It’s easy to get really annoyed at big events like CES 2016 because vendors are constantly pitching you to write about products that just aren’t very good. However, this doesn’t mean that CES is totally worthless but rather that you have to filter out the truly promising products from the products that are just a waste of your time. 10 products announced at CES 2016 really caught my eye this year and I think they have the potential to really go somewhere in the coming years. Let’s check them out.
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802.11ah “HaLow”
OK, so this isn’t really a product so much as a wireless standard. However it’s also the most potentially important long-term announcement of the show since it will enable better communications between all of the different devices we have in our homes. 802.11ah is a new Wi-Fi standard announced at CES 2016 that promises to double the reach of current Wi-Fi radios while also using even less power. In short, this standard will be the glue that holds the smart home of the future together.
The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Although Tesla is by far the most hyped electric car manufacturer, General Motors generated some buzz of its own at CES 2016 with the unveiling the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt 2017. The car can get an estimated 200 miles per charge and, even more importantly, is affordably priced at $30,000 after government incentives.
LG’s wild rollable display
LG turned a lot of heads at CES 2016 this year with the unveiling of an 18-inch flexible display that the company says can be rolled up like a newspaper. Devices like last year’s Samsung Galaxy S6 edge showed us just some of the potential of curved displays but displays that can actually be rolled up or folded are taking these innovations to a whole new level and I can’t wait to see the applications LG comes up with for this technology going forward.
Parrot’s Disco drone
Drones were a big hit at CES 2016 this year and one of the most impressive came from manufacturer Parrot, which unveiled its new Disco drone. Unlike most drones on the market, the Disco is a full fixed-wing aircraft and it can fly at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour and can stay in the air for up to 45 minutes at a time. Parrot says the drone is also able to intelligently fly itself and avoid crashing into objects that may be in its path. It has no release date or price yet but you can bet it will be high on many hobbyists’ lists of things to buy this year.
The Razer Blade Stealth and Core
This is a brilliant idea for a PC gaming rig that can also serve as your everyday laptop. Essentially, Razer’s Blade Stealth laptop is designed to be sleek ultrabook that you can bring with you wherever you go. When you feel like turning into a powerful gaming PC, you can then plug it into the Core dock that will give you all the processing power you need to play your favorite PC games on max settings.
The Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator
I… I can’t believe I’m including this here either. Yes, it’s a refrigerator that costs $5,000… but it’s just so awesome. This fridge has a gigantic touchscreen and built-in stereo speakers so you can streaming your favorite music or watching your favorite Netflix shows via a connection with your Samsung smart TV. It also lets you shop for food directly from its touchscreen thanks to a partnership with MasterCard that will let you order food from multiple retailers. While this fridge certainly isn’t for everyone, it’s also the first kitchen appliance ever unveiled at CES that has ever even remotely intrigued me. And that is quite an achievement.
The EHang 184
Unmanned aerial drones are so last year. This year at CES, a Chinese company called EHang unveiled the first aerial drone that’s large enough for you to ride inside. The EHang 184 is loaded with sensors that are designed to help it avoid any potential dangers while in the air and the device can be controlled manually from inside using a simple tablet interface. While this drone looks incredible, I imagine it’s going to be a while before we see it go on sale in the U.S. as the FAA will likely not be eager to have everyone flying around in their own personal mini-helicopters.
Samsung’s SUHD TV lineup
Samsung really, really does TVs well. Samsung at CES 2016 unveiled its new flagship SUHD TV line that will begin rolling out later this year and will be available in sizes ranging from 49 inches to 88 inches. What makes these TVs really distinctive is their curved bezel-free displays that will offer you beautiful 4K resolution. The new SUHD TVs will come loaded with Samsung’s Tizen operating system that includes several key features such as the SmartHub that is your access point to all the content you watch, whether its on Netflix and Hulu or on regular network TV. The new TVs will start shipping in March.
Samsung Portable SSD T3
Samsung is really bringing the heat when it comes to SSD technology and its new Portable SSD T3 offers up to 2TB of storage encased in a device that’s the size of your palm and that weighs less than two ounces. The Portable SSD T3 is compatible with USB 3.1 and USB 2.0, it has a sequential transfer speed of up to 450Mbps, and it includes AES 256-bit hardware encryption.
LG’s Signature OLED TV
How much thinner can our TVs get? LG is trying to answer that question with its new LG Signature OLED TV that measures in at just 2.5 millimeters thick, or the same thickness as four stacked credit cards. The TV runs on webOS, the long-dead smartphone operating system that LG acquired from HP to use on its own home appliance and entertainment products. LG says that the new TV will start rolling out in March, although no pricing information has been revealed yet.
