Top 10 Gadgets of CES 2017

2017-02-09 | By Maker.io Staff

At the start of every year kicks off with the largest tech show on earth – Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The CES in Las Vegas is an opportunity for major technology companies to show of the latest advances in technology for consumer products. The CES show has always been at the forefront of innovation and business hence why it is the most popular electronics show in the world. This year in 2017 we have seen some weird and wonderful consumer gadgets that all give the “Whoa” factor. Here is a rundown (In no particular order) on our top 10 gadgets to look forward to in 2017.

1. Neonnode AirBar

Neonnode AirBar

Apple has yet to make a Mac OS laptop with a touchscreen functionality. AirBar is a very creative little device that plugs directly into the USB port on a 13.3” MacBook Air and sit right beneath the display. Using a special sensor array, the AirBar can sense touches on the laptop screen, allowing users to control the laptop as though it was an actual touchscreen.

2. Ford Alexa Integration

At this year’s CES there was a whole bunch of Amazon Alexa devices aimed at making your home life that just a bit easier, however Ford stood out from the crowd by integrating the virtual personal assistant Alexa into its Ford vehicles. Ford SYNC 3 AppLink puts everything that Alexa has to offer at the driver’s fingertips, including starting the car, lock and unlocking the car and even check the fuel levels without any divergence or driver distraction.

3. Honda’s self-balancing motorcycle

Honda’s self-balancing motorcycle

This year Honda showed off its new Riding Assistant technology which keeps your bike balanced when its moving at speeds less than 3mph. If you’re a biker, then you will know the difficulties in getting your bike out the garage or even stopping at the traffic lights and standing on your tip toes. The technology behind this comes from years of research and innovation through its ASIMO robot and also its self-balancing scooter. When the Riding Assistant kicks in, it lowers the front forks reducing the centre of gravity and improving stability whilst steering adjustments keep it from toppling over. This is a great example of how consumer technology has been brought into the automotive industry.

4.  Lego Boost

Lego Boost Robot and iOS App

Lego Mindstorms has been very dominate for Lego last year, adding a certain complexity to its Lego platform but has not been very user friendly and also comes at a high price. Lego Boost is Mindstorms little brother offering more affordable and friendlier solution to programming blocks of Lego. Compatible with the companion application you can use a visual Lego programming environment to drag and drop blocks of code or actions to animate your Lego blocks.

5. Faraday Future FF 91

Faraday Future Automobile

Tesla has been so dominant in the electrical automotive market with its Model S. Since then there has been a number of rival car manufactures embracing electric cars but none have been close to the revolutionary technology that featured in the Tesla, until now. This year showed the Faraday Future FF 91 production car. What interesting about Faraday is that they do not consider themselves to be a car manufacturer but merely a tech start-up company based in Silicon Valley. One of the best features of the FF 91 is that it has the ability to park itself without the need for a driver, the car will drive itself off on its own and find an available parking spot and navigate itself into that space at the press of a button. It has the range of up to 378 miles and 1050 HP peak power output.

6. PowerVision PowerRay

PowerRay submersible drone

Who says drones are just for the skys? PowerVision, well known for its making of the egg-shaped quadcopter clearly remind us that drones do not need to have four rotors and fly through the skys. They have created PowerRay, a remote-controlled submersible with a built-in 4K video camera and a fish finder function. Not only does capture high resolution video of the aquatic life or treasure hunting the deep sea’s it also works to improve your chances of reeling in some nice big fish.

7. Kuri Robot

Kuri Smart Robot

In the last few years we have seen a number of robotic devices in our homes none of which resemble anything like a humanoid robot. Mayfield’s Kuri robotic device is a 20-inch-tall robot that looks like it’s come straight out of the Big Hero 6 movie with cute features. It has big blinking eyes and sounds like Barney version of R2-D2, it’s really adorable. Kuri resembles the role of a pet robot, it can respond to voice commands and touch gestures whilst also patrolling around your home keeping it safe with its camera.

8. ODG R-8/9 AR Glasses

ODG R-8 AR Glasses

Wearables company Osterhout Design Group unveiled their first consumer AR/VR glasses. These glasses are the first built using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip. The two models of glasses stand out by offering a much wider field of view compared to the likes of Microsoft Halo Lens. These glasses will be released to the consumer market in Q2 for around $1799.

9. Polaroid Pop

Polaroid Pop Digital Camera & Printer

Back by popular demand is the digital version of the original polaroid camera. This camera is basic with a point and click style with a LCD display to preview before printing the image. It will also feature an SD card and a charging port. It will be on sale sometime in 2017 for around $200.

10. Motiv’s Fitness Ring

A top 10 wouldn’t be without any type of fitness tracker and we have at number 10 the fitness ring from Motiv. They have crammed in a whole bunch of fitness functionality into a small wearable ring. The titanium-encased device tracks sleep and fitness, including steps, calories and distance. It also manages to pack in optional heart rate sensors, boasting an impressive 3-5 day battery life on one single charge.

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