What To Expect At CES 2018

CES 2018 will be kicking off next weel and will run from the 9th of January until the 12th of January. While product announcements do take place throughout the year, CES has got us pretty excited as we can expect a ton of new products that we can get our hands on. Media and news activities will start from January 7th.

We would like to thank our CES 2018 main sponsor, Lenovo, which will hold a number of events and announcement in Las Vegas.  In addition to Ubergizmo, you can track Lenovo’s announcements on the official Lenovo CES 2018 website and on Twitter @lenovo via the tag #LENOVOCES.

Ahead of CES, Lenovo announced several computers, and the ThinkPad X280/X380 was the most popular of them on our site earlier this week.

CES is a great opportunity for companies to show off upcoming tech, exciting technology, and also concepts that could become a reality in the future. So without further ado, below is a list of things that we can expect from the upcoming event, so take a gander if you are just as excited to see what 2018 has in store for us in terms of technology!

Televisions & Home Entertainment

Every year without fail companies such as Sony, Samsung, and LG take the opportunity to show off their latest display technology at CES, showing off their latest televisions, some of which will be available for purchase, while others are just a way for them to show how far they’ve come in creating the latest and greatest displays.

LG

Starting with LG, the company announced earlier this year their flagship signature OLED TVs, which included the LG B7, C7,E7,G7, and W7 models, so it can be safe to assume that next year they will be following up with newer models that will be the logical successors to this year’s lineup. Since then, LG has also unveiled their high-end OLED features as found in the upcoming LG models W8, E8, C8 and B8 that are the subect of another article.

To complement their television lineup for next year, LG has actually announced a bunch of new speakers and audio equipment. One of which will be the SK10Y which is a sleek-looking soundbar designed to blend with LG’s TVs; the other is a portable Bluetooth speaker with mood lighting; and last but not least LG has thrown their hat into the ring with a Google Assistant-powered speaker in the ThinQ Speaker.

Samsung

Just like LG, Samsung is one of the few main companies that are pushing the display tech envelope. The company has been making waves with its Quantum Dot technology, like they did earlier this year, and we expect that the company will have something new to show us next year as well.

In fact according to a rumor out of ZDNet Korea (via Tweak Town), it seems that Samsung could be showing off a massive 150-inch MicroLED TV at CES 2018. One of the advantages to this technology is that it won’t suffer from burn-ins that are typical of OLEDs, and they are also said to be low when it comes to power drawing, which will no doubt be a huge appeal if you’re going to be powering a 150-inch display.

In addition to launching new display and TV tech, Samsung has actually announced a new premium soundbar designed to complement its TVs thanks to its design, and more details such as pricing and availability should be shared at CES 2018 as well. There have also been rumors surrounding Samsung’s smart speaker powered by Bixby that could be announced in the first half of 2018, but whether or not it will be at CES 2018 or at an event of Samsung’s own choosing remains to be seen.

Sony

While Samsung and LG might be seen as the go-to companies for more “modern” TVs, Sony’s Bravia name still holds a lot of sway to it. The company unveiled the Bravia A1E OLED TV earlier this year which had an interesting and unique feature, where the sound is played through the TV’s display itself, as opposed to mounting speakers at its side or bottom like what we usually see. Sony has scheduled a CES 2018 press conference and there is a good chance we could be seeing newer TV models in 2018 as well.

Hisense

While Hisense might not necessarily be the company you think of when it comes to TVs, the China-based company has actually been churning out some pretty impressive displays in recent times. Earlier this year they unveiled a short-throw projector “TV” that could project an impressive 100-inch 4K HDR image.

The company hasn’t made any announcements as to what we might expect in 2018, but they are scheduled to hold a press conference so there is a good chance we can expect to see new TV and display tech from the Chinese company, in addition to other products that Hisense also makes which includes white goods.

Computers

In addition to new display tech and home entertainment products, CES is also a great place for companies to launch new computers, whether it be high-end monstrous gaming rigs that cost a small fortune, or a bunch of student/budget-friendly laptops that are good enough to get users through the day and then some.

Google

As you might have heard, CES 2018 will actually see Google have their own booth at the event. Prior to this, Google’s presence at CES has largely been an indirect one, where companies would launch products based on Google’s own products, such as Chromebooks, but this year the company is expected to be present which seems to suggest we might expect an announcement from the company.

Perhaps we could be treated to new Chromebooks or new Google Home speakers, or maybe Google’s presence could just be the company being there personally to demonstrate its already-existing hardware and software, like Google Assistant, for example.

Qualcomm

While Qualcomm doesn’t actually make their own computers, it seems that the company is starting to push its chipsets in a direction where they are starting to encroach on Intel’s territory, which is that Qualcomm’s chipsets could soon power more laptops. In fact there have been some laptops that are already powered by Qualcomm, like the HP Envy x2 and the ASUS NovaGo. However we have also heard that there could be a new Chromebook in the works that might be powered by the Snapdragon 845.

Lenovo

Speaking of Qualcomm-powered laptops, Lenovo has actually confirmed that they will be showing off a new Snapdragon Windows laptop at CES 2018. In fact a laptop powered by a Snapdragon chipset has recently shown up in benchmark listings, so presumably that will be the laptop that the company will show off. Don’t miss what Lenovo has already announced for CES 2018.

In addition to a Snapdragon Windows laptop, we expect that Lenovo will probably continue to offer its “regular” laptops. Earlier this year at CES 2017 they announced the ThinkPad X1 Carbon and the ThinkPad X1 Yoga, so presumably regular laptops and hybrid 2-in-1s should also be in the cards for CES 2018.

Dell

Dell’s XPS 13 laptop has been a popular one amongst consumers, given how thin and light it is, while packing some pretty decent hardware. A recent report from TechRadar has revealed that the company has a new XPS 13 model in the works that will be unveiled at CES 2018. At CES 2017 Dell took the wraps off their new XPS 13 model, so it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine that a new XPS 13 model for 2018 could be in the cards. We also expect that it’s possible that a newer XPS 15 could be announced alongside the XPS 13 model.

Samsung

With Samsung announcing new Chromebooks at CES 2017, it’s not hard to imagine that the company could have new Chromebooks planned for CES 2018. In fact a recent report has suggested that Samsung could indeed be working on such a device, and that this Chromebook by Samsung might come with a removable stylus that could have S Pen-like functionality.

In addition, Samsung has also recently announced new laptops in the form of the Notebook 9 Pen and the Notebook 9. Details were a bit scarce on these laptops, but they are expected to be revealed more in full at CES 2018.

LG

LG has actually recently announced its new LG Gram laptops. These laptops have been designed to feature long-lasting batteries, which might be great for those who travel a lot and don’t want to worry about their laptops dying on them halfway through the day (your mileage may vary). The new LG Gram laptops have also been designed to be rugged with MIL-STD 810G durability, and pricing and availability are expected to be shared at CES 2018.

Smartphones

While most handset makers tend to prefer hosting their own events when it comes to announcing new phones, we do actually see a fair bit of smartphone-related announcements at CES, and we doubt that will change in 2018.

Some of the popular rumored handsets that could be launched at CES 2018 include the LG G7, the LG K-series with LG Pay, and Sony’s flagship Xperia handset that is expected to introduce a new edge-to-edge display. In addition, we expect that companies such as Huawei to share details about the Mate 10/Mate 10 Pro arriving in the US, which last we heard could be in February with AT&T.

Note that Samsung has also been rumored to be gearing up to launch the Galaxy S9 in 2018, but it is highly unlikely that they will announce the phone at CES 2018 and will instead choose to launch it at their own event. However Samsung is expected to share details about its next-gen Exynos chipset at the event, which many speculate will find its way into the Galaxy S9 and S9+.

AR, VR, Wearables

With augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and wearables being some of the more trendy aspects of tech, we expect that there will be companies showing off such technologies at CES 2018, such as new fitness trackers, smartwatches, AR-based tech, and maybe even new VR headsets.

 

Lenovo is expected to unveil a new Daydream VR headset, thanks to a recent sighting at the FCC which suggests that a launch at CES 2018 is a possibility. Lenovo had previously unveiled their AR headset at IFA 2017, and maybe we could see the company further their AR efforts at CES 2018.

Car / Auto

While there are dedicated auto shows held in various parts of the world throughout the year, CES has also been a great platform for companies to show off their advancements in car technology. For example last year Toyota showed off a car concept that would “befriend” its owner. BMW also showed off concepts like its take on the car of the future (see video below).

Hyundai, Toyota, and Ford will be holding its own press conference and it is possible that they will share details about their advancements in car technology, whether it be updated dashboard UIs, advancement in their self-driving efforts, and so on.

Conclusion

These are just some of the things we can expect to see at CES 2018. There will no doubt be a lot more than what we’ve covered here, but these are probably some of the bigger announcements that we can look forward to, but either way be sure to check back with us during the week for more coverage!

Tyler Lee
Categories: General
Tags: CES, CES 2018