CES is the most influential tech event in the world — the proving ground for breakthrough technologies and global innovators. This is where the world’s biggest brands do business and meet new partners, and the sharpest innovators hit the stage. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®, CES features every aspect of the tech sector
CES returned ‘home’ to Las Vegas (5th – 8th January) welcoming well over 40,000 attendees in person, including 1800 global media, across 11 indoor and outdoor venues. The show was truly a global event, with 30% of attendees travelling from outside the US – representing 119 countries. CES showcases companies including manufacturers, developers and suppliers of consumer technology hardware, content, technology delivery systems and more. It also includes a conference programme where the world’s business leaders and pioneering thinkers address the industry’s most relevant issues.
1) ANKER NEBULA COSMOS LASER 4K PROJECTOR – PRICE €1,980
Nebula portable projector that’s neat because it’s the company’s first to produce a true 4K picture. Like previous Nebulas, the new model has a built-in Android 10 operating system, so it doesn’t need to be connected to a laptop, smartphone or streaming stick to play content from apps like of Netflix or Disney+. It also has a pair of integrated speakers so it should sound pretty decent out of the box, too.
2) LG ULTRAGEAR 17G90Q
The LG UltraGear 17G90Q is the company’s first-ever gaming laptop. It’s a 17-inch laptop that has a slim aluminium design, RGB backlit keys and a supposedly killer speaker system capable of 3D audio. Inside it packs an Intel 11th-gen Tiger Lake processor and a Nvidia GeForce RTX 3 80 Max-Q graphics card. And its 1080p display has a 300Hz refresh rate. Pricing of this high-performing machine has yet to be released yet.
3) SATECHI 2-IN-1 HEADPHONE STAND WITH WIRELESS CHARGER
Satechi announced a headphone stand that’s specifically designed for Apple’s AirPods Max (but it can really be used with any headphones). The stand is made of aluminium and has a space grey base, so it should match well with your other Apple devices, and there’s an integrated USB-C charging port as well as a Qi-wireless charger at the base of the stand; this allows you to charge your AirPods Max as they hand while also charging your smartphone.
4) MERCEDES-BENZ VISION EQXX
Mercedes-Benz’s Vision EQXX concept car is set to presage the Three-Pointed Star’s future longrange EVs; packing an extremely aerodynamic shape and impressive efficiency, the brand is claiming it’ll be able to go more than 1,000 km in the real world. Note that turn of phrase: don’t be surprised to see a production version arrive before too long.
5) ASTELL&KERN ACRO CA1000
The ACRO CA1000 is Astell&Kern’s first “carryable” headphone amplifier that, according to the company, combines the functionality of a high-performance headphone amp and the portability of a digital audio player. It has four built-in DACs (ES9068AS) and is capable of playing high fidelity audio (32-bit/384kHz PCM and native DSD512). It also has a builtin 8,400mAh battery and support for USB-C fast charging.
6) CAMBRIDGE AUDIO ALVA TT V2 AND ALVA ST
Cambridge Audio released the Alva TT turntable in 2019 and, at the time, it was the first turntable that supported wireless aptX HD audio, meaning it could stream high-resolution audio (up to 24-bit/48kHz) wirelessly to an amp, speaker or headphone. At this year’s CES, the British hi-fi maker announced two spinoffs of that original Alva. The Alva TT V2 (€1750 ) is the secondgeneration version that has a few key upgrades, including an improved tonearm with a detachable headshell (in case you want to upgrade later on), a switchable phono stage and Bluetooth support.
7) SAMSUNG ODYSSEY ARK
Samsung announced a host of new monitors at CES 2022, but the Odyssey Ark is definitely the standout. It’s a 55-inch curved 4K monitor — which is the largest curved monitor out there — with a 16:9 aspect ratio, and the kicker is that it has a special stand that allows the display to be rotated and viewed either horizontally or vertically.
8) RAZER 2022 BLADE GAMING LAPTOPS
Razer announced its new line of Blade gaming laptops for 2022. The new 14-inch, 15-inch and 17-inch models aren’t night-and-day upgrades over their predecessors, but Razer did give each improved internals (Intel’s 12-gen processors, faster RAM and support for Nvidia’s newest RTX graphic cards). As for the hardware, Razer did increase the size of the keyboards and gave each laptop better speakers.
9) CYBERPOWERPC TRACER VI EDGE PRO LIQUID COOL SERIES
If you’re one of the people who avoids the best gaming laptops due to their reputation for getting very, very hot, CyberPowerPC’s offering is the solution. It’ll enable you to liquid-cool a clamshell via a detachable reservoir, meaning that (in concept) overheating gaming laptops may soon be a thing of the past.
10) ENKI PRO HYPERSENSE CHAIR
Enki Pro HyperSense is the chair that isn’t only good for video games. It works with movies and music as well, meaning it will enable you to have something of a 4D movie theater experience right from the comfort of your media den. The future is now, ladies and gents, and Razer’s sitting on it.
11) LENOVO THINKBOOK PLUS (GEN 3)
It’s like someone at Lenovo took a pair of pliers, carved out a chunk of their laptop Between screen mirroring, screen waterfalling, and other elements that enrich the secondscreen experience, there’s a lot to dig about the ThinkBook Plus Gen 3’s two screens. The device goes on sale in May 2022 for a starting price of $1,399 (€1,250).