CES 2016 highlights from 8 big brands

LAS VEGAS — The annual Consumer Electronics Show is the biggest tech and gadgets event of the year. It’s so big that it overflows from the huge Las Vegas Convention Center to around a dozen hotel ballrooms and function rooms. More than 170,000 visitors from around the world descend on this gambling capital every January to witness the launches of hundreds, if not thousands, of new tech toys from over 3,600 electronics companies from over 150 countries. 

So what did the big players have to showcase? Let’s take a look at eight of the usual suspects.  

LG

LG Electronics exhibited its newest flagship 4K HDR-enabled OLED TVs at the CES, led by the flagship 77/65-inch G6 and 65/55-inch E6 models. All eight new models will feature LG’s premium technologies including OLED displays, 4K resolution, and high dynamic range.

The new TV lineup supports the industry-standard HDR formats established by the world’s leading broadcasters and film studios. The G6 and E6 are the first TVs from LG to feature the company’s unique Picture-On-Glass design, which boast an ultra-thin 2.57mm OLED panel with a translucent glass back and forward-facing sound bar speaker from Harman/Kardon.

The 2016 OLED TV lineup comes with LG’s newest webOS content management platform, webOS 3.0.

Samsung

Samsung usually has one of the biggest exhibits in CES. This year, they took the wraps off their SUHD television lineup that boasts HDR displays with 1,000 nits of contrast. The typical wide range of TV sets such as curved displays and ridiculously thin bezels took the spotlight. There’s even one model with a curved design and no bezel. Samsung’s new SUHD TVs also cover all sizes up to 89 inches.

The Korean giant’s new high-end TVs all feature smart home elements from Samsung’s SmartThings platform in addition to standard smart TV features like app support. New technologies like Smart Hub, Smart Control Remote, Smart View and Console-less Gaming transform the TV into a full next-gen multimedia powerhouse. 

Lenovo

A wide range of notebooks and two-in-one laptops were announced by Lenovo at CES 2016, including new models that closely resemble the look, feel and size of Apple’s 12-inch Retina MacBook.

Lenovo’s new 12-inch YOGA 900S is the world’s thinnest convertible laptop and has an ultra-thin 0.5-inch carbon fiber design that weighs just 2.2 lbs. The two-in-one Windows 10 laptop is powered by an Intel Core m7 processor and features a 360-degree watchband hinge, Dolby Audio Premium, up to 10.5 hours of video playback on a single charge, and an optional QHD screen resolution of 2,560x1,440 pixels.

Harman Kardon

HARMAN International Industries unveiled the Harman Kardon Omni+, a Wi-Fi-enabled HD home audio system elegantly designed from the inside out that can deliver a vibrant HD (24-bit/192KHz) sound that’s higher in resolution than a CD’s.

Customers who want to stream from many different sources can now control their speakers from their phone or tablet and have one system to meet all their needs.

The Harman Kardon Omni+ lineup boasts a wealth of streaming services including Google Cast for Audio, Spotify Connect, as well as other key services like MixRadio, Deezer, Qobuz and Tidal in addition to stored local content on any device accessible via the Harman Kardon Controller App.  With this app, speakers can be controlled separately or rooms can be grouped together to play the same or different music at one time. Party Mode lets homeowners play the same music throughout their connected home.

Acer

Acer joins the new Windows 10 Mobile bandwagon with the release of the Liquid Jade Primo. What makes this phone stand out is that it supports Continuum, a feature that only the Lumia 950 and 950XL from Microsoft currently offer.

The phone has a 5.5-inch full HD AMOLED display, Snapdragon 808 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, a 21MP shooter with dual flash LEDs, and an 8MP front-facing camera. It sits between the 950 at 5.2 inches and the 950XL at 5.7-inch display sizes.

Asus

ASUS showcased its latest lineup of gaming motherboards, displays, desktops, laptops, and peripherals at the 2016 International CES. Also displayed for the first time were MG 4K Series gaming monitors, the ROG GT51 gaming desktop, and the ROG XG Station 2. The 28- and 24-inch MG 4K gaming monitors feature 4K UHD 3840 x 2160 resolution visuals, a rapid 1ms response time to eliminate motion blur (MG28UQ), an IPS panel to deliver vibrant colors (MG24UQ), and VESA adaptive-sync support for smooth gameplay.

ROG GT51 is powered by the 6th-generation Intel Core i7-6700K processor and NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X (2-way SLI) for 4K-resolution gaming on three displays.

Other products on display in the ASUS Media Lounge were the ROG Swift PG348Q display, ROG G752 and GX700 gaming laptops, ROG Claymore mechanical gaming keyboard, and the soon-to-be-released ROG Spatha wireless/wired gaming mouse.

HP

HP announced several laptops at CES 2016 including the Spectre x360 family with lots of exciting features for this year including a 4K display, OLED, Bang & Olufsen audio and a larger 15-inch model.

The 13.3-inch model returns with an OLED Quad HD display option, meaning a 50g lighter device and a higher color gamut. The 15.6-inch model is new for 2016 and comes with a 4K display, 15.9mm slim body and a 9.5-hour battery life.

Huawei

The world’s No. 3 smartphone maker, Huawei, showcased three devices – a phone, a tablet, and a smartwatch. The Mate 8 phone sees its international launch, the Mediapad M2 10 is a new device entirely, while the Huawei Watch Elegant and Jewel are two new editions of the Huawei Watch aimed at women and they sparkle with Swarovski-made zirconia and featuring a Rose Gold case.

The Mate 8 sports an all-metal body in Mocha Brown with razor-thin bezels around the large 6” screen and a new Kirin 950 chipset – the first with Cortex-A72 and Mali-T880, promising double the performance over the Kirin 925 in the Mate 7. It also has a 16MP camera with f/2.0 aperture, OIS and phase detection.

The Huawei MediaPad M2 10.0 is a brand-new product. A 10” tablet with stylus support and strong focus on audio; the partnership with Harman/Kardon brought a four-speaker, four-watt setup promises sound like you’ve never heard before from a tablet.