CES 2016 took place last week and judging from the Newsfeeds and Social Media headlines, focus has truly returned to the consumer this year. This is what tickled our fancy… (Our wish list is always open, so feel free to drop any of the following as a gift… anytime : )
Funded via Kickstarter, SKreens turns your TV into a media hub with multiple simultaneous feeds. The website describes it as a revolutionary way to show all of your devices together on one display in 1080p/60 with no lag — just plug, play and play.
Join the mailing list or bookmark their website to stay in touch
Polaroid, a name synonymous with photography, impressed with the release of their ModelSmart 250s 3D printer. Unlike other 3D printers on the market, it was designed to be simpler for consumers to operate; possessing auto-calibration, built-in cameras and wi-fi for remote monitoring among others.
A US release is anticipated in 2016 with retail price expected to be: $2,200
You may have heard of the Segway (It happens to be the transport mode of choice for Barbados’ board walk patrol :). If not, you have most certainly heard of the (internet-famous) ‘Hoverboard’. Well Segway created that market a few years ago and now, following acquisition by rivals Ninebot their innovation continues.
In the past week they have released the ‘Mini Pro scooter‘. Features include: Air-inflated tires, self balancing and option to add the ‘Segway Advanced Personal Robot’, which is capable of fully autonomous movement or control via smartphone app – Nice! Ninebot also plans to release a developer kit in the second half of 2016
It should be available in February for $1,299
DJs, you’re gonna love this… This is basically a Bluetooth-connected crossfader funded via kickstarter.
Edging, the creators, are also releasing a ‘Scratch’ app for anyone wanting to learn to scratch using the Mixfader (or any other regular mixer), which will be available to download in ‘early January’.
Mixfader is currently available to pre-order for $99 (unspecified limited number) then $129 RRP and set to ship in Q1 of 2016
Big news!… In his opening keynote at CES, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings confirmed that the streaming platform will expand 130 new countries including Barbados and Ghana – that is virtually everywhere, Yeay! You can now take that occasional (or frequent) binge, without excuse, regardless of where you live.
Remix OS, basically allows you to run Android on your PC or Mac. Originally packaged with the ‘Remix Mini’, Jide, the creators have announced an x86 version of Remix OS will be released as a free global download.
It is productivity-focused, with full support for Android apps from the Google Play store.
Minimum requirements for the OS are a USB 3.0 flash drive that supports FAT32 format, Minimum capacity of 8GB and a PC with support for booting from a USB. Basically, you can put your old PC to use again and I personally cannot wait to try it – Sweet!
The news spread like wild fire – YES! Panasonic is making the world’s most popular turntables (Technics SL-1200 model) again. No worries if you never tried them, you may have a chance to now, as after having stopped production in 2010, panasonic has decided to resume (possibly due to a resurgence in popularity of vinyl).
Features include: an updated motor (making it quieter and reducing vibration), resulting in overall better sound output.
There is also a 50th anniversary edition (Grand Class SL-1200GAE) limited to just 1,200 units and according to rumours, they’ll set you back a cool $4000 – Ouch!
HP’s Elitebook Folio, recently announced, caught my attention. Maybe it is because of the ‘Apple Macbook killing’ headline, being a Mac-head, but on closer look, the specs are pretty impressive.
Here are a few: It is thin (12.4 mm at its thickest point), light (weighs 2.2 lb), with attractive metallic finish, 1080p or 4k display, edge to edge screen , (12.5 “), 720p webcam, Intel Core m5 or Core m7 processor, long battery life (10 hours), 4 GB or 8 GB or RAM, 128 GB or 256 GB of storage, touchscreen, 180-degrees fold back display and more – not bad!
Launching in March at a cost of $999, now you know what you next laptop should be.
Imagine a fridge, which keeps track of your food, their levels and automatically re-orders when levels fall (that belongs in Star Wars, right?) We are pretty close actually, especially with Samsung’ latest unveiling at CES.
The refrigerator is equipped with a 21.5-inch touchscreen and runs Samsung’s Tizen operating system. It comes loaded with an app called ‘Groceries’ (developed in partnership with MasterCard Labs), from which you will be able to order food directly from the fridge door. You will also receive recommendations as the app learns what you like.
A companion mobile app allows family members to add items to the grocery list and It will also allow you to see what’s in stock via an in-built camera – (told you; we’re almost in Star Wars :).
Fitbit announced its newest fitness tracker, Fitbit Blaze at CES 2016. It adds a colour screen to the touchscreen feature, is modular with interchangeable metal, rubber, or leather bodies and straps and is intended to be a ’Smart Fitness Watch’, while still providing call, text and calendar capabilities. Hopefully we should see third-party apps added soon
Currently available to pre-order at $199 with a March launch.
The ‘missus’ wants it and i think she’s going to get it!
So this is what got us excited during CES 2016. We will add feedback on whatever we give a try, and do feel free to drop yours as well… either in the comments section of this post or on our social profiles (Facebook / Twitter / Google+)
