Gadgets we don’t need — until we do

LAS VEGAS — Today’s vision of a smart home has more to do with what’s technologically possible than what people really need.

Thus the endless parade of internet-connected wine openers, water bottles, meat thermometers and refrigerators, and a dearth of automation that would clean and fold our laundry, pick up things around the house or assist aging people as their physical strength wanes.

Not that tinkerers aren’t trying to come up with life-changing tools.

The annual CES gadget show, which opened in Las Vegas on Tuesday, is a showcase of the latest innovations from big corporations and tiny startups.

Internet of what?

Want to book an Uber ride from your fridge? Samsung has you covered with one of its latest models unveiled in Vegas. Or if you’re looking for a water bottle that “helps celebrate when you’ve met your hydration goals,” the internet-connected Hidrate Spark 2.0 has arrived.

You can command a Whirlpool microwave to switch settings with your voice, but per regulations, you still have to walk over to push the button to start i. A meat thermometer made by Apption Labs will send a notification to your phone app when your steak is fully barbecued.

It’s unlikely that anyone but the most extreme wine connoisseur will need to track wine-preserving argon gas levels in a half-finished bottle of pinot noir. But a maker of bottle-opening gadgetry, Coravin, lets you do just that.

Ignore naysayers

What one person considers a silly idea is another person’s breakthrough, and many innovations at CES could find commercial success among niche audiences even if they aren’t widely adopted, said technology analyst Tom Coughlin.

“Some stuff is before its time. Some stuff is partially thought through,” Coughlin said. But “sometimes people don’t know what they need until they see it.”

Where’s my robot?

The reality is that it’s a lot easier to connect an appliance to the internet than it is to build “Rosie,” the robotic maid that TV cartoon show “The Jetsons” launched into the world’s imagination.

Sure, robotic vacuums are already cleaning floors, but the level of artificial intelligence and physical precision it takes to do housework like a human is still a far-off dream for robot-makers. Many of the robots on the market are toys or designed to be a more personality-driven version of a talking speaker.

Dueling laundry-folders

“It took us 13 years to reach this point,” said Shin Sakane, founder and CEO of Tokyo-based Seven Dreamers Laboratories.

His “Laundroid” clothes-folder — and the rival FoldiMate also on display at CES — are feats of engineering that also underscore the limits of current technology.