Consumer Electronics Show 2018: What to expect

On January 9, in presence of members of the media, exhibitors and industry insiders will once again descend upon the stage to set the pace of tech for the next one year. CES, the world’s biggest tech show will kick off next week and tech giants from around the globe will showcase the products that will go on sale for mass consumption in the coming months.

CES has been the trend setter of the tech world for past few years, and this year seems no different. Major manufacturers such as LG, Samsung, Sony, Intel and Qualcomm will be showcasing their products. Here’s what you can expect from this year’s CES:

Smartphones and tablets

CES isn’t exactly the place where lot of smartphones are displayed. But this doesn’t stop manufacturers from flaunting their upcoming phones at CES. Huawei might have something in store for its fans. The company is most likely to announce the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro phablets for AT&T at CES.

BlackBerry is going to announce the US availability of its Motion smartphone. Sony will be announcing the rumoured — XA2 and XA2 Ultra sporting mid-range features, while an entry-level L2 smartphone is also in the queue.

Samsung might tease its flagship Galaxy S9 at CES, before launching at MWC 2018. The South Korean company could also showcase the concept Galaxy X smartphone with a foldable display.

Smart speakers

Smart voice assistants have suddenly become a trend and 2018 is expected to see an immense increase in the production of smart speakers. Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant were once only available on Amazon Echo and Google Home speakers, but third-party manufacturers such as JBL, Ultimate Ears, Sonos and others have launched their own smart speakers with support for these voice assistants. We might see Apple’s HomePod sometime this year.

Laptops

CES 2018 will most likely see the launch of Intel's eighth-generation processors that will serve as the catalyst for an industry-wide PC refresh. A lot of internal updates can be expected as it gives manufacturers opportunities to cram in some new tech and functionalities into the recently launched systems.

Other changes that might come along will be the new designs and thinner bezels, advanced biometric security features and improved battery reservoirs.

Smart wearables

2017 was the year of smartwatches and fitness accessories. CES 2018 could focus on hybrids — just in a slightly different manner. Manufacturers might add a fashionable flavour to these hybrid analogs.
We might see smartwatches that looks like a classic but has fitness tracking capabilities. However, we shouldn’t expect too much as of now, as Fitbit seems to be favouring a spring/fall schedule for new products, while other vendors will bring upgrades.

TVs

LG Display will be showcasing its 88-inch 8K OLED display at CES 2018, but this is just the concept. So if you thought of replacing your 4K TV for a bigger resolution, you might have to wait a little longer. Also, there is no way to stream or download 8K content. The broadcast is yet to go full 4K, so expecting 8K content for the next few years would be unfair.