Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
LAS VEGAS: This year's CES has been a mixed bag. While there's been an influx of exciting kit from the likes of Lenovo, Samsung and Sony the likes of Microsoft and Google didn't have much on offer.
Although it's becoming clear that the big names are holding off for Mobile World Congress, and their own Apple-style launch events, the V3 team scouted the show floor at this year's Las Vegas technology bash to bring you the hottest products announced at CES.
While the show was mainly filled with weird and wonderful gadgets from little known companies across the globe, we did come across some exciting products including the world's thinnest smartphone, a flexible tablet and a bunch of touchscreen Windows 8 devices.
So as the show draws to a close we've put together a top 13 for 2013 list of the most exciting products and innovation trends we saw at the show and what could be impressing us over the next 12 months.
13. Alcatel One Touch Idol Ultra
We certainly didn't expect Alcatel to feature on this list at the start of the week. However, unlike some of its bigger name rivals, Alcatel pulled out all of the stops and wowed us with its skinny One Touch Idol Ultra smartphone.
Although the company is best known for its bespoke handsets designed for the elderly, the One Touch Idol Ultra is, according to Alcatel, the thinnest smartphone in the world. Although the firm was unable to back up this statement, the handset did feel great in the hand, and also managed to win us over with its top end specs.
These include a gorgeous 4.7in HD Amoled touchscreen, a nippy 1.2GHz dual-core processor, an 8MP rear-facing camera and Google's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system.
Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
12. Samsung Series 7 Ultra
Samsung has been unusually quiet at the 2013 CES on the device front. Choosing to save its smartphones for later in the year - maybe at Mobile World Congress - Samsung chose to focus more on smart TVs than tablets, laptops or phones.
However, the company did show off its Series 7 Ultra Ultrabook at its keynote address on Monday.
Packing a powerful Intel Core i7 process, 10-point-touch 13in display and running on Windows 8 Pro, the Ultra demonstrates Samsung's continued commitment to break into the enterprise device space by targeting the bring your own device segment.
And with the success they've had in the smartphone space you wouldn't bet against them repeating the trick in the business world too.
11. Dell Wyse Project Ophelia
Dell's Wyse division has taken its expertise in thin clients, and shrunk it down to produce a pocket-sized device that converts a TV or monitor into a terminal for accessing a remote Windows session and browsing the web.
The device is so new it has yet to gain a proper name, but could prove popular as a tool for giving workers out on the road access to corporate applications without having to lug around a laptop.
About the size of a USB memory stick, it draws power from the screen and connects to the internet via Wi-Fi, with Bluetooth for keyboard and mouse input.
Even better, the device runs Android, so users can access the wealth of apps available for Google's mobile platform, including social media clients and games, when not using one of the built-in remote access clients from Citrix, VMware and Microsoft.
10. Huawei Ascend Mate takes super-sized phones to a new level
If we're being honest, we can't work out whether Huawei's 6.1in Ascend Mate smartphone is brilliant or ridiculous. But it shows the rise of the super-sized smartphone is only going in one direction - bigger.
Launched alongside the normal-sized Ascend D2, the Huawei Ascend Mate easily earns the title of the world's largest smartphone thanks to its mammoth 6.1in touchscreen display, larger than Samsung's 5.5in Galaxy Note 2.
While this display is nice and vibrant given its 1280x720 HD resolution, it makes the device quite tricky to hold. Saying that, it could be the ideal device for those not keen on the idea of forking out on both a tablet and a smartphone - if you're not bothered looking like an idiot while making phone calls, that is.
The device boasts some impressive specifications too. These include 2GB RAM, a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, Google's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean software and a 8MP rear-facing camera.
Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
9. Sharp Igzo monitors
Monitors don't usually generate many headlines but the Igzo range from Sharp could be different.
This is because, if successful, the Igzo technology could be a major leap forward in the market. Built from four different materials, Igzo is a semiconductor that looks to replace traditional silicon materials in Sharp products.
According to the company, the material is far more scalable than silicon and because it can maintain the display of an image when powered off it is some 90 percent more energy efficient.
There will no doubt be some bugs to work out, and it could turn up that Igzo fails to ignite interest, but it could also be a landmark release that really catches on in the market and improves the entire industry.
8. Nvidia boasts of tablet speed crown with Tegra 4 processor
Now while the details of the Tegra 4 had been unceremoniously leaked at the end of 2012, its appearance at CES is still of interest.
Tablet chips have become a hot topic around the world, with journalists, engineers and consumers constantly arguing about which is the best.
Because of this, we were surprised when Nvidia joyfully boasted that tablets powered by the Tegra 4 will be significantly faster than most current top end tablets. The company went so far as to claim that a demo tablet unit it had made using the Tegra 4 was twice as fast as the fairly nippy Samsung-built Nexus 10.
Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
7. Lenovo ThinkPad Helix
Touch computing has been a hot topic throughout CES 2013, with pretty much every PC vendor touting it as a game changer within the industry.
However, of the touch computing horde, Lenovo was one of the few to truly stand out, releasing a host of new touch entries into its business focused ThinkPad range of laptops.
The most interesting of these was the ThinkPad Helix, a convertible laptop that aims to simultaneously provide users a complete Windows 8 tablet and ultrabook experience.
Having got our hands on the Helix, despite its hefty $1,500 price tag, our opening impressions indicate Lenovo may have done just this, offering users a compelling laptop-tablet hybrid that showcases Windows 8's best features.
6. Panasonic 4K tablet
Given its consumer heritage CES usually sees firms show off devices aimed squarely at the public, rather than enterprises.
However, Panasonic bucked that trend when it unveiled its 4K Windows 8 tablet. The 20in tablet sports an Intel Core i3 processor and full touch capability. Sort of an oversized version of the Surface Pro with a screen resolution four times that of a 1080p television.
While it would make for a mean game of Fruit Ninja, the main use of the 4K tablet will be for creative professionals and designers. Rather than limited to an underpowered tablet with a small screen, professionals will be given a large canvas and a screen worthy of their work. The tablet is due to hit the market in the second half of 2013. Pricing has not been released.
5. Sony's waterproof Xperia Z
Sony was one of the only big-name manufacturers to announce its latest flagship smartphone at this year's CES.
Tipped for an imminent UK release, the Sony Xperia Z certainly impresses on paper, and managed to win our affection during our hands-on time with the smartphone. It's Sony's largest-screened phone to date, packing a stunning 5in 1080x1920 HD display.
This high-end feel continues throughout the rest of the handset's specifications too, which include a quad-core 1.5GHz processor, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, a 2.2MP video call camera and a whopping 13.1MP rear-facing shooter, complete with 1080p HD video and HDR mode.
However, the stand-out feature of this smartphone is its life-proof capabilities. Sony boasts the handset can be dropped in water without worry, and says it will also withstand dust, tumbles and scratches.
Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
4. Lenovo throws weight behind Intel with smartphone push
PC vendor Lenovo is not known for its mobile chops outside markets such as China, but that could be about to change with the announcement of the K900 smartphone to be powered by Intel processors.
The firm also said it would come running the "latest" version of Android, but didn't specify a specific update, but this would make it version 4.2.1 under the current Android update series.
The K900 will measure in at a lithe 6.9mm and weigh 162g, making it roughly 30g heavier than competing devices, like the Samsung Galaxy S3, which weighs a more modest 133g.
With the success Lenovo has had in the laptop market it's clearly hoping to repeat the trick with phones, and we'll certainly be keen to see what the K900 has to offer once it gets to market.
3. Intel's continued mobile push
Speaking of Intel, the firm made several announcements at CES around its chips that should lead to better ultrabook laptops and Android-based superphones.
The chip giant announced a new line of power-efficient Core chips for ultrabooks, plus a reference design codenamed North Cape that has a detachable keyboard to convert into a tablet.
Meanwhile, the upcoming Atom Z2580 chip, formerly Clover Trail+, brings dual-core performance to Intel's smartphone processors and is set to debut in the Lenovo K900 phone unveiled at CES, as noted above.
Intel also trailed its fourth-generation Intel Core processor family, codenamed Haswell, which is expected later this quarter, plus a coming quad-core Atom chip codenamed Bay Trail that will power a new generation of tablets.
Top 13 exciting announcements from CES 2013
V3 rounds up some of the most interesting announcements from the giant tech show
2. Samsung Exynos 5 eight-core processors
While Samsung's device announcements were a touch on the sedate side, its processor news certainly left us open-mouthed, with its eight-core smartphone Exynos 5 processor a standout announcement.
The eight-core chip is designed for use in smartphones and tablets, with Samsung claiming it's much faster than previous processors including the Exynos 4, and boasts much lower power consumption.
That's because the chip is split into two sets of quad-core processors which both use ARM's new Big.little processor technology, pairing an energy-efficient ARM Cortex A7 chip with a more powerful Cortex A15 multi-core chip.
We expect to see this debut in the Galaxy S4, expected at Mobile World Congress, or maybe at its own launch event around that time, and we'll certainly be keen to get our hands on it and test it out.
1. PlasticLogic's Papertab
Perhaps the most exciting announcement from the show, though, was the Papertab from Plastic Logic. The paper-thin device may not be the most flashy tablet on the market but it offers an exciting glimpse of where the technology could be headed.
Developed by Plastic Logic, which has worked with Intel Labs and Queens University to develop the technology, the tablet is powered by a second-generation Intel Core i5 processor and aims to replace the need for paper.
As the picture above shows, and our video below, the devices really are incredible thin and work by interacting with one another for the sending of emails, photos and typing documents.
While we don't think this style of work will catch-on anytime soon or replace the iPad, it underlines just how forward-looking those in the tablet industry already are and the amazing growth of this relatively immature technology.