While vastly different from last year’s pre-pandemic edition, this year’s all-virtual CES 2021 still managed to deliver on the goods – especially for the XR space!
Each January, CES (Consumer Electronics Show), an annual trade show organized by the CTA (Consumer Technology Association), gives the world its first glimpse at the most significant technological innovations coming through the pipeline in the year ahead.
While the event is mainly consumer-focused, many of the technologies introduced also provide immense value to the enterprise – and VR, AR, and MR solutions are perfect examples of why this is.
Let’s look below at XR Today’s best highlights from CES 2021.
Lenovo ThinkReality A3
The ThinkReality A3 AR Smart Glasses are Lenovo’s latest release in its line of enterprise-grade tools designed to help businesses leverage XR to improve performance, efficiency, and collaboration.
Announced at the start of CES 2021, the ThinkReality A3 is a huge step up from the original A6 model, offering better features, mobile support, as well as significantly greater processing power.
Perhaps the most striking thing about the A3, however, is its minimalist, lightweight design – a trend that appears to be spreading throughout the enterprise AR and wearables space.
Vuzix MicroLED Smart Glasses
Following this trend of faster, more lightweight AR wearables, Vuzix’s release of their new MicroLED smart glasses has set the bar high for all other competitors who follow.
The MicroLED engines used to power the glasses’ display is the world’s smallest, measuring at the same weight and size as a standard pencil eraser.
As a result, Vuzix created a powerful pair of smart glasses that are almost indistinguishable in look and feel from regular eyeglasses.
Pollen Robotics
Pollen Robotics, a start-up operating out of France, also attracted lots of attention from spectators at CES 2021 this year with its ground-breaking innovations in the field of VR-operated remote robotics.
During the demonstration, Pollen Robotics showed us how users could see the world through the eyes (or cameras) of a robot and control its movements by proxy using VR headsets and controllers.
We see people using the robot to pour glasses of water, place foodstuffs in the microwave, and carry out other household tasks – but it doesn’t take much to imagine how this tech could provide immense value to the enterprise market too.
Nova SenseGlove VR Haptics
Earlier this year, we explained the purpose of haptics and how we believed 2021 was the year when this technology would start to take off in a big way – and Nova’s SenseGlove VR haptics presentation at CES 2021 only confirmed our suspicions.
Designed with enterprise-training in mind, Nova VR Haptics add a whole new immersion level to virtual learning experiences where users can engage with the simulation using both their tactile and visual senses.
Blickfeld Lidar Sensor
LiDAR manufacturer, Blickfeld, also unveiled its automotive LiDAR products for the first time at digital CES 2021.
Building on the LiDAR “Cube 1” success in 2020, Munich-based industrial tech company, Blickfeld, launched its new automotive LiDAR suite consisting of a mid-range and a long-range sensor.
With this new suite of products, automotive designers can discreetly integrate multiple sensors in the mirrors, headlights, and rear-view lamps of vehicles at a considerably lower price point, enabling the surround-view crucial for automated urban traffic as well as robotic vehicles.
Looking ahead in 2021
Nobody would deny that last year was one of the worst on record. However, one positive thing we can take from 2020 is that it did an excellent job of accelerating user adoption and innovation within the XR marketplace.
Now, more than ever, consumers and organizations alike are embracing virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies into their lives – and CES 2021 has proved this trend will continue spreading far and wide over the next 12 months.
Yet, even though CES has finished until next year, the fact that many key players in the XR space (most notably Apple and Facebook) were absent from the event proves that the most exciting news has yet to come, and XR Today will be there ready to report when it does.
