CES 2017 is about to kick off soon, setting the stage for the new technological advancements we're about to see this year.
As the first major trade show of the year, CES is always filled with exciting news and product unveilings, and this year will be no different. We're expecting software and hardware announcements, 5G news, artificial intelligence (AI) trends, auto news, exciting new TVs and more.
CES 2017 - When And Where
CES 2017 is set to take place on Jan. 5 - 8 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and cover a whopping 2.47 million square feet of exhibit space. More than 3,800 exhibiting companies will join the trend show, including manufacturers, developers, hardware suppliers and more.
More than 300 conference sessions are scheduled for CES 2017, and the show is set to have more than 165,000 attendees from 150 countries worldwide.
What To Expect From CES 2017
With virtual reality finally starting to become more mainstream, VR systems will likely play a big role at CES 2017. At the same time, we're also expecting more news on self-driving cars and high-tech auto software, new mobile chipsets, and some smartphone announcements.
When it comes to smartphones, however, most major news will likely come at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017, which takes place in late February - early March. CES is typically not the go-to venue for U.S. smartphone makers to unveil their latest devices, but we should still see some announcements from Taiwanese and Chinese companies with a smaller foothold on the U.S. market. That said, we should see a new Asus ZenFone AR with Project Tango technology, an Honor 5X successor, a new ZTE phone and perhaps a new device from Alcatel.
That said, here are the most major trends we expect to see at the upcoming CES 2017 trade show.
Mobile Chipsets And Carrier Announcements
As previously mentioned, we'll likely not see any exciting news for the U.S. smartphone market, at least not when it comes to new device unveilings. However, we should hear more about 5G progress, as well as the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 mobile processor that's set to power this year's top-end flagships such as the Galaxy S8. Qualcomm has scheduled a keynote, press conference and drinks event for the show, so it's likely coming with big news.
Mediatek, meanwhile, will likely focus on cars, while Nvidia and Intel are expected to make announcements regarding cars, VR, AI and 5G.
U.S. carriers AT&T and T-Mobile also have big press conferences scheduled at the show. AT&T is expected to focus on the Internet of Things (IoT) and connected devices rather than smartphones, while T-Mobile has an Uncarrier announcement in tow, which likely means some service plan news.
CES 2017 Auto News
In recent years, CES has become a major event for the auto industry and all major automotive vendors are now attending. Even if not all will debut new models, new services and technologies are still expected.
Chrysler could unveil a fully-electric, self-driving version of its Pacifica minivan made in collaboration with Waymo, the self-driving car division of Google's parent company Alphabet.
Honda, meanwhile, is expected to showcase the NeuV car with an AI engine capable of generating emotions. It remains to be seen just how it will pan out, but the concept sounds intriguing.
At the same time, BMW is expected to show off its new in-vehicle control system called HoloActive Touch, which combines heads-up display (HUD) technology with augmented reality and regular touch screens with haptic feedback.
Lastly, Faraday is also poised to show off a vehicle at CES 2017, one that would actually be commercially available as opposed to last year's FFZero1. No additional details are available in this regard just yet.
TVs
It seems that big TVs are now the norm and we're expecting some massive television sets to take the stage at CES 2017. With 4K gradually gaining ground, 1080p HDTVs have been losing steam and major TV makers are expected to virtually phase them out in favor of 4K versions. High dynamic range (HDR) is also expected to become more ubiquitous in expensive TVs, but generally the trend is toward bigger TVs across all budgets, from low-cost to top-end.
The current standard for large TVs currently sits at 65 inches, but we should soon start seeing more affordable 70- and 75-inch TVs and lower prices will likely lead to wider adoption.
Virtual Reality
With the major VR players already having devices out and about - HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR, Google Daydream, Samsung Gear VR - CES 2017 could serve as a venue to showcase how these companies plan to improve their offerings.
At the same time, Microsoft has also been working with a number of manufacturers on its own Windows 10 VR ecosystem and the first headsets could make their debut at CES 2017.
PCs
The PC market will likely see an infusion of gaming systems powered by the powerful Nvidia Pascal graphics and Intel Kaby Lake processors. With these two in the mix, laptops can pack more power without compromising portability and PC makers are expected to maximize their potential.
The VR trend also lends more gaming power and we're expecting more exciting systems to make the most of VR headsets and gaming experiences.
Gaming power and VR aside, PC makers are expected to keep making multi-function systems such as 2-in-1 PCs. We're also expecting increasingly thinner laptops, wider USB Type-C adoption, longer battery life and more. CES 2017 will likely bring news from Dell, Acer, Lenovo and other such major PC makers.
IoT And Smart Home
The smart home has become a lot more accessible recently with Amazon Alexa and Echo devices, Google Home, Mark Zuckerberg's Jarvis and others such. This year, we should see even more smart home devices such as video doorbells, alarm systems, security cameras and plenty of IoT devices. It's been a challenge so far to get IoT devices to work seamlessly across platforms, but 2017 could be the year to change that.
Other CES 2017 Expectations
With such a large number of exhibitors and conferences, CES 2017 will surely bring a lot more than what we noted so far. We should also see exciting wearables and fitness gadgets, cameras, drones, smart washing machines, audio gear and more.
We'll keep a close eye on the show and bring you the most exciting news, so stay tuned.
