CES 2016 may not officially begin until Wednesday, but early press conferences and preview events have firmly established the tone of the show.
Coins2Day attended a series of pre-show events Monday, where companies were displaying and discussing their new products, and a few categories quickly began to emerge:
Smart homes – At CES Unveiled, a sneak peek event that gives a good sense of the direction of each year’s show, there were a plethora of devices to make your home more intelligent, ranging from a showerhead that alerts you when you’re using too much water to a connected ceiling fan. And expect Samsung, Sony (SNE) and Panasonic to incorporate the Internet of Things into their press events Tuesday, including explanations of how it ties in with your home.
MORE: Ford Wants Your Car to Control Your Home
Smart cars – Nvdia (NVDA) kicked off the 2016 smart car frenzy Monday night, announcing a “super computer” for vehicles called the Drive PX2. CEO Jen-Hsun Huang says the system can process inputs from 12 video cameras, radar, and other sensors, bringing the driverless car much closer to reality. BMW (BMW) will unveil a gesture-based interface, allowing drivers to control some car features with a wave of their hand later this week. Ford has been making noise about self-driving cars and the car-sharing sector. And Kia and Mercedes are both expected to discuss (and perhaps show off) their self-driving vehicles, as well as discuss advances in connected car technology.
WATCH: For more on self-driving cars, watch this Coins2Day Video.
Drones – One of the hottest gifts of the just-completed holiday season, drones have been a big favorite at CES for the past few years—and they’re not showing any signs of slowing down. Parrot introduced a new model at Unveiled that can take off, steer, and land on its own, simplifying the user experience for newcomers to the hobby. DJI, meanwhile, opted to focus on power users, with a less expensive drone that shoots 4K video. There are also mounts that let you attach your camera of choice to your drone. Many more models and modifications are likely to be showcased this week.
Wearables – Fitness trackers and health monitors are going to be all over the place at CES this year, but we’re seeing advancements in the category that could make them a bit more ubiquitous and useful. Misfit has introduced the Ray, a new tracker that is just 12mm in diameter, making it easier to wear or incorporate into jewelry. Fitbit (FIT) is unveiling its next generation of products at the show. And health wearables are exploding, with everything from a patch that regularly takes a patient’s temperature to a wrist-worn blood pressure monitoring device.
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UHD TV – Expect this to be the big buzzword Tuesday. What started as 4K and morphed into “Ultra High Definition” is now Super UHD. To help clarify the market, the UHD Alliance has narrowed the definition of the term, setting metrics for things like resolution, high dynamic range (HDR), peak luminance, black levels, and wide color gamut. That, ideally, will make things more transparent for shoppers. Expect all of the major television manufacturers to tout that their new line meets (and likely exceeds) those standards in Tuesday’s press conference barrage.