Smarten up your home
Smart tech is changing every aspect of domestic life — so what does 2021 have in store?
CES 2021 was not short of excitement, even if the year’s biggest tech show did happen on a website rather than in Las Vegas. Some big hitters revealed some very big hardware, and it gave a lot of smaller companies and startups a chance to show off their wares. When it comes to smart, CES showed that connected devices are bigger than ever, and we managed to find some particularly weird and wonderful devices among the noise. So this issue, we take a look at what’s going to make waves in the not–too–distant future, the products you might otherwise have missed, and a little that’s more pie–in–the–sky thinking. Bear in mind that the latter designation applies to a lot of the hardware from this year’s CES, even more so than usual. In many cases we don’t know when, where or even if these gadgets will be released, and we haven’t played with prototypes or grilled brand representatives in person. This round–up is a preview, not a promise.
RISE OF THE ROBOTS
Helper robots are always a Twitch staple, and 2021 saw some particularly cuddly examples. Take the Petit Qooboo (tagline “a tailed cushion that heals your heart”). It is, as you may have guessed, a fluffy cushion with a tail — a smaller version of the original Qooboo from a couple of years ago. Give it a stroke and the tail wags slowly; rub more vigorously and you’ll get a playful wag instead. It emits a subtle heartbeat, reacts to speech, and seems great for a cuddle — the perfect Tribble–esque friend.
A more advanced take on the cuddly companion came in the form of the Moflin, an AI pet
which looks like an earless rabbit. The ¥41,800 (around $395) bot can develop its own personality from a range of possible emotions, and apparently learn how its owner likes to interact and adapt accordingly. There’s a temptation to look at these devices as toys, but for those who can’t safely care for pets they can offer unique emotional support.
CES’s bots weren’t all fluffy, as the ubiquitous puck–shaped form of the robot vacuum took new leaps in smartness. Eufy (an Anker sub–brand) announced the RoboVac L80, apparently taking aim at the higher reaches of the robot vacuum world with a twin–turbo suction package far in advance of most of its rivals and 80% stronger than anything Eufy has managed before. The company has also upped the navigation smarts, adding LiDAR and a new AI mapping revision which allows the L80 to do away with the magnetic floor tape required by previous models.
There’s also a hybrid version of the RoboVac L80 capable of both vacuuming and mopping, priced at $50 more than the $550 asking price of the standard L80, and both should launch in June 2021. We’re curious to know whether the mop section is automatic. If it isn’t, it’ll have a job competing with the $649 S7 from up–and–coming vacuum manufacturer Roborock. The S7 can do both, automatically raising the mop when it senses it has reached a carpet.
Samsung also announced a return to the robot vacuum fold with the JetBot 90 AI+, a self–emptying bot that can not only map your home but use its AI functionality to determine exactly what objects it’s mapping around so it knows what it should clean close to and what to give a wider berth. It’ll also double as a roving security camera when you’re not at home. No word on price as yet, but it should arrive early this year.
Samsung’s other smart robotics efforts are less likely to be arriving soon (or in your home at all, given that they’ll likely cost a lot). The new version of the Samsung Bot Care is a medical companion which can follow you around, monitor your vitals, remind you of appointments, and insist you take a break from your computer. The Bot Handy is more advanced, employing a super-sensitive robot arm to tidy messy rooms, fill your dishwasher, and (best of all) pour glasses of wine.
CLEAN AND GERM–FREE
Samsung insists Bot Care and Handy are real products that will one day see a real release; Razer,
on the other hand, is more candid in presenting its concept projects as just that. The biggest headline– grabber was Project Brooklyn, a gaming chair with haptic feedback and a built–in wrap–around monitor which unfurls from behind the headrest. It’s very much a device that’s plausible as long as the right technology comes along, but also one which invites an uncomfortable comparison to the floating chairs of WALL·E’s Axiom spacecraft.
More likely to see release (and we were treated to a virtual look at a working prototype) is the company’s Project Hazel, a smart face mask. It features active ventilation through its N95 filters, a clear front with internal LEDs to light up your mouth, and — this being Razer — Chroma RGB lighting on the outside to offer you a little lurid expression. When you’re done with the outside world, drop it into its charging box and integrated UV–C LEDs rip apart the DNA of any nasties which might remain on there.
The fact that we’re all now intimately aware of the dangers of germs and viruses means UV–C lamps have surged in popularity. Targus used CES to launch its Innovation Award–nominated UV–C LED Disinfection Light, which sits on its stand and floats above your keyboard, activating automatically when you’re not around in order to blast away unwanted microscopic
visitors. Others have taken it a step further, with LG displaying its trundle–around CLOi UV–C robot. It’s able to cleanse 1,000 square feet in 100 minutes, and is due to go on sale later this year. Although it can detect humans within 16 feet, this is likely to be a commercial product aimed at controlled second-pass sanitation of hotel rooms and the like given that you really don’t want UV–C vaporising your own DNA.
SAFE AND SECURE
In the home security space, we saw a number of new smart cameras and doorbells (see Cool Cameras for the highlights, p71) as well as some more unusual products making some very lofty claims. Origin Wireless’ Hex Home security device claims it should be able to monitor activity in your whole home using nothing but a small network–connected puck and some plug–in modules. Given that most home security systems are far larger that sounds pretty ludicrous, at least until you consider Origin’s key technology development: the company has been working on motion detection by analyzing the disturbance in Wi-Fi signals for some time. The Hex (due to launch in spring) taps into this tech, covering a claimed 1,500 square feet with a pair of Hex Sense modules, with additional coverage available by adding extra Sense units.
It’s an interesting system, but it might already have been bested in a more practical form. Belkin launched its Linksys Aware system late in 2019, which takes much the same Wi–Fi motion sensing tack but builds it directly into certain models of its Velop mesh Wi–Fi system. At CES, the company announced that many more smart products from its line will be gaining the ability to act as Linksys Aware nodes, expanding your security network and offering more precise information over where that motion has been detected.
Owl Home exhibited the Owl Wired, a plug–in ceiling– or wall– mount monitor which watches out for smoke, carbon monoxide, temperature and humidity as well as sensing for noise and motion. It’s a neat solution, particularly if you’re trying to remote monitor a second property, rental home, or an elderly relative, but we’ve seen this before with the likes of the USB–charging Minut. It remains to be seen if it’ll do anything too different when it launches in the summer.
WHEELY GOOD
One last nod must go to the Moorebot Scout, a dinky robot from a company which has previously released baby monitors and bipedal fighting robots. It carries a laundry list of features — omnidirectional wheels, integration with Alexa and Google Assistant, a bunch of AI functionality — as well as a two– hour run time. You can program it to do fun things, but it’s equally adept at patrolling your home as it can perform monocular mapping and locating to find its way around.
Moorebot also says you’ll be able to design and 3D print your own add-ons like robot arms and UV germ killers, though we’d advise treading carefully with the latter for reasons explained earlier on.