Contact The Editor
Articles By This Author
LAS VEGAS — At the world's biggest consumer electronics show, when we say something was a "favorite product," it could mean a few different things. Maybe the gadget is a much-needed breakthrough that will change lives. Maybe it's so weird we couldn't peel ourselves away. Or maybe it's such a profoundly bad idea it deserves some sort of recognition.
This year, as always, the CES show floor is overflowing with companies eager to display their latest gadgets and innovations - many of them boasting artificial intelligence features that may or may not be helpful.
Here's what stood out from the crowd - and don't worry, we'll keep updating as we come across more useful, weird and wonderful new tech.
• A futuristic body scan
French company Withings, which makes smart scales and watches, debuted the prototype of a full-body "health screening mirror" that looks like something out of a Ridley Scott movie. The product - a giant scale and body-size screen - is just a concept, the firm said, but it shows how the company plans to combine its biometric products into something more holistic.
The Withings Omnia would, theoretically, measure your heart rate, pH levels, muscle composition, sleep quality, exercise recovery and more. It would work in tandem with other wearables like a smartwatch, combining the biometric data from throughout your day into a snapshot of your overall health.
If a product like this one made it into our homes, it would raise some serious data privacy questions. Withings says it doesn't store your biometric data on the device itself, rather sending it to the company's servers to derive insights. If it all seems a little dystopian, remember: Tech companies are already collecting and sharing your health information en masse.
• A hologram machine that puts your likeness in a tiny box
I don't know about you, but I'm always wishing I could get my body 3D-projected into a tiny portable box to talk to my friends and colleagues who live far away. (Just kidding.)
But that's exactly what Dutch company Holoconnects is doing with Holobox Mini, a travel-size version of its human-size Holobox, which shows a live, full-body projection of a person, product or display. It's more intimate than Zoom, the company said, and can be used to greet guests at a hotel or conduct virtual doctor's visits. The smaller version costs $4,500 plus a software subscription fee.
There was something disconcerting about seeing my shrunken self trapped inside a cube. But I also couldn't stop looking.
• A home gym that adjusts for your body
Resistance training is good for you, but it can be hard to get started. The Gym Monster 2 from Speediance is an all-in-one setup that helps you figure out how much to lift and when. Its weighted bar becomes heavier or lighter with a tap on the screen, or you can use its "strength assessment" to automatically set loads for different lifts.
The $3,390 price tag might be a deterrent, though. The Gym Monster 2 will be available on Amazon later this year.
• Needle-free injections?
For the squeamish, getting a vaccination or a smidgen of Botox can be a whole production. One study in Britain found that 20 percent of parents and 60 percent of children are afraid of needles, which might lead to them skipping vaccinations. Dutch company FlowBeams wants to change that with BoldJet, a handheld device that shoots imperceptibly small streams of liquid (skinnier than a human hair), penetrating the outer layer of your skin without the pain of a regular injection.
The company is first working with the cosmetics industry, with hopes of entering medical environments as well.
• A spoon that makes food taste better
If you're looking for ways to cut down your sodium intake, a fancy spoon could be the answer, Japanese beer company Kirin claims. The Electric Salt spoon uses electric currents to concentrate sodium ion molecules and amplify the taste of salt and umami (the savoriness in mushrooms or miso).
It's not as straightforward as a regular utensil, though. To close the electric loop, you have to place your fingers carefully on a metal strip on the back of the spoon and put the device against your mouth for a few seconds before swallowing.
I tried some ramen broth (straight out of a thermos at the booth) with and without the spoon. I think I could tell the difference - but maybe I was just famished after hours of touching gadgets.
The company sells the spoon in Japan for about $125 and said it hopes to sell globally in coming years.
• An app that turns your smartwatch into a TV remote
Can't find the remote? What if you could just point at the screen?
WowMouse, an app for Android and now Apple smartwatches from Finnish company Doublepoint, turns your hand into a controller for anything from a TV to a Vision Pro headset. Wave your hand in the air to control the cursor, and tap your fingers together to select.
Most of us aren't spending time wearing face computers - the main use case for WowMouse. (With it, you don't have to bring your hands into the face computer's field of vision.) But maybe not having to get up from the couch to get your TV remote is worth the $3.99 cost.
I found it a little tricky to click where I wanted, but it might get easier with practice.
• A litter box with ‘multi-cat facial recognition'
The Purobot Ultra from Petkit speaks for itself.
It's a litter box. It's paired with an app. It claims to have a facial recognition system that tells you which of your cats is pooping and when. Even your tabby is not safe from the forward march of facial recognition.
Right now the box is $899.99 (!) on the Petkit site. For a $12-a-month subscription price, you can even get video of your cats pooping sent to your phone. Only the photos I snapped assure me this was a real product and not a fever dream.
• Headphones that clean your ear canals
A buildup of earwax can cause hearing loss, earaches and phantom noises, studies have shown. The new EarSight Flow device from Bebird cleans your ears without scary cotton swabs or trips to the doctor, the company claims.
The device looks like a pair of headphones, and users get voice prompts throughout to help them operate it correctly. It contains tools for cleaning and drying your ears, as well as a skinny, bendable camera for looking inside your ear canal while you do it. I imagine this tickles like nothing has ever tickled before, though I didn't get to try it.
EarSight flow is $199 on the Bebird website, and more should be available in May, a representative said.
• A car AI system that orders fast food
If you're tired of waiting in the drive-through line for White Castle, new in-car AI assistants might solve that.
Conversational AI company SoundHound AI debuted a feature that lets you talk to your car console to order and pay for restaurant food while you're driving. I asked it to order me a Chipotle burrito, and it was ready to talk me through my preferences for each and every topping and place an order for pickup. The system isn't available yet, but SoundHound says it hopes to launch with automotive partners in 2025.