TECH SPECIAL .....What to expect from the year’s biggest tech show

What to expect from the year’s biggest tech show

One of the largest tech conventions in the world has kicked off in Las Vegas.

The International Consumer Electronics Show — CES — the annual gathering in Las Vegas of 100,000-plus techies, analysts, journalists, and celebrity spokespeople. It is often remembered more for what happens off the show floor than among the endless booths of wacky gadgets.

Here are some trends to watch out for at CES 2018.

Artificial intelligence

Thanks to Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s own impressive success with its Google Assistant-powered smart speakers, voice-controlled digital assistants haven’t just reached the mainstream. They’re becoming ubiquitous.

Expect to see lots of other players scrambling to catch up with Amazon and Google.

8K is on the horizon

4K or HDR TVs were a hot topic at the last three shows, and they will be popular again in 2018. But this year’s CES will have at least five vendors showing off 8K TVs.

LG is pushing the boundaries of TV tech with its 88-inch 8K OLED TV to the show, which is not only a record breaker due to its sheer size, but a screen with an eye-watering resolution of 7,680 x 4,320 pixels.

5G is coming to the fore

There’s a new wireless broadband standard in the works dubbed 5G that will not only be a big overarching theme at CES, it will be the particular focus of announcements from companies such as Qualcomm, Intel, and Ericsson.

Most people likely equate the debut of a new wireless standard with just being able to download things faster on their phones. 5G will definitely deliver faster

phone data connections. But it could also mean a lot more.

Because of the speed it will offer, 5G has the potential to replace wired broadband connections in your home, which could finally give you another option for internet access in addition to the old cable and landline telephone companies.

Transportation industry

Every car company is now a tech company.

Ford, Mercedes, Toyota, and just about every other major car manufacturer not only participate in CES, their displays have been taking up more and more of the showroom floor each year. If there’s one CES trend that has flourished in recent years, it’s the marriage of tech and transportation.

Byton started CES 2018 off with a bang by unveiling its concept car, an electric SUV. It’s an ultraintuitive connected machine, complete with Alexa support and a touchscreen in the steering wheel. It’s also launching in late 2019 at a starting price of $45,000. Should Tesla be worried?

Fisker also plans to reveal its newest electric car at this year’s show. Called EMotion, the car will cost $129,000 and ship in 2019.

Despite its high price, it’s expected to put Tesla on notice, especially since the EMotion has a reported range of over 400 miles.

Concept robots

Robots have long been a mainstay on the CES show floor, but they’re usually more of a novelty than a real product. This year, thanks to AI, voice interfaces and advanced sensors, robots are inching closer to becoming useful. One category to watch is mobile service robots, which can handle deliveries and other simple tasks.

— Agencies

ETP 9JAN18