January in Las Vegas means the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is back once again. This is the annual event where the tech industry kicks off the year by giving major players and modest startups alike the chance to showcase all the latest technology trends. CES is so big it spreads over four times and is placed in three separate regions: Tech East, Tech West and Tech South.
Selecting tendencies from among the dazzling array of gadgets on display is not a simple job. But besides a clear focus on climate change inventions, it appears as if a number of the hot trends for 2019 involve technology connected with smart homes, new phones, drones for consumers, new LED TV, smart speakers, wellness technology and VR products.
Voice-controlled assistance appears to have fared better than full-size robotics. CES appearances have confirmed that Google’s little helper currently features on the most recent Sonos speakers. Amazon’s Alexa was supported by the Sonos Beam and Sonos One for some time. However, thanks to a new software upgrade, these versions will also include support for Google Assistant. That means you’ll be able to play audio and control the volume, trigger the TV and start and flow Netflix. At the moment, you won’t even be in a position to cast to Sonos, but this is very likely to be inserted in a future upgrade.
Meanwhile, HTC’s luxurious Vive Pro virtual reality headset promises to carry ultra-convenient, hands-free control to new levels. This device provides built-in eye monitoring for an enhanced VR experience. This applies ‘foveated rendering’ — a method that registers wherever your eyes are working so as to sharpen that picture and soften the profile of objects in the peripheral location. This has multiple uses and means, for instance, you could soon navigate to your favourite online casino just by vision alone.
Heatworks have generated a technology solution which seems to shave minutes off the national procedure of making a tea or coffee. Instead of waiting some minutes to the water to boil, the Heatworks Duo does the job immediately. Implementing the organization ’s ‘Ohmic Array’ technology, the Duo functions as a battery-powered water carafe that can heat water to the desired temperature that the minute it pours in the spout. The machine doesn’t need any heating component and, according to Heatworks, will send an 8-ounce glass of water in 20-30 minutes. Sophisticated temperature controller means your drink is going to be warmed to within one degree of the temperature you asked.
Source: Refined Guy
Monitoring children
Elsewhere on the national front, GPS monitoring is playing an important role in attempting to keep your kids safe. Among the options featured in CES is a brand new tracker out of Elios. This is hidden inside a decorative emoji so that it can be put on a child’s clothing, backpack etc. without any fuss. Onboard functions include geotargeting a place of surgery (to add school paths etc.), an email sent to confirm arrival at a destination, plus an alarm.
Qualcomm and the Automotive Market
Mobile communication pros Qualcomm are well positioned to take advantage of new developments in automobile electronics, and inventions like their Snapdragon Automotive Cockpit Platform seem poised to become industry standards. Though this can be a vast area, the newest generation of cars will certainly demand more powerful AI capability. This will be required to enhance security standards, navigation, camera vision and a plethora of different sensors and auto applications. In addition, Qualcomm’s C-V2X (cellular vehicle-to-everything) technology today features in the plans many global car manufacturers have to come up with a trusted communication system. Here, the priority is to secure a fail-safe method of communication that can be activated for vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-pedestrian, and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication purposes and much more.
In an additional cross-platform development, Qualcomm sources affirm the company now plans to incorporate Amazon’s Alexa. This speech-recognition technology will soon become part of Qualcomm’s Smart Audio Platform and bring about both security and multimedia improvements. Drivers will also be able to access standard Amazon features like Prime Video, Audible and Fire TV.
Robot supporters
In some ways, a perennial sci-fi-inspired innovation, robot helpers around the house seem to come round all too often. And to be very helpful, we envision them getting down to cleaning and cooking, fetching and carrying, answering the door and much more. That somehow appears to be what the new UBTech Walker robot possibly might have been made to perform. Sure it can open doorways, bring a coke, stow away the puppy lead (and even dancing ), but the devil is in the detail. Programming a robot just to maneuver around your house, to recognise and recover recognizable objects, or just to carry out simple household tasks still stays a tough ask for all developers. Responses are ultra-slow and works seem rigidly scripted, which means that you ’re not likely to be able to buy that cost-effective robot butler anytime soon.