Televisions
Samsung
TVs are often the most important thing at CES – both figuratively and literally – and it’s a shame that we can’t see them in person this year. That hasn’t stopped television manufacturers from announcing their latest devices, which some companies like Samsung, LG and Sony have already done.
The biggest trend this year seems to be the adoption of Mini-LED technology, which is used in Samsung’s latest Neo QLED 8K and 4K sets, in addition to LG’s QNED TVs. It is the same type of technology that we saw on TCL’s 8 series last year and is now on the 6 TVs in the series as well. Mini-LEDs promise to improve backlight performance on LCDs, leading to better black levels. They can even compete with OLEDs for image quality, but for much less money.
Samsung and Sony have also announced new MicroLED TVs, but at 80 inches or more, they are aimed at corporate customers (or those with very deep pockets). Sony, for example, has shown that its modular LED crystal panels can be used as virtual backdrops for TV shows like The Mandalorian.
We will probably see some continuation of trends from previous years as well. There will still be an emphasis on 8K monitors, as well as the scale up needed to make low-resolution content look good on them. Technology like transparent and foldable screens will also be shown, although they may not be ready for consumers yet.
Laptops, PCs and accessories
Lenovo
The other big category at CES this year is likely to be PCs, specifically laptops. All of the usual players like Dell, Lenovo, HP, ASUS and Acer are ready to announce new devices in their 2021 line. We hope to see updates in the consumer and game lines, and many of them have already been released.
Dell, for example, announced its new Latitude 9420 and 9520, which feature what the company claims to be the industry’s first automatic webcam shutter, as well as an upgrade to 11th generation Intel Core vPro processors. LG also announced five new thin and light Gram laptops, all certified by Intel Evo. Lenovo also launched two new next-generation laptops at CES this year, with two new IdeaPad 5 Pros that can be configured with Intel or AMD processors.
The 5G beat is likely to continue with this year’s laptop distribution as well. Lenovo, for example, has already announced the IdeaPad 5G, which uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8cx chipset and runs Windows on ARM. It will connect to 5G networks when available, switching to 4G LTE when it cannot.
In addition, we’ve seen occasional desktops like Lenovo’s Yoga 7 AiO (it can rotate from portrait to landscape and vice versa), in addition to the latest high-end monitors from companies like Dell.
Connected house
LG
In a big difference compared to previous CES events, the smart home scene seems to be much quieter. Much of this is attributed to the fact that both Google and Amazon did not have an official presence at the fair this year. Of course, we still expect Assistant and Alexa to be integrated into everything from televisions to speakers, so Google and Amazon will still make their presence, even if they don’t reveal anything officially.
Likewise, it is very likely that we will hear about new updates in connected kitchens and bathrooms – perhaps a new smart faucet? – from companies like Kohler or Moen, and perhaps some ads related to other home devices, like security cameras and smart lights. LG, for example, has already unveiled a robot vacuum cleaner that can automatically empty its trash into a separate bag.
Robots and drones
With regard to drones, CES has never been the most exciting event. DJI, one of the biggest names in drones, almost never launches new machines there. However, lesser-known brands from Asia often show at CES, and may do so again at this year’s virtual event. We also expect to see the usual selfie drones and those with industrial or non-photographic applications. At the last CES, for example, we saw the Sunflower home security drone circling the house.
In terms of robots, we can see several innovations from a wide variety of sectors, such as food services (examples include the Miso Robotics hamburger bot) or delivery bots like Amazon’s Scout. Big Ag is also a prominent investor in robotics and we will not be surprised if John Deere displays some automated equipment there. We will probably also see the so-called “companion bots” for children or the elderly, as we saw in previous years.
Transport
Cadillac
Transport technology has taken off at CES in recent years, but it promises to be much quieter this year, since most automakers had almost no plans to exhibit at CES 2021. Still, we expect some news about transport, especially in terms of respect to EVs and bizarre concept vehicles. Mercedes, for example, has already announced a car that has a giant 56-inch “Hyperscreen” MBUX that covers the entire cabin of its luxury EV EQS. Large screens appear to be a theme among cars this year, as even Cadillac took a peek at its own 33-inch wraparound LED screen.
In addition, even if there are no announcements of new cars, we will likely hear more about automotive technology, such as infotainment systems, heads-up monitors and vehicle connectivity features.
A slower and quieter show
Perhaps the most obvious expectation for next week’s CES is that it is likely to be much quieter than in previous years. After all, COVID-19 disrupted not only our lives, but also the gadget product cycle. Of course, we will see some weird and wacky devices and there will likely be devices designed specifically as a reaction to the global pandemic (perhaps a health tracking wearable or smart face mask). But, CES 2021 promises to be a relatively slow show. To make matters worse, Samsung is holding its own annual Unpacked event on the last day of CES, where we hope to hear about the Galaxy S21. It may well be that CES is just the act of opening Samsung’s blockbuster.