Best of CES 2021: pandemic tech, green tech, air taxis and lots of robots

This story is part of THESE, where our editors will bring you the latest news and the hottest gadgets from fully virtual CES 2021.

Flashy three-story kiosks and auditoriums filled with tech nerds have been replaced with highly produced live broadcasts and virtual presentations by executives calling from their home offices and kitchen tables. But in the end it was still THESE.

We got our first look at what is likely to become one of the most popular Televisions and laptop of 2021. We have seen ambitious ideas and concepts for products that might never hit the market but that might inspire future product designers to keep dreaming. And, of course, we were entertained by the usual the robots, fancy flights and head scratching oddities.

One thing that will set CES 2021 apart forever is how many companies have shown us their efforts to face the global pandemic, by means large and small. Cynics would say it was partly pure marketing. But there was no doubt that some of the best minds in the tech industry have put brain cycles into solving societal problems and serving humanity.

Of all the products we’ve seen, from the most ambitious to the most useful, these are the ones that stood out:

Razer High-Tech N95 Mask

Game company Razer introduced a concept, called Hazel Project, for a high-tech face mask with active ventilation, a transparent screen to see people talking and a case that charges the ventilators and disinfects the mask with UV rays while it is charging. It also has LED lights on it and looks straight out of the pages of sci-fi.

HP Dragonfly Max, with a 5MP webcam

Among the powerful laptops of CES 2021, we noted the HP Dragonfly Max for its built-in Tile tracker, attractive blue design, and the fact that it’s one of the only new laptops to include an upgraded 5-megapixel webcam with four wide-range microphones. in the zoom age, many people will appreciate these upgrades.

LG Rollable

At one of the first CES 2021 press conferences, we got a glimpse of a smartphone screen that rolls up to expand the screen viewing area. Like foldable phones, it looks incredibly futuristic, but doesn’t have a ton of obvious benefits. However, CNET’s Roger Cheng confirmed that it was not just a concept, but a product that LG plans to bring to market in 2021.

Cadillac eVTOL Air Taxi

GM used CES to announce that it turn into an EV company. And, by far, the most interesting EV announced was the Cadillac eVTOL air taxi. It’s more of a giant drone than a flying car, but it’s the kind of thing CES audiences love.

Samsung solar remote control

CES’s 800-pound gorilla, Samsung, showed a lot of new TVs, but the thing that really caught our eye was something much simpler – his new solar TV remote control. No more replacing and throwing away alkaline batteries. Instead, you can turn the remote over and let it charge from the mini solar panel on the back (or plug it into a USB-C port).

LG transparent OLED display concept

Speaking of TVs, LG had one of the flashiest demos of CES 2021 with its transparent OLED TVs, as expected. While it’s still a concept, LG has showcased awesome scenarios of this technology in action on train windows, restaurant partitions, and hiding in the footboard of a bed.

TCL TVs expand to 85 inches and 8K

As for televisions, people will buy soon, TCL announced new 85 inch and 8K televisions. The popular TV maker will likely be cost competitive and make 85-inch and 8K screens more affordable for many more people in 2021. Obviously now is a great time for people who get 100% of their home entertainment in this moment.

Nobi fall detection ceiling light

Seniors have been one of the most at-risk groups during the pandemic and a product to help them is what can be the smartest ceiling light we’ve ever seen, called the Nobi. It uses sensors and AI for active monitoring and can detect falls and other hazards and then send alerts. It even has a built-in smoke detector, an air quality sensor and a 4G SIM card in case of Wi-Fi failure.

Alarm.com contactless video doorbell

Instead of pressing a button, this new doorbell from Alarm.com uses a doormat and AI to detect when someone has arrived at your door, and lets you talk to them through an app with the built-in camera and microphone. It is a contactless system for the age of the coronavirus.

Samsung Robot Butler (Bot Handy)

Surprisingly, Samsung’s opening speech at CES this year had a lot more robots than TVs or gadgets. The most intriguing was the Butler robot Handy Bot, who can help with household chores and get you something to drink. The demo video showed him taking the dishes out of the sink and loading them into a dishwasher. We haven’t seen this kind of fuss from CES attendees since robot folding laundry teased us a few years ago.

Acer Spin 514 Chromebook

With Chromebooks currently becoming the center of education for many elementary and high school students, a CES 2021 product that many parents will appreciate is the Acer Spin 514 Chromebook. It has the appearance of a jet and the body of a tank. With a Gorilla Glass display and MIL-STD 810H1 compliance, it has an indestructible vibe.

Kohler Touchless Toilet

Pot humor has arrived at CES in recent years with more and more smart bathroom tech, and 2021 hasn’t disappointed with a Kohler toilet with magic handle. Just wave your hand in front of the handle and it will rinse automatically. Like the contactless doorbell we mentioned earlier, it aims to reduce the spread of germs from common surfaces.

Samsung JetBot 90 AI

Another Samsung robot was its AI-powered vacuum cleaner which is loaded with lidar and cameras to make it smarter and more automated than traditional robot vacuums. the JetBot 90 AI Also doubles as a traveling security camera to keep an eye on your pets and home when you’re away – because when that day comes we’ll all be able to safely leave our homes.

Infinity game table

One of the funniest things at CES this year was the Infinity game table, which digitizes some of the world’s most popular board games on a touchscreen table. You can play Digital Monopoly against a family member or roommate and no one has to be the banker. You can even play against other friends and family online, if they have their own table.