7 weird and wonderful gadgets from this year’s CES tech show
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Every year Las Vegas is home to CES, a global consumer electronics and consumer technology tradeshow where manufacturers show off the latest in shiny gadgets. Some are good, some are terrible and others are just plain weird. Here are some picks from this year’s tech-crop.
1. You’ll be able to use Microsoft Office in your car
Fans of spreadsheets rejoice, Microsoft Office — including Word, Excel and Powerpoint – will soon be available in your car, using voice activation. “By ensuring that Office 365 services are seamlessly integrated with car and driver telematics and performance data, we will allow consumers to be more productive during their driving hours,” says Peggy Johnson, executive vice president of business development at Microsoft.
2. The toilet you only clean once a year
An “intelligent” toilet that opens when you approach it and self-cleans with every flush was also on display. It also cleans the user with an aerated wand, which delivers warm water and warm air “from a seated position”. Despite costing nearly £7,000 more than 40 million earlier versions of the Neorest toilets have been sold.
3. Kodak are bringing back the Super 8 Camera
Kodak plan to bring back the Super 8 later this year, and while it looks very retro it’s been updated with things like a digital viewfinder and an SD card slot to capture audio at the same time the footage is recorded onto film.
4. An alarm clock that wakes you up with smells
Never mind music, beeping noises or flashing lights to wake you up, the SensorWake uses smells. Invented by a Paris-based startup, when your alarm goes off the clock starts pumping out a scent – which include the likes of hot croissant, espresso, peppermint, and chocolate – from a capsule inserted in the top.
5. This washing machine has a little door so you can add any laundry you’ve forgotten
Most of us have put on a wash only to notice a stray sock that didn’t make it. The Samsung AddWash lets you press a button to pause the machine and opens the extra door so you can sling in that extra towel.
6. Headphones that look like cat ears
These light-up cat ear headphones were crowdfunded from a target of $250,000, designers Wenqing Yan and Victoria Hu raised well over three million dollars. They function not only as headphones but also as speakers, which are built into the ears plus they light up in your choice of blue, green, purple or red.
7. A cup that lets you boil water so you have have a hot drink on the go.
The winner of a competition held by Pot Noodle to find the latest and greatest time-saving inventions, 21-year-old Bianca Polizzi had the idea for the Kettle Kup after rushing to catch a bus and not having time for a coffee.
It’s a thermal cup with a USB rechargeable battery pack that saves you both time and money as you can have unlimited coffee, tea or Pot Noodles on the go – just fill the cup with water and hit the switch to boil the water using the in-built kettle-like base.
Bianca’s winning idea was made into a prototype – check out the journey of the Kettle Kup and how it made it in Vegas…