CES 2014: What’s hot at this year’s Electronics Show

While there are plenty of distractions in Las Vegas, you can rest assured those who went to the Consumer Electronics Show have more than  enough to do to keep them out of trouble.

In other words, what happens in Vegas, can leave Vegas.

There were more than 3,200 exhibitions to look at and some of the products were more dud than stud — a smart toothbrush, really? — there were also quite a few hits. Don Burgess and Leah Furbert take a look at what interested them.

Toyota’s car could end up in Bermuda

By Don Burgess 

The Toyota i-ROAD, pictured right, could be one of those three-wheeled vehicles that make its way to Bermuda for tourists to rent.

It’s an electric vehicle that seats two passengers that measures 33.5 inches wide, 56.9 inches high and 92.5 inches long. 

It is completely enclosed to keep people safe from the weather. A computer calculates the degree of lean of each of the two front wheels using a gyroscope.

Toyota’s computer technology has built the car to help keep it upright when the road may not be oh-so perfect with bumps and potholes.

The i-Road comes equipped with front-wheel drive and it’s electric battery has a 30-mile range before it needs recharging. The top speed is 28mph. No price is available yet, but some estimates are guessing it will cost $16,000 in Europe. 

$8k bed promises to help stop snoring

By Don Burgess

Several times during the week I’ll get an elbow to my back from wife to tell me to roll over because I’m snoring.

That would be a thing of the past according to the latest smartbed that’s been developed by Sleep Number.

The Sleep Number X12 is supposed to keep track of how a person’s sleeps and then provides feedback on what changes they can make to make their rest more restful.

You’ll have to plug in data like how much exercise you’ve had that day, how much caffeine is in your system and how much  TV you’ve watched so it can track factors that affect your sleep. 

It then provides a setting your side of the bed should be set at (your spouse or significant other can also do so with their side of the bed). 

When does a tablet become too big?

By Don Burgess 

Panasonic showed off it’s 20” tablet earlier this week — the Toughpad 4K.

Yup, as wide as what used to the be the standard for TV sets when I was growing up.

At 20 inches, it becomes the largest tablet on the market and weighs ‘only’ 5.6 pounds.

It’s meant to be used more for business rather than personal use. It is powerful with 256GB of storage along with 16GB RAM. The Toughpad comes with a 5 MP rear camera and a 1280 x 720 front camera.

One of the best things about the Toughpad is it can detect 2,000 levels of pressure and comes with a touch pen. 

Artists will get a pen-and-paper like feel for sketching or drawing. 

You’ll have to constantly recharge it as it comes with only 2.5 battery life.

The Toughpad is pricey too — the standard price is $6,000 but you can buy an upgraded version for $7,000. 

Smartstove includes a tablet

By Leah Furbert

This oven could be the smartest thing in the entire house.

The Discovery iQ 48” Dual-Fuel Range not only cooks with both gas and electricity, it has a built-in wirelessly-connected tablet, complete with a cooking app. It even connects to smartphones and other tablets remotely.

The range has a gas cooktop with brass burners, two electric ovens with 10 cooking modes, including Pure Convection ™, Convection Bake, Broil and Roast, Surround Bake and Max Broil and Roast.

With the Dacor iQ Cooking Application on the built-in tablet, users can watch cooking tutorials, download recipes and access cooking advice. It can even send a text once the food is ready. There are also other apps available in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

Other features include:

• Soft-close door hinges that prevent doors from slamming, providing a luxury kitchen experience

• 14-inch wide continuous platform Grates™ that allow for large pots and pans to effortlessly be transported from burner to burner

• GreenClean™ Steam Technology which cleans light build-up in just 30 minutes without the need for high heat or harsh chemicals

• Wi-Fi software updates ensure that users can download the latest recipes and innovations

The Discovery iQ 48” Dual-Fuel Range is priced at $11,999 and will be available in June 2014. 

New Nikon D4S out in February

By Leah Furbert

Nikon revealed their latest DSLR, the D4S, at CES, but details are sparse.

The camera is the newest release in the company’s digital SLR line, an upgrade to the Nikon D4. 

It will apparently provide better image quality enabled with adoption of a new image-processing engine, and more advanced autofocusing performance.

Nikon also displayed the D3000, aimed at people who want to take their photography “to the next level”. It has 24.2-megapixels, Wi-Fi connectivity and comes with an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR II lens. 

The camera, with lens, will be available in early February for (suggested retail price) $649.95. 

Harness the sun for backup power

By Don Burgess 

I don’t have a backup generator for my house, but I have thought about getting one. 

The Solarpod 240 could be an answer.

The product comes in its own carrying case so it is easy to put out of the way when not is use, which, let’s be honest, may be once every two years or so. This makes it convenient for storage, but also easy to get it when needed during a hurricane or when trees fell a BELCO line.

At 9.5 pounds, it’s light enough that most adults should not have a problem moving about.

There are several ways to charge the SloarPod 240. You can use a traditional electrical outlet, a solar panel or via your car battery.

It takes 4.5 hours to charge fully through traditional methods, five hours by a 60W solar panel or 10 hours via a car battery. 

You are supposed to be able to get 2,000 charges out of the SolarPod 240 before it runs through its lifecycle.

It has a 240Wh battery capacity which will be able to support major electronic devices.

For those with solar panels, it can constantly get recharged as you use it.

The company claims it will power a laptop for seven hours once your computer’s battery runs out and you can get 40 full charges on your mobile phone.

Cup Match camping

For those of you who enjoy camping, it could be a lightweight solution to take on your trips for Cup Match weekend or whenever you decide to enjoy Bermuda’s natural beauty.

It is being sold in Europe for just under $900. 

Newer smartwatches are fashionable

By Don Burgess

The first generation smartwatches definitely had function over fashion.

Pebble introduced its second edition, called the Pebble Steel, at CES 2014.

The Steel will cost $100 more than it’s first gen version and will carry a suggested retail price of $249. 

Pebble has taken a page out of Swatch’s playbook and has several interchangable watch faces and watch bands so you can match your outfit, or your mood, to your watch.

Otherwise it still works the same way by using bluetooth to connect to a person’s smartphone for text messages, apps and music.