CES 2023: all the news from the year’s biggest tech conference – The Verge

Six smart home finds from CES 2023 you may have missed

2023-01-12T10:41:01-05:00

The LG Artcool Gallery AC unit adds some style to your smart home. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

The smart home at CES wasn't all Matter, Matter, Matter. At The Verge, we covered the launch of literally dozens of new products at the big consumer tech show. From innovations in smart lighting and exciting products in smart home energy management to flying cameras and wirelessly charging smart locks, there was a lot of great new tech to see.

But there were a few that we didn't highlight during the show, as well as a couple of genuine surprises we discovered roaming the show floor. Here's a round-up of some of the other innovations, gadgets, and new products that caught our eye in Las Vegas. And in case you missed it, catch up on all our s …

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The regulatory maze behind health tech vaporware

2023-01-11T13:00:00-05:00

Movano’s Evie Ring has been in the works for a while. It’s currently going through trials to get FDA clearance. | Image: Movano

Every year at CES, you'll see a lot of fascinating health tech concepts and prototypes - at-home urinary scanners, smartwatches that can noninvasively monitor blood sugar, and a wearable patch to prevent sexual dysfunction. And then, nothing ever seems to make it to market. Or if it does, it only happens years later, and often, the final product isn't nearly as capable as the initial pitch.

There are three letters why: FDA.

The Food and Drug Administration is meant to protect public health. One of the many ways it does that is by regulating medical devices. This is a good thing. When human health is on the line, you want medical technolo …

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What CES 2023 taught us about the year ahead in TVs

2023-01-11T08:00:00-05:00

Another CES has come and gone. And after spending a few days reflecting on what I saw at the big trade show, it's clear that 2023 will be a relatively quiet year for TVs on the whole. There were no major breakthroughs or new standards demonstrated at the show - at least none that will make it into your living room this year.

Instead, we saw a lot of iterative, predictable evolution of current home theater tech. TCL and Hisense offered up Mini LED TVs with more dimming zones than we've ever seen. Samsung and LG are producing the most impressive OLED TVs yet. And nearly TV maker is talking up AI and deep learning gimmicks that cover everythin …

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There is exactly one game I can confirm RDNA 3 mobile can run

2023-01-10T13:42:38-05:00

Look at me, a gamer, playing the Sackboy game. | Photo by Monica Chin / The Verge

Last week, AMD announced its upcoming Ryzen 7000 mobile CPUs and RDNA 3 laptop GPUs, and we got some very brief hands-on time with them. Well, okay - hands-on time is a stretch. I was able to play one specific title on one specific all-AMD system in the company's demo area at CES 2023 last week. But that does at least confirm that these chips are real and functional in this year's gaming laptops.

The company had a number of upcoming laptops from partners on display at the show, including some of the most anticipated models from Asus and Alienware that we covered over the course of last week. Most of them were running videos that showed off …

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Why Matter mattered at CES

2023-01-10T11:52:41-05:00

Matter made a big splash at CES 2023. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

From Central Hall to The Venetian, Matter was the buzzword throughout CES 2023 this year, with most companies even remotely connected to the smart home loudly discussing their Matter plans (although a few were more subdued). The new smart home standard was featured in several keynotes and displayed prominently in smart home device makers' booths as well as in Google, Amazon, and Samsung's big, showy displays.

More importantly, dozens of companies and manufacturers announced specific plans. Several companies said they would update entire product lines, while others announced new ones, sometimes with actual dates and prices. And Matter contr …

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The $3,000 totally wireless Displace TV is the definition of CES absurdity

2023-01-09T15:33:10-05:00

Four hot-swappable batteries can keep the Displace running at all times.

Our time at CES 2023 might be over, but it's still worth highlighting some standouts at the show. One of those that's gotten quite a bit of attention is from an upstart company called Displace. LG's brand-new Signature OLED M eliminates every wire except for the power cord, but Displace is trying to nix that one, too. In Las Vegas, the company demonstrated a completely wireless 55-inch 4K OLED TV that runs off four hot-swappable batteries. This is a dream that has existed since the earliest days of The Verge.

Are we seeing an imperfect sneak peek of the future, or is this a solution in search of a problem? Is the Displace another classic ex …

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Asus’ convertible gaming laptops return with new hardware and more staying power

2023-01-09T10:58:16-05:00

The ROG Flow X16 is just one of three convertible laptops Asus showed off at CES 2023. | Image: Asus

The hits from CES 2023 just keep coming. Asus is rolling out a bevy of new hardware announcements for its ROG gaming brand, and among those are refreshed models of its Flow lineup. The Flow X13, X16, and Z13 are all getting hardware improvements, including the latest processors and mobile GPUs - but perhaps the most notable improvement with one of these gaming laptops is its larger battery.

Asus' Flow line is relatively unique among gaming laptops, sporting 2-in-1 displays and - in the case of the X16 and Z13 - compatibility with an Asus-made external GPU to boost gaming performance. However, the most recent iterations of these laptops suff …

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Disney’s Magical Companion debuts at CES with some help from Amazon

2023-01-07T18:09:51-05:00

“Hey Disney!” is a smart voice assistant that wants to bring some magic into your home. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

Alexa's got some company. I met Disney's new voice assistant at CES this week, and it's pretty cute. Called "Disney's Magical Companion," the disembodied voice is born from fairy dust and lives inside Amazon's Echo smart speakers and displays. Its purpose is to call up various characters - including Disney, Pixar, and Star Wars faves - to help you out with common voice assistant chores (timers, alarms, weather), as well as entertain with stories, games, and other sprinkles of Disney magic.

You conjure the assistant with the phrase "Hey Disney!" - here's a quick demo I did at CES this week:

"Hey Disney!" showing some of its tricks which …

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The first smart deadbolt capable of wireless charging is coming this year

2023-01-07T15:19:11-05:00

Alfred’s new DB2S smart deadbolt will charge via Wi-Charge’s infrared power transmission, though the transmitter will be sold separately. | Image: Alfred

The first wirelessly powered smart deadbolt is launching later this year - but you'll have to wait for the wireless power. The Alfred DB2S is the first DIY-installable smart lock that can charge via infrared power transmission, and Alfred says it'll be available for $299 at The Home Depot, Lowe's, and other retailers in early Q2.

There's a slight catch, though: that $299 doesn't get you wireless charging, at least not yet. For that, you'll need a Wi-Charge charging kit, which won't be available through consumer channels until the second half of 2023 at the earliest. Pricing for the kit has not been set.

When it is available, the charging …

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Where was 5G at CES?

2023-01-07T11:00:00-05:00

From the front row to a no-show. | Image: The Verge

When it wasn't being overshadowed by covid resurgences, CES, for the past few years, has partially functioned as a big 5G pep rally. But as cars, smart home standards, and so many screens took center stage at this year's show, 5G took a back seat.

Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg gave a very similar keynote speech in 2019 and 2021, showing off all of the things 5G would supposedly enable: remote surgery, self-driving cars, augmented reality, and so on. T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert was slated to deliver the 2022 keynote before omicron put a stop to that. But in 2023, 5G was hardly a footnote on the speaker roster.

Why? It's not as if all of the thing …

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