Computer mouse controlled by your tongue? 11 life-changing gadgets shocking techies at CES 2024
Welcome to the world of tomorrow.
World-changing breakthroughs are being debuted and displayed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas as companies harness recent, vast breakthroughs in artificial intelligence to bring the future to today’s market.
These on-display innovations at the four-day demo span from big, even life-altering game-changers to smaller must-haves for the home.
The range features new types of electric vehicles for both ground and air travel, a revolutionary form of free television and immersive screen use, user-friendly biotechnology that pairs with smart devices and much more.
There’s even a super toilet that’s a flush above the rest.
Here’s what to keep an eye out for from CES 2024.
A free — yes, free — 55-inch, 4K TV with permanent ads on a second screen
We might be looking at the future of consumerism here.
A 55-inch television with 4K picture compatibility and a built-in soundbar can easily run upwards of around $1,000. But the company Telly is dishing them out completely for free in exchange for allowing a de facto billboard in your home and electronically sharing viewing habits with the company.
Advertisers cover the entire cost of Telly’s state-of-the-art device — which has a ChatGPT-infused vocal assistant — in exchange for having a perpetual flow of commercial spots on a second screen. It’s situated beneath the huge TV’s soundbar.
Sign up on Telly’s website and answer some consumer demographic questions to have your own.
Honda’s super electric vehicles
The Japanese carmaker is revving up a new fleet of electric vehicles that are slated to take the streets in 2026.
Called Honda Zero, these slender and sleek-looking automobiles aim to break a streak of clunky-style EVs that have dominated the market lately.
We’re looking at your Telsa Cybertruck, Elon.
Honda’s “flagship” sedan-style EV, the Saloon — which looks a little like Lamborghini meets “Tron” — is the first expected in North America. The company boasts it has “a low and wide exterior coupled with a surprisingly spacious interior.”
An anti-snore pillow
Don’t sleep on this one. The DeRUCCI Group has unveiled a pillow that, according to trial data, has capabilities to alienate snoring by 89%, the company announced.
Aptly called the Anti-Snore Pillow, the all-in-one, app-paired device can adjust a user’s head position so that they and their partner — couples are taking separate beds in flocks for reasons like this — can sleep a little sounder.
It targets sleep apnea as well.
A 100-inch laptop that fits in a backpack
It’s giving major Tony Stark vibes.
The tech company Sightful harnessed the power of augmented reality to create a first-of-its-kind, 100-inch laptop for which users only need to carry a minuscule amount of hardware.
Called Spacetop, the device relies on a pair of AR glasses a user wears to see a vast array of virtual screens and common programs — including ChatGPT and various Google programs — that they interact with only through a tangible keyboard that has a built-in webcam and five hours of battery power.
It can be yours for $2,150.
A mouse … for your tongue
Techies are salivating over this.
The company Augmental has designed a smart mouse that goes inside a user’s mouth and is toggled by a person’s tongue.
Aptly called “MouthPad^,” the “pressure sensitive” bio-device “detects every movement and gesture of your tongue in real-time to support standard cursor control and clicks.”
The company suggests that it is especially useful for individuals with spinal cord injuries.
The device, which is still in an early access sales mode, can be harnessed right out of the box, according to Augmental.
A transparent TV
Competitors are seeing ghosts.
LG just unveiled what they call the world’s first wireless, transparent TV that runs on organic light emitting diode technology.
In other words, it’s 77 inches of 4K quality movies and shows when you want with a see-through panel that doesn’t obstruct home furnishings when turned off. Samsung debuted a similar style of futuristic screening at CES as well.
A smart mirror that knows if you’re sick
It’s bound to have people reflecting on their health.
The company Nuralogix unveiled a 21-inch, tabletop smart mirror that can analyze facial blood flow as a way to accurately calculate a user’s vital signs, as well as “disease risk assessments.”
The oversized iPad-looking device is powered by Nuralogix’s cloud-based AI DeepAffex.
The future of flying
The next major step for aviation — and the potential for flying taxis — is the rollout of electric vertical take-off and landing vessels, and a Hyundai-backed company just took their bird out of the hangar.
Meet Supernal’s SA-2 eVTOL which fits four in a luxury-focused cabin, plus a pilot, and reaches speeds of 120 miles per hour and a cruising altitude of 1,500 feet.
Testing begins for the SAA-2 next year, and the current goal is to have it ready for a 2028 takeoff.
A “Star Wars”-esque home aid droid
Here’s the latest robo-pet that can take a byte out of household chores.
Samsung showed off the AI-powered Ballie — which has a loose resemblance to Oscar Isaac’s BB-8 droid from the “Star Wars” film franchise — as a handy device that connects to home appliances.
The astrodroid-esque device can also send video updates to owners regarding circumstances like checking up on pets or people inside of their homes.
Ballie also can answer phone calls, play music and project videos onto screens, walls and floors.
A Blackberry-style keyboard — for iPhones
IPhone users are becoming the very thing they swore off in the early 2010s now.
A company called Clicks has rolled out an iPhone case that doubles as a hard-button keyboard and gives the Apple device a striking resemblance to the hallmark of once-competitor Blackberry.
It’s sold in either yellow or gray for $139 to $159.
The Alexa and Google Home paired toilet
This one’s a real gas.
Kohler has let rip a $2,149 bidet that pairs with smart devices like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home so users might enjoy a hands-free experience on the potty while commanding their water flow.
The PureWash E930 also has plenty of other bells and whistles like an ultraviolet automatic cleaner and a heated seat mode.
