Consumer Technology in Focus: Notes from CES

  • Last week over 165,000 people attended the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas to see the products and hear the visions from over 3,600 companies. Technologies were represented in the areas of 3D printing, audio, automotive, fitness/sports, sensors, smart home, robotics, video, virtual reality, wearables and wireless communication.
  • Notable announcements included 1) a keynote presentation by Brian Krzanich, Intel CEO focusing on their opportunity in many markets - but never mentioning PCs or smartphones, 2) Fitbit’s entrance into the smart watch market - which drove its stock down 18%, 3) EHang’s autonomous drone that can carry a payload of 286 pounds including a single passenger, 4) Lego's WeDo 2.0 – an education kit for learning to build robots and 5) Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s consumer business group saying, “Every month, every year we are increasing our market share [in smartphones] … maybe within two years, we have a chance to be number two.”

Our Take

  •  1) Intel seems well positioned for the post-PC era, 2) Fitbit should maintain its focus as a leader in fitness tracking (both hardware and software), rather than the the crowded smartwatch market, 3) EHang provided another view of Jetsons' futuristics lifestyle, 4) Lego will likely benefit from the need to develop robotic and engineering skills and 5) Huawei will likely continue to increase its smartphone and tablet market presence globally.  
augmented reality, artificial intelligence, Cyber-Security, Digital Innovation, drones, electric vehicles, education, wearablesPaul DravisIntel, Fitbit, EHang, Huawei, 3D Printing, Sensonr, smart home, virtual reality, wireless, robotics, Lego, wearables