The best of ShowStoppers at CES 2019

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in General Discussion
The annual ShowStoppers at CES 2019 event is a showcase of some of the most exciting and soon to be influential products the tech industry has to offer. AppleInsider presents our favorite exhibits from the press gathering.


LaMetric Sky

LaMetric Sky
LaMetric Sky


One of the most promising devices we saw during ShowStoppers was the new LaMetric Sky. Similar to LaMetric's Time smart clock, the new Sky takes the concept to a whole new level.

LaMetric Sky has a series of interconnected panels that have the ability to display beautiful animations or lighting effects, one of the most eye-catching of which mimics the appearance of a stained glass window or intricate mosaic.

What really sets this product apart from similar panels marketed by Nanoleaf and LifX is the ability to display functional information. Your Instagram followers, website hits, the weather and so much more can be displayed on the customizable panel.

We are looking forward to trying Sky out when it ships later this year.

Omnicharge

Omnicharge was a wild Indiegogo success story and now the company is gearing up to expand its range of power delivery devices.

Omnicharge lineup
Omnicharge lineup


The firm is updating its lineup with several new battery packs, each of which boasts different sizes, capacities and features.

Omnicharge
Omnicharge


That includes their flagship model which now includes a 60W USB-C output.

Wacom

Wacom Cintiq 16
Wacom Cintiq 16


Wacom is introducing the new Cintiq 16, a massive pen display for artists looking to save a few bucks. The Cintiq line is made up of pressure-sensitive pen displays which provide a mobile tablet-like experience for drawing, but connect to a standalone computer. While previous models cost upwards of $800, this new model is priced at $650.

It has 8,192-level pressure sensitivity support but only a 1080p display. That isn't as high resolution as the Pro models, nor is it as bright, but it is definitely more affordable and packs in nearly all the same functionality.

First Alert OneLink Video Doorbell

OneLink doorbell
OneLink doorbell


If you have any of the other First Alert products, such as the Safe & Sound or the Smart Smoke and CO Alarm, then the OneLink doorbell is a natural fit. It is able to notify you of motion at the door, as well as if someone presses the doorbell button.

What is different than others is that it uses the speakers on your Safe & Sound or Smart Smoke and CO Alarm as a chime to make sure the bell is heard anywhere in the home.

No HomeKit here, but perhaps First Alert will build in support down the road.

Aura Band

The Aura Smart Band is a new Bluetooth Apple Watch strap that aims to help you understand your health.

Aura band


It uses bioimpedance analysis (BIA) to monitor body composition and hydration levels, then displays results like hydration, fat and muscle levels on your Apple Watch.

Additionally, Aura watches for BIA-retrieved biomarkers to assess the risk of heart failure events.

Aura band
Aura band


The strap is in its early stages but was entirely functional on the show floor. It comes in two colors, pink and green, and is comfortable enough to wear all day despite the metal bump on the buckle.

Tech Den

There are many ways to help limit kids' screen time between Apple's Screen Time feature or hardware like Disney's Circle.

Tech Den has an interesting approach, combining rewards, hardware and software to help children maintain a tech-positive lifestyle with healthy habits.




Parents decide when and how long kids can use their iPhone or iPad. The app will count down on the child's device when they are reaching their limit, at which point they must return their device to the Tech Den. It holds and charges the device while not in use.

If the child doesn't return the device within five minutes of the end of their time, the parents get a notification. If they do return the device, they earn reward points which you also can allocate towards a tangible prize like pizza night or extra allowance.

It is certainly a novel device that could have a big impact in families' homes.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 22
    Hope the Tech Den is made of steel or some extremely impact-resistant plastic, because I can foresee a lot of them being thrown at walls and flors by irate rugrats,
    LatkoGeorgeBMacwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 22
    DuhSesameDuhSesame Posts: 1,278member
    Anyone remember this monitor from the CES last year?  Still “coming soon” :D

    https://www.asus.com/us/Monitors/PQ22UC/
    edited January 2019 watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 22
    There's so many things wrong with this approach. Nothing to do with technology. Sad.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 22
    I guess nothing worthy to mention about the new Intel CPU chipsets for future small laptops.

    How about the Airplay on some home TVs and also iTunes being an App on others also.

    I guess we need to wait for this, or shall we all just go on YouTube and read all about it.


    SpamSandwichwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 22
    Tech Den sounds like an awful idea. How about instead of pizza, the reward for not using your device all day is going outside and using your body
    *says the guy that fortunately doesn't have a teenager yet*
    GeorgeBMacwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 22
    LatkoLatko Posts: 398member
    sunman42 said:
    Hope the Tech Den is made of steel or some extremely impact-resistant plastic, because I can foresee a lot of them being thrown at walls and flors by irate rugrats,
    Just let them calm down a little (or wait for the accessory that will cut off overswiped fingers...)
    edited January 2019 watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 22
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,977member
    Anyone showing off anything new in smart bathroom scales?

  • Reply 8 of 22
    FatmanFatman Posts: 513member
    This year’s CES is a disaster / where’s the innovation? People say Apple is no longer an innovator. Yet thousands of other companies can only show toy robots, larger TVs and talk about the promise of 5G - an ill conceived technology that is years away from building out the necessary costly and inherently flawed infrastructure. 
    patchythepiratewatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,608member
    Fatman said:
    This year’s CES is a disaster / where’s the innovation? People say Apple is no longer an innovator. Yet thousands of other companies can only show toy robots, larger TVs and talk about the promise of 5G - an ill conceived technology that is years away from building out the necessary costly and inherently flawed infrastructure. 
    CES isn't about new technologies but instead new technological products.
    So how about:
    - Your new travel pal, a fully autonomous suitcase that will follow you from the curb to airside at up to 6mph, no hand's 'mon.
    - A smartwatch that uses solar power as well as a user's body heat to keep its battery charged almost indefinitely. "Bout time"
    - Modular micro-LED TV's. Build your own media wall and impress your friends...
    - Affordable ray-tracing video cards for more immersive gaming. Now your kids (and kids at heart) can ignore you even better. 
    - An automatic and fully electric motorcycle from a major manufacturer, capable of 0 to 60mph in just 3.5 seconds. Life is precious.
    - An EEG headband that your sleep-deprived family can use to retrain their brain for a faster and deeper nighty-night. Snoring optional.
    - The first standalone commercially available quantum computer, out of the lab and landing soon in a server space maybe not near you. 
    - and don't overlook Alexa and Google everywhere, and finally being joined by Siri. Am I hearing voices? 
    edited January 2019 patchythepiratemuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 10 of 22
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    Tech Den sounds like an awful idea. How about instead of pizza, the reward for not using your device all day is going outside and using your body
    *says the guy that fortunately doesn't have a teenager yet*
    Unfortunately, with kids restricted to their own houses/yards and not allowed wonder (because of fear of kidnappers, predators, etc.), going outside now means standing in your front yard by yourself -- particularly in the suburbs with no sidewalks.  It's not what most kids consider fun.

    Fortnite, Maddon, GTF have much greater appeal.   For many they're as psychogically (not physically) addictive as many drugs.

    With devices like this (and there are a number of them on the market that aren't as over-the-top) the parent can set up a schedule and not have to fight or negotiate every day, day after day.  My friend just set her Google mesh routers to automatically shutdown her son's XBox at bedtime each school night -- because he would get involved in it and not want to stop "in the middle" -- so fights were happening every night.  The routine gets the job done without disrupting family harmony.
    randominternetperson
  • Reply 11 of 22
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    avon b7 said:
    Anyone showing off anything new in smart bathroom scales?

    Yes, we need something there....

    Weight, by itself, has little meaning.   Even BMI -- a strong person has can show as overweight and an older person who is gaining fat while losing muscle can show as "normal". Both are very misleading. 

    We need to start (accurately) measuring fat vs muscle mass.  I know there are consumer devices out there that do this already -- but I have never seen anything that attests to their accuracy.   But, both bathrooms and physician's offices need something like this -- especially physicians.
  • Reply 12 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,608member
    avon b7 said:
    Anyone showing off anything new in smart bathroom scales?

    https://www.cnet.com/news/ces-2019-himirror-wants-to-help-track-your-weight/

    I might take a look at it myself after some of the reviews are out. I sent my Withings back for full credit when they removed the heart features. 
    edited January 2019
  • Reply 13 of 22
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,977member
    gatorguy said:
    avon b7 said:
    Anyone showing off anything new in smart bathroom scales?

    https://www.cnet.com/news/ces-2019-himirror-wants-to-help-track-your-weight/

    I might take a look at it myself after some of the reviews are out. I sent my Withings back for full credit when they removed the heart features. 
    Thanks but it seems there is little or no EU support.

    As George mentions, I've been looking for a reliable (but not necessarily medical precision) scales to measure various body metrics and was hoping that CES might have had a few newer options.

    The Withings/Nokia/Withings scales has been on my list for a long time but reviews were mixed and the price was relatively high.
    GeorgeBMac
  • Reply 14 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,608member
    avon b7 said:
    gatorguy said:
    avon b7 said:
    Anyone showing off anything new in smart bathroom scales?

    https://www.cnet.com/news/ces-2019-himirror-wants-to-help-track-your-weight/

    I might take a look at it myself after some of the reviews are out. I sent my Withings back for full credit when they removed the heart features. 
    Thanks but it seems there is little or no EU support.

    The Withings/Nokia/Withings scales has been on my list for a long time but reviews were mixed and the price was relatively high.
    And they aren't as "smart" as they originally were. That's why mine went back. At least Nokia did the right thing, giving buyers the option of returning them even tho they might be a year or more old (mine was) when they removed some of the features.

    Anyway I was under the impression HiMirror was an EU company.
    https://www.himirror.com/eu_en/product/smart-body-scale
    edited January 2019
  • Reply 15 of 22
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,921administrator
    I guess nothing worthy to mention about the new Intel CPU chipsets for future small laptops.

    How about the Airplay on some home TVs and also iTunes being an App on others also.

    I guess we need to wait for this, or shall we all just go on YouTube and read all about it.


    We've covered this ad infinitum all week, with coverage going back to Saturday. This piece in particular is very specifically derived from the Showstoppers event.
    edited January 2019 fastasleep
  • Reply 16 of 22
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,056member
    Wacom product: DOA!
  • Reply 17 of 22
    fallenjt said:
    Wacom product: DOA!
    Why?
  • Reply 18 of 22

    The firm is updating its lineup with several new battery packs, each of which boasts different sizes, capacities and features.

    Omnicharge
    Omnicharge

    s.
    Wow, could that thing be any bigger?  Is that for powering your MacBook during a weekend camping trip?

    EDIT: apparently that's exactly what's it for (and charging your drone and video camera and powering anything else you need to power).  Not really for the typical hotel-to-hotel business traveler.
    edited January 2019
  • Reply 19 of 22

    The firm is updating its lineup with several new battery packs, each of which boasts different sizes, capacities and features.

    Omnicharge
    Omnicharge

    s.
    Wow, could that thing be any bigger?  Is that for powering your MacBook during a weekend camping trip?

    EDIT: apparently that's exactly what's it for (and charging your drone and video camera and powering anything else you need to power).  Not really for the typical hotel-to-hotel business traveler.
    Yeah, was gonna say — these kinds of chargers are essential for people doing field video/photo work and such. 
  • Reply 20 of 22

    fallenjt said:
    Wacom product: DOA!
    Bullshit, these are way more affordable than previous models. A LOT of people work on these all day long. If you're thinking of the iPad Pro as a competitor, remember a lot of people work on Windows PCs. 

    Personally I'm going to upgrade to a iPad Pro with Pencil 2 to work on via Luna Display, but I have a friend who works in ZBrush all day long on a PC who would be stoked about this news.
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