‘The greatest tech show on Earth’ opened its doors last week to welcome technology enthusiasts and experts to Las Vegas, offering them a glimpse into the connected future and a chance to be the first to lay eyes on the very latest gadgets, devices and solutions.
Read on for the Arkessa round-up of some of the most innovative and exciting tech at CES 2019:
Driverless shuttles from Bosch
After a period of low coverage in reaction to some considerable safety concerns from the autonomous vehicle sector, CES 2019 saw the return of some real buzz around the self-driving cars and autonomous transport solutions of the future.
Bosch unveiled an electric driverless shuttle that will ferry passengers around city environments, providing a clear view of the surroundings thanks to its mostly transparent shell, and most importantly, onboard connected infotainment. Live travel, news and weather updates won’t be the only option during your journey, however. You will be able to choose which movie to watch, which music to listen to, even what lighting options you’d like. Passengers will be able to summon a shuttle via a smartphone app, and they will have the option to effectively lift share with other passengers, or travel alone.
Smart Health from Pillo
One of the most popular themes at CES 2019 was Smart Health. With a huge and exciting variety of tech solutions to try out, visitors could really start to imagine a healthier future for humankind.
Pillo is a voice-activated, AI-powered health companion that stores and manages a complete wellness programme – dispensing medication and issuing reminders to your own personalised schedule. Companions like Pillo can help people to manage chronic health conditions more easily, offering independence and peace of mind to patients and their families.
5G
Of course visitors to CES 2019 were expecting to learn more about 5G, and the tech world’s biggest players didn’t disappoint. Industry giants Verizon demonstrated how augmented reality connected with 5G could change the gaming experience considerably.
The announcement from Samsung at the beginning of last week that they would be releasing a 5G cell phone this year was accompanied by the unveiling of a glass-encased prototype at CES 2019.
The event was also the platform for a 5G announcement from Intel, who detailed Project Athena – a 5G and AI-powered laptop innovation project in partnership with Dell and Microsoft amongst others.
Wearables
CES 2019 saw another big year for wearables in Las Vegas, with the buzz around Smart Health fuelling the enthusiasm for wearable devices to manage our well-being and improve our chances at longer and healthier lives.
Smart belts like Welt, as an alternative to smart wrist watches, offer the ability to monitor health more accurately and discreetly. However, watches are still the firm favourite in terms of health monitors, and Garmin launched its smartwatch to rival the Apple Watch, with built-in 4G connectivity and safety features such as emergency location alerts to friends and family.
Smart Home
A lot of the coverage of CES 2019 focused on the battle between Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, with both offering further features and integration with Smart Home devices such as Smart Buttons (singular buttons that can be programmed to carry out different tasks depending on how many times you press – perfect for visitors who still want to turn on the bathroom light). Another hot topic was Smart Home security, with the Smart Doorbell – a video-connected doorbell that sends you notifications and live images – and Smart Locks (fingerprint scanning is not just for your phone).
For more on Smart Spaces and the technologies on show at CES 2019 that will make a difference to our everyday lives, check out the brand new blog series by Arkessa – Smart Spaces of the future.
