CES 2017 is all about improving how you see the world
CES is, to a degree, all about appearances. As the first major tech event of the year, it's an opportunity for companies to show off their latest and greatest — so looks matter.
On day one of CES 2017, the fixation on looks took on an even greater focus. From gorgeous displays to gadgets that were literally dedicated to vision and sight, seeing and being seen were the dominant themes to kick off the conference.
1. That flush fit of Samsung's new QLED TV and a wall
Samsung's new QLED TVs are a beautiful sight to behold. The new quantum dot material (aka nano-particle-sized silicon) makes for a brighter screen than any of its existing sets, and the "perfect color" display purports to give improved contrast and viewing angles for viewers.
But the coolest part of it might be the almost-imperceptible gap barely separating TV and wall thanks to a new built-in mounting system. That's about as flush as you can get — and setup is supposedly much quicker than with conventional mounts.
2. LG's 4K Nano Cell technology
Meanwhile, LG's Super UHD TVs went all in on some new Nano Cell display tech of its own. It's still 4K — but it's a whole new level of pretty.
The Nano Cells make sure that the display's colors come across rich and full no matter the viewing angle or light environment. Other tech like Active HDR makes sure that no matter the content, you're always getting the best picture. That just looks good.
3. Faraday Future's eye-popping debut
Faraday Future has been a super-hyped since last year's showing at CES 2016, but before the company's presentation of an actual production model of the all-electric ride, no one was quite sure what to think. Then it came time to back up the hype in a presentation last night — and it delivered.
The Faraday Future FF 91 isn't just great-looking — it's great at looking, too. The car has 30 sensors total for autonomous driving, including 10 cameras and an industry-first 3D LIDAR, which measures the distance to objects. But its self-parking demo and speed test (where it bested Tesla's 2.8 0-to-60 MPH start time at just 2.39 seconds) were probably what caught the most eyes.
4. Acer's gaming monitor that looks right back at you
Acer's new 30-inch Predator Z301CT gaming monitor might not seem special at first glance — it's a computer monitor — but that's because its best feature has more to do with how it looks at you.
The monitor has built-in eye tracking tech, which allows gamers to use their eyeballs as another controller along with their mouse and keyboard. When you're using it to play Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, one of the first compatible games, it gives a whole new meaning to look before you leap.
5. Lenovo's new Google Glass clone
Everyone knows what happened to Google Glass. It wasn't pretty.
Still, Lenovo used day one to show off another face-worn wearable with a very familiar look (and name): the New Glass C200. The Glass clone looks to ease users into the AR and AI wearable experience by marketing it as a tool to aid businesses, rather than a tool to help smug early adopters get punched in the face at bars.
6. Helia light bulbs to help your eyes
Why strain your eyes with lighting that's too bright or too dim in an age when nearly every other aspect of the home is getting smarter? That's the question posed by Helia smart bulbs, new LED bulbs that mimic natural sunlight.
Like Apple's Night Shift, the lights adjust their color temperature based on the time of day it is. Unlike Apple's Night Shift, Helia supposedly avoids that weird orange ambience that comes into play once the sun goes down, making sure your eyes don't get the wrong idea.
7. ODG's Snapdragon-powered "mixed reality" smart glasses
Why would you ever want to live in AR or VR when you could use both in "mixed reality?"
That's what the Snapdragon 835-powered
Trying out the Snapdragon 835-powered ODG R-8 AR/VR smart glasses. Like a lighter version of HoloLens #CES2017 #MashCES pic.twitter.com/iCKAqKLzKx
— Raymond Wong 📱💾📼 (@raywongy) January 3, 2017 " data-ga-click="1" data-ga-label="$text" data-ga-item="text-link" data-ga-module="content_body">ODG R-8 and R-9 AR/VR headsets give wearers. They're not the first AR/VR devices, but they do run cheap compared to competitors at $1,000 and $1,800, respectively. If nothing else, that looks great to your wallet.BONUS: Mashable Tech Editor Pete Pachal just lookin' good
Here's our own Pete Pachal giving the YouCam makeup mirror a whirl.
They do call him "mirrorpete" for a reason, after all.
Brett Williams is a Tech Reporter at Mashable. He writes about tech news, trends and other tangentially related topics with a particular interest in wearables and exercise tech. Prior to Mashable, he wrote for Inked Magazine and Thrillist. Brett's work has also appeared on Fusion and AskMen, to name a few. You can follow Brett on Twitter @bdwilliams910.
