotional than mechanical. With its ability to detect pulse, project panoramic views of the outside, no doors and a connected, immersive and intuitive interface this sure catches your eye and gives you that Wow!!

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold

And this one is a foldable laptop. Thinkpad is a personal favorite as I think it is one of the sturdiest laptops with great features and support. With a fold capability, it just makes Thinkpad more desirable. This dynamic and flexible form factor allows you to create on the screen various work configurations that will improve your multitasking abilities.

Dell foldable tablet

I personally like the foldable tablet more than the phone. This just makes the big screen even bigger and then also gives you a whole lot of multitasking capability. You can use it as two screens or one screen and one tool-screen or maybe do video call on one while you work on the other. You can maneuver the key board and place it where you like. This one is quite desirable.

Wemo Wi-Fi Smart Plug

I like Wemo because of the functionality of the design and the plug and play model which seamlessly integrates into your house with no wiring or need to change exiting installations of switches of plugs. Its small and can automate anything you plug into it.

Level Lock

This lock also is very functional and makes locking a combination of analog and digital. You retain your keys but can also remotely unlock the door using the app and unlock the door with your phone. It uses a CR2 lithium battery that hides inside the deadbolt to power itself and that is smart.

Neon

If you have seen “Her” then Neon is bringing “Her” to life. With almost real like digital people Neon plans to create Digital Beings in the human avatar so that they can be personal teachers, advisors, assistants etc. Coming out of Samsung STAR labs, Neon describes its technology as “a computationally created virtual being that looks and behaves like a real human, with the ability to show emotions and intelligence.” Neons are being created to behave, act like humans, have emotions, have realistic conversations and memories and ability to learn on their own. Neon is tipped to be a new Species on our planet, created by humans.

Harman Kardon Citation Oasis

One of the best in the business of audio has unveiled a smart speaker that doubles up as a clock and a Google digital assistant. You can stream music on this instead of using an app to control it and wirelessly charge it too and it has a sleep mode function that automatically turns off the Wi-Fi.

RoboKitties

If you recall the CryptoKitties then RoboKitties will be no surprise for you. Elephant Robotics has delivered a bionic cat that can walk, scratch, stretch, play, maneuver obstacles and listen to your commands

Quibi

This one grabbed a lot of attention not only because of its founders but also because it is aiming to completely disrupt how and what content we watch on our mobiles. Quibi is making 5–15 mins of content that is made for mobile. Well this is not the first service of this kind but Quibi may be able to pull it off using its far-reaching ability to get content rights and partnerships.

Ballie

Ballie is almost like BB8 from Star Wars except the colors of course. This is an AI capable device that is multi skilled and can perform tasks like cleaning, doing random checks, keep kids company, record and perform surveillance, take pics at the right moment and a lot of other things you will like it to perform which it can learn on the go. Clearly Digital Assistants are morphing into tangible devices from their current voice formats. Samsung wants Ballie to be our trusted personalized companion that can give us unique experiences and also keep secrets.

Pampers Lumi

This is real for new age babies. Haha. Pampers has put a baby monitoring system inside the diaper. It captures sleep data and tell you if the sleep is enough and gives baby care recommendations on the app. The product is quite costly and maybe of utility for Rich Babies. Haha

With that note I finish my list of devices that I liked in the CES 2020.