CES 2016: The weirdest new gadgets from the CES consumer tech conference
An activity tracker for your dog
£39.99 – pitpatpet.com
“What has your dog done today?” is the faintly accusatory tagline for this pooch-centric activity tracker. The PitPat attaches to your dog’s collar and sends live information about your canine friend’s movements to your phone. A built-in accelerometer monitors how often he’s running, walking, playing or sleeping, so whether you’re lumbered with a chunky husky or training up for the doggy Olympics, you’ll always know if your hairy little buddy is putting the effort in.
A shoe you can control with your phone
$450 – digitsole.com
Like Marty McFly’s self-tying Nikes, the Digitsole SmartShoe can automatically tighten around your feet for the snuggest possible fit. “That’s all well and good,” you say, “but what if my feet are chilly?” Well fret not, because you can use your phone to adjust the temperature of the sole. And, like everything else these days, the shoes will also track how many calories you’ve burned.
The most futuristic looking drone yet
Price TBA – parrot.com/uk
This year’s CES conference is positively buzzing with new drones, but industry leader Parrot has taken the bold step of inventing this cool single-wing roboplane design. Equipped with a front-mounted camera, the boomerang shaped drone can be paired with virtual reality goggles to create the sensation that you’re zooming through the clouds. It has a 50mph top speed and can be thrown in the air like a paper plane to get it going. And with a 45 minute battery life, it’s set to be one of the most advanced (and sleekest looking) new drones of 2016.
A web-enabled fridge with an iPad in the door
$5,000 – samsung.com
Samsung’s Family Hub Refrigerator is an internet-ready fridge with a 21.5-inch touchscreen built into the door. Every time you close it, the fridge’s three interior cameras take a snapshot of what’s inside and beams it to your smartphone, so you can peek at your asparagus while you’re out of the house. The screen can play music and films and display recipes, and there are plans to partner with Amazon’s delivery service, which would allow the fridge to automatically order more milk before you’ve run out. Marvellous.
A smell-based alarm clock
$89 – sensorwake.com
Being woken up by sounds is so last year. Instead, wake up to the smell of your choosing with the Sensorwake alarm clock, which uses a selection of aroma cartridges to noiselessly rouse you from your morning somnolence. Smells include croissants, lush jungle and espresso.
A molecular food scanner
$250 – consumerphysics.com
A pocket-sized mass spectrometer (they’re usually giant, bulky things found in laboratories), the Scio scanner can identify the nutritional value of anything you point it at. Aim the scanner at a block of cheese, for example, and it will list off a bunch of useful cheese statistics. Calories, fats, proteins, even sweetness – all of the darkest secrets of the cheese will be laid bare.
A bra that tracks your fitness
$150 – omsignal.com
Strap yourself into the OMbra and not only will you be supported by the sports bra’s space-age materials, but you’ll be able to track your most vital fitness metrics wherever you go. Calories burned, distance travelled, heart rate and pace are all monitored, keeping you motivated and informed as you excercise. The OMbra even has a built-in location tracker, which is perfect if you suspect your boobs are wandering around while you’re not paying attention.