Topics: Tech

A big part of the show floor at CES every year is always monopolized by automakers demonstrating home much tech they can fit into their vehicles. GM, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and many others aren’t letting the lack of a show floor stop them from stealing the show. This year brought flying drone taxis, new electric cars from GM and Cadillac, the next iteration of BMW’s iDrive and a 56-inch infotainment screen. It’s not quite the flying cars that the future promised but it’s still exciting nonetheless. Let’s run down some of the cool concepts and future production vehicles that manufacturers brought to the virtual show.

GM & Cadillac

While it’s more similar to a giant drone than a flying car, GM’s Cadillac eVTOL (electric vehicle take off and landing) concept gives a peak at a possible future method of travel. It isn’t so much designed to park in your driveway as it is to take you from rooftop to rooftop. Relying on electric motors and a 90-kwh battery the vehicle can sail the skies at around 56 mph. It won’t be ideal for your daily commute, but might help you get to that meeting across town super quick with no traffic aside from the birds.

Aside from its eVTOL concept, GM had a bevy of electric cars to talk about and preview. Cadillac showed off the Lyriq which will be available in 2022 and previewed the Celestiq which is targeted for 2025. Powering these new vehicles is GM’s new Ultium Battery System, a brand new modular system that is the future of all of GM’s electric plans. This new system can power vehicles for up to a 400 mile range and drive front, rear and all wheel drive vehicles. With their innovative new battery system in hand, GM is poised to bring a whole fleet of electric vehicles over the next few years. Below is a sneak peak with the new GMC Hummer EV front and center, flanked by the Cadillac Celestiq and Lyriq. Also in the shadows is an electric truck and a few unidentified SUVs, the future is definitely electric for GM and all its brands.

Read more about the new Ultium Battery System over at GM

Mercedes-Benz

While they didn’t show off the upcoming EQS Luxury Sedan but they did show off the Hyperscreen which is the centerpiece of the second generation MBUX “Mercedes-Benz User Experience. This 56-inch screen is actually multiple touchscreens all built into one solid piece of glass that spans the entire dash. The three main areas of the Hyperscreen are the instrument cluster, center infotainment console and a passenger facing screen. MBUX uses what Mercedes calls “zero layer” so you don’t have to scroll through endless menus or learn voice commands. It utilizes AI learning to know what apps and setting you use most and presents them when needed, even the passenger get their own custom area. With this amazing technology in the dash it will be exciting to see what other tech they put in the next generation EQS sedan.

Read more @ Mercedes-Benz

BMW

Over at BMW they are trying to reinvent the wheel again, at least the wheel that is at the center of their iDrive system. This year marks 20 years since its introduction and the new iDrive is a revolution that has an AI assistant that you actually give a name to. BMW says its about bridging the gap between the car and the driver to create and emotional connection with the car. They actually partnered with internet personalities iJustine, Supercar Blondie and a roll reversed interview with iDrive. Along with these videos BMW also produced a short film that saw the new BMW iX meet and an old BMW 7 Series and shenanigans ensue.

Head over to BMW’s CES hub for some more videos about the new iDrive

More To Come…

Thats just a few tidbits from what the automakers showed off this week at this virtual CES. Look for a part 2 coming soon for more tech for your car to keep you in your little bubble and entertained while on the road.

Every year Razer brings some crazy concepts to CES and they are always the talk of the show. Even with this years All Digital CES they still have some awesome tech to show. The nature of being virtual has actually given them the freedom to go a little further since they don’t actually have to show a physical product. With the ongoing global pandemic, Razer has brought a concept for the world’s first Smart Mask called Project Hazel. Of course it wouldn’t be a Razer product without it’s signature Chroma RGB lighting but Razer didn’t just slap some LEDs in a mask and call it a day. What they’ve done is actually pretty interesting by putting a built in mic and amplifier inside in order to side step the normal muffled speech you get wearing a mask. They also made the whole thing clear so you can express yourself and make it easier for the hearing impaired to read lips. To improve on this even further they also built in lighting for a low light mode, so even at night you can communicate effectively.

Obviously we are all optimistic that an end to the pandemic is in sight but if we are going to have to wear masks we might as well be comfortable and stylish. For now this is just a concept but it’s not hard to see at least some of the ideas put into a real product by Razer or someone else. With the design and features it kind of gives off a futuristic, cyberpunk feel in a post apocalyptical world. It’s not hard to see that these may be useful even in a post pandemic world, like doctors or other workers that may need protection from environmental dangers. What do you think? Would you wear a smart mask if this is a peak at our future?

Check out the full press release for more info on this and Razer’s other news from CES.

https://press.razer.com/product-news/razer-unveils-smart-mask-and-gaming-chair-concept-designs-at-ces-2021/

https://youtu.be/FvWiCclESL8

Once a year the big tech companies gather in Las Vegas to show off their latest innovations at CES: the Consumer Electronics Show. This year however the global pandemic has dictated that they go completely digital and have a virtual show. Even with this limitation many tech companies are still bringing their latest tech to show off to the world. Here are just a few of the highlights from the first two days.

Verizon Touts 5G Partnerships

The show kicked off yesterday with Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg who touted new partnerships with big companies like NFL, The Metropolitan Museum Of Art, Live Nation and many others. With these companies partnered with Verizon they look to mash the speeds of 5G and Augmented Reality (AR) with sports, arts and entertainment.

For the rest of the news from Verizon’s CES keynote read the full press release. That’s just a little taste of what day one of CES brought to the table. Come back tomorrow and I’ll go more in depth with some of the other exhibitors like Razer, who had a very interesting Smart Facemask concept and GM who showed off a Cadillac air taxi along with some new electric vehicles.