CES 2018

Read Cult of Mac’s latest posts on CES 2018:

Catch the weird, wonderful and wacky gadgets of CES 2018, on The CultCast

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Forephus
This ping pong machine is part cyborg, part Forrest Gump.
Photo: Engadget

This week, on a jam-packed, tech-tastic episode of The CultCast: We’ll tell you the weirdest, wackiest and most wonderful products revealed at CES 2018, the world’s craziest consumer electronics show. We’ve dug deep to bring you some strange ones!

Our thanks to Casper for supporting this episode. Learn why Casper makes the internet’s favorite mattress, and save $50 off your order at casper.com/cultcast.

4-in-1 HomeKit smart switch puts Alexa in your wall

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The Instinct smart light switch packs a smart speaker and also works with HomeKit.
The Instinct smart light switch packs a smart speaker and also works with HomeKit.
Photo: iDevices

CES 2018 bug iDevices’ new HomeKit-compatible smart switch will do much more than just control your lights. With sensors, a speaker and Amazon’s Alexa baked in, the Instinct packs four different functions into a standard light switch.

You can use Alexa voice commands to play music or control your lights. Or, if you’ve got your iPhone or Apple Watch at hand, you trigger HomeKit activities with Siri.

Libratone’s hot new earbuds pack noise cancellation

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libratone
The TRACK+ earbuds pack premium audio.
Photo: Libratone

CES 2018 bug The company behind some of the best AirPlay speakers on the market is ready to give Apple’s AirPods a new challenger.

Libratone revealed its new set of wireless earbuds at CES 2018. And while the Track+ earbuds pack as much good design as the AirPods, they come with a feature Apple’s own wireless headphones can’t match: noise cancellation.

Targus’ Thunderbolt 3 dock supports two ultra-HD monitors

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Targus
Targus' Thunderbolt 3 dock promises to be one of the best yet.
Photo: Targus

CES 2018 bug Mobile computing accessories company Targus has used CES to debut its new Thunderbolt 3 dock, a model that is aimed at multi-platform users.

Letting you plug in two ultra high-definition computer monitors, the DOCK220USZ dock boasts a whole lot of ports. These include a pair of USB-C outlets, along with a full-sized DisplayPort, twin USB 3.0 type A ports, audio in and out, and one Gigabit Ethernet port.

Roland’s new audio recorder works with iPhone and Apple Watch

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roland r-07
Tiny, and made to work with the iPhone and the Apple Watch.
Photo: Roland

CES 2018 bugYou iPhone is pretty handy for making quick audio recordings. Many musicians use the Voice Memos app, and some have upgraded to Music Memos. Unfortunately, the quality of the recordings from those apps isn’t good enough for actual music making.

For a start, it’s not stereo. Second, the iPhone’s mics are fine, but nowhere near as good as even a cheap external microphone. But using your iPhone to record is so convenient. Roland’s R-07 is a pocket audio recorder that works either alone or in tandem with your iPhone. It gives you the quality of a proper recorder with stereo mics — and the convenience of an iPhone app.

Sleek USB-C travel charger juices 4 Apple devices at once

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USB-C
The Type-C 75W Multiport Travel Charger is a handy accessory for business travels.
Photo: Satechi

CES 2018 bug Satechi is doing its part to ease our move to USB-C. The consumer electronics company’s latest device is a 75-watt USB Type-C travel charger smaller than a deck of cards.

The space gray charger, which made an appearance at this week’s CES in Las Vegas, can charge up to four devices at once. It packs four charging ports: one USB-C, two USB-A and one Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0.

Hue lights’ new iOS and Mac app will customize lighting for any occasion

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Hue 3.0
New Mac and iOS app will debut in the first half of 2018.
Photo: Philips

CES 2018 bug At CES, Philips has announced that it will debut a brand new Hue 3.0 app for iOS, along with a Hue Sync app for Mac.

Both apps will arrive in Q2 2018. The redesigned Hue 3.0 app will offer owners of Hue lights the ability to alter the color of their smart lights with a color picker. They will also be able to instantly access their last used scenes, and to group lights and more easily select their desired color temperature or color.

Bizarre HomeKit remote looks like a D&D die

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Nanoleaf HomeKit Remote
Can you find the HomeKit remote on this table?
Photo: Nanoleaf

CES 2018 bug The device is called The Remote, but those familiar with the company behind it probably could have predicted it would not look anything like a remote control.

Nanoleaf, creators of smart light-panels that give any room a futuristic glow, unveiled a 12-side geometric table-top object at CES Tuesday that will work with Apple HomeKit-enabled smart home devices.

Boss’ smart wireless guitar amp is designed to work with your iPhone

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Boss katana air
Look ma, no wires.
Photo: Boss

CES 2018 bugThe Boss Katana Air looks like the ultimate living room amp for guitar players. It looks cool, it runs off mains power or AA batteries, and it features a wireless dongle that plugs into your guitar and means you never need to trail a cable across the room ever again. It even has a companion iOS app so you can tweak all the settings not available from the knobs and buttons on top of the amp.

Pricey earbuds made from melted guns pack serious firepower

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earphones1
These earbuds are made from melted-down illegal firearms.
Photo: Yevo

CES 2018 bug In a possible bid for the most unusual CES innovation so far, Swedish-based innovation lab YEVO Labs today announced the launch of YEVO x Humanium headphones: the world’s first wireless headphones made out of melted-down illegal firearms.

The concept may sound strange, but the intention is good — to provide new sources of funding to help people in conflict-torn parts of the world affected by illegal weapon violence.

Stylish dock lets you charge Apple devices two at a time

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Smart Dual Charging Station
The Smart Dual Charging Station will be available this spring.
Photo: Satechi

CES 2018 bug Tech accessories brand Satechi is using CES this week to show off a new dual charging station that will create the appearance you’re trying to show off your iPhone and Apple Watch.

The Smart Dual Charging Station props up your iPhone and Apple Watch on a stylish stand of silver or space gray brushed aluminum that neatly organizes your charging cords. The station is customizable and can also work with other Apple accessories, such as the Apple Pencil and Siri Remote.

New smart lock tech means you’ll never miss another package

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August
It's a neat solution to the last mile delivery problem.
Photo: August

CES 2018 bugSmart lock company August Home has partnered with Deliv to offer a same-day delivery service, even when you’re not home, that operates in upwards of 1,400 cities.

The service means that users of the August smart locks — as well as those made by Emtek and Yale — can now take advantage of a service that lets users give temporary virtual “keys” to people such as couriers. You can even monitor the whole delivery on your iPhone!

Smart toothbrush will use ResearchKit to give you a better clean

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smart brush
This iPhone-connected toothbrush will offer the ultimate clean.
Photo: Colgate

CES 2018 bug Do you want a toothbrush that knows what it’s like to have brushed the teeth of thousands of other people? That’s kind of what Colgate’s new app-enabled electronic toothbrush promises — only way less gross than that makes it sound.

Debuted at CES, the Colgate Smart Electronic Toothbrush E1 with Artificial Intelligence uses AI to provide real-time feedback to users as they clean their pearly whites. It also uses Apple’s ResearchKit platform integration to crowdsource toothbrushing data from other users. The more people clean, the smarter the brush gets!

Phyn Plus lets you monitor your water system from your iPhone or iPad

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Phyn
The smart way to monitor your water system.
Photo: Phyn

CES 2018 bug Thanks to a collaboration between Belkin and plumbing supplier Uponor, you’ll soon be able to monitor your home water system for leaks and pressure issues via your iOS device.

Debuting at CES 2018, the Phyn Plus is an accessory which repeatedly measures the pressure of your water supply (to the tune of 240 times every single second) and then uses smart algorithms to determine when you may have a problem, such as a pinhole leak or frozen pipes.

Speck iPhone case will mount to magnetic holder

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Presidio MOUNT
Speck's Presidio MOUNT case for iPhone pairs nicely with Scosche's MagicMount
Photo: Speck

CES 2018 bug Speck and Scosche have teamed up for a new iPhone case with magnetic mounts so users can engage their phones hands-free.

Announced Monday ahead of the big CES show in Las Vegas, the Speck Presidio Mount is designed to work with Scosche’s MagicMount, a smartphone/tablet mount designed for vehicle or office use.

Eve Button is a remote control for your HomeKit devices

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The Elgato Eve Button puts control of your HomeKit devices at your fingertips.
The Eve Button puts control of your HomeKit devices at your fingertips.
Photo: Elgato

CES 2018 bug Sometimes Siri isn’t around to help you manage your smart home. The new Elgato Eve Button puts your HomeKit-enabled devices and scenes at your fingertips when you don’t have your smartphone at the ready.

The new HomeKit controller also means guests or kids can easily turn on the lights, lock the doors or whatever else needs doing — all with a quick press on the Eve Button.

Intel’s first chips with AMD graphics mean new hope for MacBook Pro

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Intel AMD chip
Intel forms unlikely friendship with AMD.
Photo: Intel

CES 2018 bugUnlikely duo Intel and AMD have delivered a new generation of Core processors with discrete Radeon RX Vega M graphics.

They are the most powerful processors available for notebooks, Intel says, with each unit packing 4GB of memory dedicated to video. There’s a good chance you’ll see them in a future MacBook Pro.

This smoke detector can also run Siri and be an AirPlay 2 speaker

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smoke detector
That's one versatile alarm.
Photo: First Alert

CES 2018 bug Want a smoke detector that can double as a premium HomeKit-enabled smart speaker? Of course you do, and smoke detector company First Alert is here to help.

Debuting at CES 2018, First Alert’s Onelink Safe & Sound smoke and carbon monoxide alarm is an in-ceiling device that could save your life. But it also can be utilized as an entertainment system, with support for Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Google Assistant AI voice assistants.

This smart shower can be controlled by Siri

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moen shower
"Hey Siri, run me my morning shower!"
Photo: Moen

CES 2018 bug Even in the days of water-resistant iPhones, taking a shower with Siri sounds risky. But bathroom fixtures company Moen wants to make it possible, useful and, well, less dangerous with its new smart shower system.

Unveiled at CES 2018 in Las Vegas, the new U by Moen shower system allows users to control the water temperature and other features with voice control, either using Apple’s AI assistant or Amazon’s Alexa via an in-shower control panel.

Nvidia unleashes 65-inch TVs fit for gaming

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NVIDIA gaming TV
NVIDIA's BFGDs bring ultra-fast gaming to the big screen.
Photo: NVIDIA

CES 2018 bugNvidia has unleashed the world’s first lineup of big-screen TVs fit for gaming.

They’re called BFGDs (Big Format Gaming Displays) and they’re capable of displaying 4K content at an ultra-fast 120Hz. They boast support for Nvidia G-Sync and HDR — and they have a Shield TV built right in.