CES... the C is for Cars
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| CES... the C is for Cars | |
| Number | 3690 |
| Broadcast Date | JANUARY 3, 2020 |
| Episode Length | 31:17 |
| Hosts | Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Roger Chang |
| Guests | Tim Stevens, Len Peralta |
Tim Stevens from CNET’s Roadshow highlights all the automotive tech you should keep an eye on at this year’s CES.
Guest
Quick Hits
- Wireless charging accessory maker Zens is accepting pre-orders for its Liberty Wireless Charger, with 16 charging coils in an overlapping array that means you DO NOT need to place a device down a specific way to charge it. Just pop it on there. Up to two Qi-compatible devices can be charged with 15w of power at once. A fabric model retails for €139.99 ($155 USD), and a glass edition-- which lets you see all the coils inside-- is €179.99. An add-on to also charge an Apple Watch sells for €39.99.
- Samsung announced it sold 6.7 million 5G phones in 2019 between the Galaxy S10 5G and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus 5G, which is better than the expected 4 million. Samsung now says its devices count for 53.9 percent of the total 5G marketplace.
- Lenovo announced updates to its X1 laptop lineup with Intel's 10th-gen "Ice Lake" processors, up to 16GB of RAM, and up to 2TB of internal storage. Lenovo added new function keys for voice-over-IP calls, and both the X1 Carbon and X1 Yoga can be customized with a PrivacyGuard 1080p display with 500-nits. The X1 Carbon starts at $1,499, the X1 Yoga starts at $1,599.
- At CES next week, Lenovo will show off the ThinkSmart View, smart display that runs Microsoft Teams -- essentially an audio/video conferencing device that's more affordable than similar enterprise solutions.. The View starts at $349 (or $449 with an included pair of Bluetooth headphones for open offices) and launches later this month.
- Apple announced that former HBO CEO Richard Plepler's production company Eden Productions has a five-year deal to develop original content exclusively for Apple TV+. Plepler left HBO in February 2019 following AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner.
Top Stories
- Android Police noticed a user on Reddit called Dio-V saying their Xiaomi Mijia 1080p Smart IP Security camera was showing still images that appeared to be from other people's homes. The images appeared when they tried to stream from their camera to a Google Nest Hub. Dio-V told the Verge they saw someone's porch, a man sleeping in a chair and a sleeping baby in a crib. Google issued a statement saying, “We’re aware of the issue and are in contact with Xiaomi to work on a fix. In the meantime, we’re disabling Xiaomi integrations on our devices.” Xiaomi has since told the Verge the issue had to do with a "cache update" mean to improve streaming quality. Xiaomi says it has fixed the bug but will not resume Nest integration until the “root cause has been completely solved.”
- TechCrunch reports on a tip from Israel's market research startup Watchful.ai that code in Bytedance's TikTok and Douyin Android apps refer to a feature called Face Swap. The code would ask a user to take a multi-angle scan of their face, the choose form a selection of watermarked videos they would like to put their face into and share. The technology fits the description of a Deepfake but would be limited to a selection of source videos and TechCrunch suggest might raise awareness of what technology can do. Unpublished updates to terms of service found by Watchful state that "Your facial pattern will only be used to generate face-change videos." Chinese terms of service further state "matches are deleted immediately and your facial features are not stored." A spokesperson for TikTok told TechCrunch "this is definitely not a function in TikTok, nor do we have any intention of introducing it." And suggested it may be a feature meant for Douyin.
- OnePlus is always good for concept phone and this year's CES will be no exception. OnePlus is teasing the Concept One has an invisible rear camera array with color-shifting glass. An electrochroamatic sheet of glass covers the rear cameras and can switch to opaque with an electrical signal, hiding the cameras. That means you have a smooth back to the phone rather than the now common camera bump. OnePlus worked with car company McLaren which uses electrochromic glass in its cars. The array in the prototype features a 48-megapixel primary lens and 16-megapixel ultra wide, the same as in the OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren edition. OnePlus is looking for feedback from users.
- LG announced eight 8K TVs with Amazon Assistant, Google Assistant, AirPlay 2 and HomeKit integration as well as native support for HEVC, VP9 and AV1 codecs. There are two OLED models at 77 and 88-inches and six nanocell LCDs between 65 and 75 inches. All models will support 8K streaming at up to 60 frames per second through HDMI, and 5.1 surround sound and 8K upscaling using LG's Alpha 9 Gen 3 AI processor. Some AI recognizes faces on screen top optimize their appearance. LG has been calling its TVs "real 8K" which is an early shot in an 8K format war. 8K is 7680 by 4320 no matter who is defining it but how you measure those pixels is in dispute. LG is following the ICDM and CTA's definition which doesn't just count the pixels but uses Contrast Modulation to determine if pixels are clearly distinguishable from each other. Contrast Modulation measures the ability of a screen to distinguish a pattern of alternating, one-pixel-wide white and black lines. A score of 50% is need for the ICDM to consider a display 8K. Samsung on the other hand use the 8K association's definition which does not require Contrast Modulation to be used. Contrast Modulation may be a better way to measure pixels but the 8K Association has argued it is not necessarily a better way of measuring image quality.
- Kohler will show off a smart speaker with Amazon Voice Services that slots inside a shower head. The Kohler Moxie Showerhead is a circular ring that will sell for $70. You then buy the smart speaker which you can get for $99 if you only want Bluetooth or $159 if you want Amazon's voice control. You get 6 to 7 hours of battery life from the Bluetooth version and up to 5 hours from the voice controlled one. So yes, you will have to recharge your shower head occasionally. And yes it's all IPX67 waterproof. All the items will be available sometime this year. Kohler also announced it will show off its Veder Smart Mirror with Amazon Voice, an upgrade to the Numi intelligent toilet also with Amazon Voice and the PureWarmth heated toilet seat that does not have Amazon voice but does have its own app for controlling the heat.
Discussion
Tim's Take on CES
- Hyundai has a flying car to show off at CES 2020
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- General Motors guts CES plans, may have shown Cadillac electric car
Mailbag
- Just a quick comment about smart fridges after you guys talked about the new LG one. I really do wonder how big the potential market is in Europe. As far as I know most kitchens in Europe have fridges built-in to cabinets, so external screens don't make any sense. Here in Belgium at least almost nobody is interested in fridges that are not built-in.
Regards, - Sent by Sam
- Just a quick comment about smart fridges after you guys talked about the new LG one. I really do wonder how big the potential market is in Europe. As far as I know most kitchens in Europe have fridges built-in to cabinets, so external screens don't make any sense. Here in Belgium at least almost nobody is interested in fridges that are not built-in.
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CES... the C is for Cars |
Followed by: "The TV Multiverse at CES" |