The main CES show floors opened up today, and there is a lot (too much?) to see in one day. Fortunately, we got a sneak peek at Tuesday’s CES Unveiled event and last night’s PEPCOM event where large and small companies were able to discuss their new innovations directly with invited press. Without further ado, here are some the biggest trends for CES 2023 that will likely impact our world soon.
Wireless Power
Wireless power has been and remains a tantalizing look at the future. Nikola Tesla predicted that humans would beam energy directly to devices yet these capabilities remain elusive today. Some devices, like last year’s Samsung Freestyle remote control harvests power from ambient Wi-Fi signals or solar energy, eliminating batteries entirely. But most devices still require that pesky power cord.
Wireless power is still emerging and some companies like Wi-Charge, Powercast, and Energous demonstrated their versions at CES which use a transmitter to beam energy across open air to a receiver which powers a device at a distance. Some even started the Wireless Power Consortium to help advance the industry. While not exactly “beaming” power, many think of the Qi folks when they think of wireless power, and they announced that the next version of the Qi wireless charging standard (Qi2) will use magnets, just like Apple’s MagSafe. This means that MagSafe-like chargers are coming to the Android world soon.
Solar Electric Generators
Speaking of power: electric generators, (actually oxymoronic since they don’t generate anything) were everywhere. Essentially big, portable batteries now enable people to power devices without a connection to AC lines. They are called “generators” simply because they are often used where gas-powered generators might come in handy, mostly during power failures. However, thanks to recent battery density improvements, these now find favor on job sites, in RVs, outdoor activities and tailgating and have started to come into their own as a real category. They can be charged directly from portable solar panels (think extended power outages where gas may not even be available for traditional generators), and if stacked together properly can power an entire home. Some enterprising customers even shift their power use by charging their batteries at off-peak hours (or even at free EV charging stations) then run their households off these packs during peak time, reducing their energy bills.
We’re still in the early innings of electric generators, but thanks to the other Tesla proving that families can run their homes off big batteries installed in their garages, this category is growing fast and may be part of every home soon. Look to EcoFlow, Jackery, Bluetti for more details.
Robot Vacuums, Lawnmowers and Pool Cleaners
Robotic vacuums from Neato and Roomba have been around for decades, but now the battery tech (see above) has improved to enable robot makers to tackle other categories. Everywhere we looked we found impressive displays of next generation robot vacuums that can now mop floors, clean themselves, navigate around pets (and their byproducts), and learn your behaviors. One of the largest displays was for a product called Noesis Florio, which demonstrated their sleek white vacuum that did all this and more. Directly across the aisle was a similar display from Worx touting Landroid, their camera-powered robot lawnmower that looked like a small orange tank yet able to avoid running over a stuffed dog and a garden hose. We saw the Lawnmeister, Novabot, and Yarbo robot lawnmowers some of which were also capable of blowing leaves, spreading fertilizer, and weeding.
Finally, we saw at quite a few robotic pool cleaners but the coolest was Aiper‘s cordless Seagull. There were others from Lydsto and other names I forgot. Soon we may never need do any chores inside or outside our homes. Not sure I’m looking forward to that.
Digital Health
Much of LVCC North Hall was dedicated to digital health products. There were so many that we’re going to dedicate an entire post to what we discovered. Sneak peak: the smart toilet has arrived and your life will never be the same.