Sunday, January 15, 2017

GADGET SPECIAL CES 2017: A WINDOW TO YOUR TECH FUTURE (1)

CES 2017: A WINDOW TO YOUR TECH FUTURE (1)
Here’s taking a look at some of the most attention-grabbing gadgets at the CES
CES, THE biggest technology show in the world turned 50 this year. But unlike any other 50-year-old, this was easily its best year. Sparkly, sprightly and very smart – this may well have been an event on pure steroids. Here’s what stood out, what blew people’s mind as well as some that was just plain weird.

TECH TOPPERS
LG Smart InstaView Refrigerator has great smarts built in;
PowerVision PowerRay Drone is made for underwater adventures;
Razer Project Valerie is a laptop with three fold-out screens;
Faraday FF91 car is a game changer Garmin;
Fenix 5 is lighter and smaller than Fenix 3

PowerVision PowerRay Drone:
This drone plunges deep down and is for underwater adventures. A built-in 4K video camera customised for photography under water, a fish finder feature and an egg-like structure make this a very efficient drone.

LG Smart InstaView Refrigerator
For me, this was heaven-sent as it is based on the Amazon Alexa voice assistant platform and thus has some real smarts built in. It has a 29-inch touch screen on which you can ask for recipes to be shown, set up a timer, add things to a shopping list and even leave notes. Besides, it’ll play you music, show you cooking technique videos, read you some news and even alert you when something is burning in the kitchen.

Lenovo Smart Assistant:
Yes, one more voice assistant speaker and yes, one more built on the Amazon Alexa system. But this one goes one better than the original with a better audio system, sound quality and a set of extra features from Lenovo. There was even a Harman Kardon Edition that had a truly rich sound.

Motiv Ring:
It’s a ring that can replace your fitness band. It measures heart rate, calories burnt, sleep, distance travelled and activity types. It’s all metal thus waterproof and has great battery life. So if you’re about to get engaged, try and convince your partner to give you one of these. Could save your life!

Razer Project Valerie:
This was by far the most insane and overthe-top product I’ve ever seen. It’s a laptop with three screens that fold out and each screen is 4K. So, you have the world’s first 12K laptop. It has outrageous horsepower and hardware to blow out graphics on all three screens. And yes, its a gaming laptop.

Asus Zenphone AR:
A phone that can do Augmented and Virtual Reality, has a triple camera system to pull it off and can run both Google’s Daydream VR and Tango AR systems (though not at the same time). Add to that a really heavy-duty processor and 8GB Ram and you get where Asus is going with this one.

Xiaomi Mi 4 TV:
Take a great display, ensure the form factor is stunning, reduce the bezel to almost zero, price it hot and low and then add modularity. That’s the Xiaomi Mi 4 TV for you. Almost all the vital electronics are inside its sound bar, so just hook up the next version and you’ll have a brand new TV.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH5:
The showstopper camera of CES. 6K photography, 4K video capture at up to 60fps, in-body image stabilisation, 10-bit capture, quick autofocus system, quick burst rate and a very easy menu system. All of this in a small little form factor that hides a lot of power within.

LG Oled W TV:
This TV is named with the alphabet W because it stands for Wallpaper and that’s what this remarkable TV is all about. It’s so thin that you can paste it to your wall as wallpaper. It is one-tenth of an inch and yet has stunning colour reproduction and a vivid picture. Faraday FF91 Car: If ever there was a company that could take Tesla on, here it is. Faraday’s hit back with an amazing car that stunned the entire CES. By far the most gorgeous car ever built, this one has an incredible range of 378 miles, can park itself, drive itself, and has so many sensors and automation that it’s impossible to keep count. Faraday and Tesla – two names that may well change world of cars forever.

Garmin Fenix 5:
The Fenix 3 was by far the best runner watch, fitness band cum smartwatch barring none. Except you needed a pretty hefty wrist to support one. Well, the all new Fenix 5 took care of that and how. Three versions and three different sizes, including one that is perfect for women, one that is much lighter and smaller, and finally, one that is still for the brawny athlete. New UI and features complete the package.

Kerastase Withings Smart Hairbrush:
Things got really weird here as I brushed my hair with this one. It kept telling me that I wasn’t doing it right and may be damaging my scalp and hair. Kerastase and Withings and L’Oreal have come together to make the world’s first smart hairbrush. The Kerastase Hair Coach tracks your brushing techniques and reports on your hair quality. For me, this was just one of those weird products that should never have seen the light of day.

·         Rajiv Makhni Rajiv Makhni is managing editor, Technology, NDTV, and the anchor of Gadget Guru, Cell Guru and Newsnet 3
HTBR15JAN17
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