Tech Guide has just landed in Las Vegas for the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show where the major electronics companies will reveal the flagship products we’ll be seeing this year and beyond.
It is the first time CES will be an in-person event since the COVID pandemic.
The last in-person show was two years ago – in January 2020, and we were here.
The 2021 CES was an all-virtual event.
The Consumer Technology Association announced months ago that CES 2022 would be going ahead as an in-person event.
But the Omicron COVID variant outbreak put those plans in jeopardy with companies like Amazon and Lenovo pulling out of the show along with thousands of attendees and media.
CES is a vast showcase of the latest tech, but it’s also attended by retailers and it’s where the deals are done for what products you’ll be seeing in store.
Many of the buyers from those retail chains have pulled out.
Usually there are also a few Australian retailers on the ground in Las Vegas for CES but this year we understand they are staying away.
There are more than 2,200 exhibitors at CES this year – usually there is more than 4,000.
And for the few exhibitors that pulled out – there were many more that came onboard late to be part of the show.
As far as Australian tech media goes there is only me and Trevor Long from EFTM and Channel 9 (and co-host of our Two Blokes Talking Tech podcast) and another writer from an industry website.
We’ve decided to make the trip because it’s an important start to the year for the tech world and sets the agenda for the year.
To make it over to the we had to produce our vaccination certificate and produce a negative PCR test one day before leaving Australia.
Over the years CES has been place where we first saw the products that became household items like the VCR, the compact disc player, plasma TVs, Blu-ray and 3D TV.
This year we can expect to see developments in EV battery technology, health and wellness products and AI and robotics.
And of course that’s on top of the usual TV announcements and other home entertainment products.
Car companies will also have a presence at CES 2022 with a focus on electric vehicles, autonomous driving and other transport technologies.
Stay tuned to Tech Guide for the latest news and announcements.
* Stephen Fenech attended CES 2022 with support from LG, Samsung and Hisense.
