The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) from Las Vegas, the US, is wrapping up for another year, following a week of technology unveilings and demonstrations.
As with previous events there have been a slew of cool new gadgets on show, but also some head-scratchers that make you wonder “Why on earth have they done that?”
This year’s oddities include a spoon that electrocutes your food, a TV you can carry about like a shoulder bag, and a tiny bot that blows on your coffee to cool it down.
Smart glasses enter new era with sleeker designs, lower prices
Producers of hi-tech connected eyewear are multiplying their innovations with increasingly discreet models in an attempt to make a difference in a highly competitive -- and fast-emerging -- market.
Live translation, GPS, cameras: glasses are quickly adopting new functionalities.
"There are so many of these smart wearables, and more of them are going on your face," said Techsponential analyst Avi Greengart at the CES in Las Vegas, where numerous smart glasses manufacturers showcased their latest innovations.
The industry has come a long way from its early days. Gone are the conspicuous protrusions of Google Glass and the bulky frames and cables of Epson's Moverio from the early 2010s.
Today's smart glasses, all paired with smartphone apps, increasingly resemble traditional eyewear. The Ray-Ban Meta, developed by Mark Zuckerberg's social media giant, currently leads the market with this new approach.
According to a recent MarketsandMarkets study, the sector's growth is "driven by advancements in augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and miniaturization technologies, which are pushing the boundaries of what these wearable devices can achieve."
However, integrating technology into fashionable frames requires careful compromise.
The Ray-Ban Meta, for instance, can capture photos and videos, play music, and provide information about objects in view, but doesn't offer augmented reality with superimposed images.
Meta representative Robin Dyer explained that while AR capabilities may come later, they would likely double the current price.
Price is a major battleground in this market, particularly with the entry of Chinese manufacturers.
While Google Glass initially retailed for around $1 500 (R28663) in 2013, today's smart glasses are approaching the price of premium conventional frames.
Meta's James Nickerson noted that their Ray-Ban collaboration starts at $300, just $50 more than standard Ray-Bans, offering "a cool camera" as a bonus.
Chinese startup Vue has pushed prices even lower, offering basic models with voice assistant and music capabilities for $200.
Some manufacturers, like XReal, focus on augmented reality, projecting smartphone, computer, or gaming console displays -- though this is a market for which Apple's VisonPro failed to create excitement last year.
For AR, recent advances help move away from the bulk of a virtual reality headset towards that of classic sunglasses, even if they require a cable to be connected to the device.
Meta's ambition is to launch its own pared down version, the Orion, currently in the test phase but not expected to be marketed until 2027 at the earliest.
Companies like Even Realities and Halliday are pioneering ultra-thin frames that look identical to standard glasses while offering basic AR capabilities.
"If we want to make a good pair of smart glasses, we must first make a pair of cool glasses," emphasised Carter Hou, Halliday's second-in-command.
Halliday's $489 model, launching in March, displays text in the upper corner of the wearer's vision. Using AI, it can suggest responses during conversations, provide real-time translation, and function as a discrete teleprompter.
Even Realities has also taken a minimalist approach.
"We got rid of the speaker, we got rid of the camera," explained the company's Tom Ouyang. "Glasses are for the eyes, not the ears."
CHIPS
The CES gadget extravaganza was also rife with PCs and other devices touting AI chips, making them more capable than ever and untethering them from the cloud.
Attention-grabbing stars included "AI PCs," personal computers boasting chips that promised a level of performance once limited to muscular data centers.
"Whatever was running in the cloud last year is running on the edge this year," said Kamesh Medapalli, a senior vice president of innovation and technology at Infineon Technologies.
"The pattern is already there and will only accelerate; the opportunity is huge on the edge."
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang got a celebrity reception at CES, where he announced a ramped-up line of graphics processing units (GPUs) that imbue PCs with AI capabilities.
Huang told a packed arena that nearly all computer makers are working with Nvidia to get ready "so AI PCs are coming to a home near you."
Huang unveiled "Project DIGITS," described as a personal AI supercomputer.
It features a new Nvidia "superchip" for prototyping, fine-tuning and running large AI models on desktop computing systems, according to the chip maker.
"AI will be mainstream in every application for every industry," Huang said.
"Placing an AI supercomputer on the desks of every data scientist, AI researcher and student empowers them to engage and shape the age of AI."
Project DIGITS signals that Nvidia's strategy for AI data centres is extending to consumers who want the technology on their own machines, according to University of Pennsylvania computer science professor Benjamin Lee.
Infineon's Medapalli said a shift to the edge means that functions like engaging with generative AI chatbots that once involved sending requests to be processed in data centers could be handled on a PC or smartphone.
"You don't have to have any internet connection; you don't have to talk to anybody in the cloud," Medapalli said.
"All your data is private and local -- that is what I mean by edge AI, and that is rapidly coming."
The AI edge could be anywhere processors can be embedded, including robots, cameras and cars.
"That's why the opportunity is huge in edge AI," Medapalli said.
Market tracker Canalys has projected that AI-capable PCs will account for some 40% of overall PC shipments this year, with that number more than doubling by 2028.
"The wider availability of AI-accelerating silicon in personal computing will be transformative," Canalys principal analyst Ishan Dutt said in a post.
"PCs with dedicated on-device AI capabilities will enable new and improved user experiences, driving productivity gains and personalizing devices at scale while offering better power efficiency, stronger security and reduced costs associated with running AI workloads."
CES goers flocked to a Gigabyte Technology booth at CES to check out PCs enhanced with Nvidia high-performance processors.
"We've had a lot of interest in the graphics card as well as the gaming laptop, because they are the top from Nvidia right now," Mia Qu of Gigabyte told AFP.
"Especially for gamers or people who plan to us it for large storage or high performance on a daily basis, they’re eyeing these specific products.”
Techsponential analyst Avi Greengart said chip and laptop vendors at CES are seeing AI capabilities resonate with people who want to speed up workflow, extend battery life and enhance video calls.
"We are actually seeing AI making a difference in real things people actually do," Greengart said.
GRAPHIC NEWS AND AFP