Four Fun Finds at CES
Las Vegas, 2024
An event with 135,000 attendees is not for the faint of heart. Regardless of one’s enthusiasm, walking 20-plus miles over two days in a sea of humanity is tiring. On day two I spotted a vendor hocking big cushy massage chairs, so I grasped my chance to get off my feet and take a moment to sit back and relax. After being ushered to an open lounge chair, I settled in for a nice massage. The chair whirled to life and quickly tightened all around my body. It wasn’t just snug, it had me firmly pinned in place. The motors mashed unseen rolling balls completely around my body whether I wanted to be massaged in certain areas or not. It was at that moment that the sales person appeared directly above me and began her pitch. I was helpless to resist. Stuck, I smiled and nodded while trying not to grimace under the pressure of being squeezed by this mechanical boa constrictor. “You seem so tense. You need this!” she said enthusiastically. After showing me some brochures she pulled out a purchase order form for me to sign as I lay there helpless. “I can’t move my arms,” I squeaked. As she stopped the massage and I began to regain feeling in my legs, it dawned on me that this was one weird and paralyzing sales tactic. Effective? Not so much, but when you are trying to compete with thousands of products, why not pin your prospects in a chair and put an order form in front of them. Ultimately, I declined on the recliner and hobbled away to seek out some other products that were a little less invasive. Here are four fun finds that didn’t come with a mandatory sales pitch.
AX VISIO Smart Binoculars - A new Way of Birding
Some products just make perfect sense. The new AX Visio binoculars by Swarovski Optik are exactly one of those products. These AI-powered smart binoculars allow viewers to identify over 9,000 species of birds and other animals with the touch of a button and instantly share the location of their sightings as well as take photos and videos.
Photographer and writer Rick Bateman field tested the binoculars in Costa Rica where identifying Tyrant Flycatchers, Vireos, and Wood Warblers was an easy as locating the bird and pressing a button. But the AX Visio’s talents extend far beyond identifying our feathered friends. The device allows users to capture both photos and videos, share their location, and sync data with Swarovski Optik’s well-designed outdoor app. Image definition is absolutely stellar—as expected from Swarovski Optik. At $5,863 USD these smart binoculars aren’t quite accessible for the average birder, but are the only product of their kind in the market for the time being.
#SwarovskiOptik
Altivs Water Scooters - underwater Exploration
Ready for playtime this summer? Altivs’ line of water scooters is sure to add a new level of fun. These cool aqua scooters allow users to zip around at leisure and explore underwater worlds.
All of Altivs’ scooters boast a hydrodynamic and user friendly design so users can glide along above or below the water line allowing for exploration in both fresh and salt water. With a range of products and motor strength, each scooter has safety-conscious finger activated controls keeping users in control. A top-of-line scooter, the Altivs APX can achieve 8 miles per hour, and reach an impressive depth of 130 feet while operating for 100 minutes per charge.
#altivs
Threshold - Brilliantly Simple
Threshold is a non-invasive Wi-Fi motion sensor that alerts you of unexpected activity in your loved one’s home.
A clean and elegant solution to a common challenge, Threshold makes it possible to keep tabs on loved ones with dignity and without overbearing technologies like wearables. Using motion sensors, Threshold allows you to keep track of loved one’s movements through a nicely designed mobile app. By setting up multiple activity zones, the plug-ins track patterns of movement allows for alerts and notifications to be sent to the app when activity patterns change—all without a monthly subscription fee.
#Threshold
A CNC Machine for the Masses
Based out of Austin, Texas Coast Runner’s CNC machine is a highly capable product that is normally out-of-reach for everyday consumers.
Similar to the early days of 3D printers, CNC machines are typically very expensive and not obtainable by everyday hobbyists. Coast Runner aims to change that with their highly-accurate milling machine that is both easy to use and can fit in a modest workspace. With precision of 1/1000 of an inch, the self-calibrating machine can cut a wide-range of materials including titanium. In addition, their CRWrite intuitive software is available for both Mac and PC and integrates sharing of designs with a vibrant community. Check out their kickstarter page to get in on the action.
#coastrunner
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