Droning Out the Hype at Annual CES

The 2016 International CES, the annual consumer electronics show in Las Vegas this week, featured its usual giant exhibit hall (2.4 million square feet), a drone rodeo in the nearby Las Vegas desert, Hollywood stars, celebrity chefs, various booze-related ice sculptures, beach volleyball inside the exhibit hall (complete with sand), pro athletes, security dogs that were not to be petted and, oh yeah, product launches from innovative start-ups to icons of the corporate world.

Though some would say the event itself has become a bit overdone — the New York Times calls it “a noisy parade of puffed-up announcements” — the show usually offers a few items worth noting.

USA Today liked several items:

• The 360fly camera, a baseball-sized, one-lens camera, which takes spherical videos. It doesn’t require complicated editing, and is available for $399.99 at Best Buy.
• The Parrot Bebop 2, seen flying at the drone rodeo, is an affordable $550 drone that can be operated by a smartphone.
• A steering wheel attachment for your car that helps curb distracted driving, developed by 20-year-old Tristan Evarts, who says, “Technology can be part of the problem, and part of the solution.”

Wearables remain popular items. Wired Magazine liked Cool Glass One — a variation of Google Glass, which is made by a Chinese company, and sells for a lot less than Google Glass. Cool Glass One will range from $300 to $500. Google Glass is priced at about $1,500.

Finally, the “brain” inside of self-driving cars got the attention of ABC News. Chipmaker Nvidia showed off this brain, which is actually a super-power computer called the Drive PX2. Volvo will be the first company to test the computer with a fleet of self-driving cars hitting the road next year.

Eye on Innovation is a monthly look at new technology, products and scientific advancements that we’ve mined from crowdsourcing sites and other corners of the Internet.