NEW YORK: The vast 2015 International CES, one of the world’s biggest electronics fairs to be held in Las Vegas January 6-9, shows how technology is permeating virtually all sectors of life from entertainment to automobiles to kitchen appliances, in sectors including health, fashion and sports.
“The ‘Internet of Things’ is the hottest topic in tech right now,” said Karen Chupka of the Consumer Electronics Association, which organizes the annual event.
“It’s all about the opportunity to connect everyday items like cars, home security systems and kitchen appliances to networked devices like PCs and smartphones for greater control and management of our everyday lives.”
Also on view will be the newest and biggest television displays featuring “ultra high definition” that is catching on with consumers.
So-called 4K television sets are coming down in price and becoming mainstream, and some reports suggest the show may feature newer, even more realistic “8K” displays.
Roger Kay, analyst at Endpoint Technologies Associates, said that 4K “is a really obvious play for the industry and consumers” because it can mean big-ticket purchases, and deliver a better image.
While 4K television has been around a few years, the market may be ready now, says Bob O’Donnell at the research firm Technalysis, with prices for TV sets falling below $1000.
The 4K formats “is more 3D-like than 3D,” O’Donnell said. “The quality is so high it makes users feel like they are there.”
Curved and bendable screens should be on display, and perhaps some folding ones as well.
In the air, CES will for the first time have a dedicated space for drones to accommodate the growing interest in unmanned flying devices. This comes with interest in drones for everything from law enforcement to crop management to search-and-rescue missions.
A separate robotics zone will be 25 percent bigger than last year, with at least 18 exhibitors. Some robots are connected to the Internet cloud, or controllable by mobile device and capable of seeing, hearing, feeling and reacting to the environment.
A wider range of wearable technology will also be on display at the show, in a key segment among the 35,000 exhibitors.
While smart watches and fitness bands have been on the market, “I expect to see more smart garments, including smart shirts and smart bras,” said Angela McIntyre, analyst at the research firm Gartner.
“We’ll be seeing more traction with smart garments next year.”
These garments are likely to replace more restrictive heart-monitoring straps and bands which are “effective but uncomfortable,” McIntyre said.
More important than the wearable items they will be the platform behind them. Users will be looking for ways to use the data in a productive way, said IDC analyst Ramon Llamas.
“A wearable device can tell you that you have walked 10,000 steps. But we need more than that,” Llamas said.
“People are looking for devices which tell us when we need to go to sleep earlier, skip dessert, or get up and take a walk around the office.”
A major battle is taking place to be the software platform for wearable’s, with Google, Apple, Microsoft and others seeking domination.
