As we in further into Friday, we inevitably move further away from this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. It may be hard for some to see the yearly event come and go, but for others it finally means planes home, a reliable internet connection, and (probably) no more hotel food. For all those who couldn't make it to the show, though, it means all the CES announcements, reveals, shockers, and gadgets are going back behind the curtain.
The only real bad news here is that some of those things showcased at CES will never see the light of day again. There are so many cases where a company shows off what they've been working on, and yet never gets the chance to launch it. CES 2013 came and went with plenty of devices that never saw the light of day, and CES 2014 will be the same way. And then there's all the gadgets that will be months away from launch, so most of the public who may have gotten excited about it in the first place will completely forget about it come launch day.
Thankfully, CES 2014 wasn't boring. If you love technology, CES really is a playground, with so many different companies showing off the coolest new gadgets, ideas and everything else in between. It's a way to see what the year will look like. And, thanks to CES, we know that our early suspicions have been confirmed:
2014 will indeed be the year of wearables.
While wearables were certainly one of the shining stars in Las Vegas over the week, that's not the only thing companies unveiled. Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo, and even Archos all managed to reveal some brand new Android powered smartphones that folks will be able to buy this year all over the world. Samsung took the wrappings off some brand new PRO tablets, all of which are meant to throw some more high-end specs in the tablet market, as well as some gigantic screens for good measure.
During the week, we saw Pebble unveil their newest smartwatch, the Pebble Steel. It shares plenty of features from the original device released last year, but the Pebble Steel ups the ante with high-end materials, and the introduction of the Pebble App Store -- which will be available on the original Pebble, too.
BLU and Sony both announced new smartphones during the CES week-long event, while Meizu unveiled plans to enter the U.S. market this year, much to the pleasure of many Android fans who have been waiting to see the company enter this particular market. And then there's LG, which officially touted the upcoming launch of their G Flex smartphone to three of the largest U.S.-based carriers in the early part of 2014. And Hisense unveiled their beast of a device, the X1, just to make all the other phablet manufacturers jealous. Bonus: It'll land in the U.S. in 2014.
Oculus unveiled their newest version of the Oculus Rift, known as Crystal Cove. There were more drones at CES than you could shake a stick at. Microsoft talked about the first major update to their living room console, the Xbox One, which is focused on the social features of the console.
And then there's T-Mobile, which I think I'm definitely giving the award for "best announcement" to. During CES this year, T-Mobile's CEO John Legere unveiled the fourth initiative within the Un-carrier movement, and it was quite the doozy. Switching from one carrier to another can be hard, especially with early termination fees attached to each of your lines. T-Mobile is looking to make that easy, though, because they'll pay your ETF, on up to five lines, just to make the switch easy. You'll have to trade in your current device, and buy a new handset with T-Mobile (obviously), but this is another huge move for the Magenta carrier.
There was more than that at CES -- so much more, and I'm curious to know what you think the best moment, or announcement, or product was the best part of the whole event. What really stood out to you? What are you most anticipating getting your hands on this year? Let me know!
- Log in to post comments