What the Tech? The best of the CES

(ABC 6 News) – CES, formerly known as the Consumer Electronics Show, wrapped up its 2023 show in Las Vegas over the weekend. Tech companies from all over the world spent several days showcasing their most exciting products and some gadgets that won’t be introduced to the market for several years.

The larger exhibits by car makers, TV manufacturers, Google, and Amazon got a lot of attention in the media but if you want to find interesting innovations in technologies, it’s best to come to smaller booths.

It’s where “What the Tech?” spent the majority of the weekend. One example of exciting technology that solves real-world problems is CES Award Winner, Badger. This company makes closed-captioning badges similar to name tags. As the person wearing the badge talks into their phone, what they’re saying is displayed on the badge in the e-ink. “Now, you can see what I’m saying and this helps with the communication between patient to doctor and nurse,” explained Badger’s Robert Galligan. “It also will translate into 40 languages,” he said.

The Anssil mattress uses air and 14 million strings to make sleeping more comfortable. A connected app customizes what’s best for the sleeper. “It’s going to analyze and tell if you’re sleeping on your back, or your belly, or your left side or right-hand side, or feet crossed or not,” explained ANNSiL CEO Dae Sung Rhee. “And depending on that, it’s going to automatically adjust the firmness.” ANSSiL mattresses come in various sizes and styles. Rhee said they’ll hit the U.S. market later this year.

I played games with a haptic vest in virtual reality, to feel body blows and kickbacks from guns. Haptic suits, vests, and gloves were plentiful this year.

I tried on shoes that practically lace themselves. No bending over. The kizik casual shoes can be tied or laced up as tight as you want but do not require them to be untied to get the shoes on your feet. You just step in and step on your heel.

There were several companies claiming their flying car is coming soon. LG introduced a wireless television prototype. I personally loved the self-tinting Dusk Sport sunglasses that play music. I watched A live game show where the host is a hologram. There were at least a dozen robot lawnmowers on the floor. Ring introduced security cameras for the mailbox and a car.

I brushed my teeth with the Y-Brush. It’s a U-shaped toothbrush with 35,000 bristles. Rather than brushing with a traditional toothbrush for 2 minutes, you simply place the Y-Brush in your mouth and move your jaw in a biting and side-to-side motion. After 30 seconds (15 for the top and 15 for the bottom row) your teeth are brushed as well, or better. CEO Benjamin Cohen said, “Here you spend at least 5 seconds on every side, so in fact, less time, we spend more in terms of brushing.”

When the 115,000 attendees left Las Vegas Sunday, the exhibitors began packing their products to return home. They’ll go back to the drawing board to come up with products they’ll unveil at CES 2024.