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LAS VEGAS — Presenters are still unpacking crates and putting the finishing touches on their booths here at CES, but a lot of news is already beginning to trickle in.
At this point, the 2015 International CES show floor is very much a work in progress. But quite a few companies made some early announcements today, and we got a peek at dozens of new products at CES Unveiled, an advance showcase for gadgets of all kinds. Here’s a quick rundown of the most significant news from the show so far. Check back each day for a look at what’s happening at the biggest tech show on Earth.
The new hotness in hardware
Nvidia kicked off the first of the big press events at CES late Sunday evening. Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang introduced the company’s new Tegra X1 and talked at length about Nvidia’s vision for bringing console-grade graphics capabilities to mobile devices and cars. The Tegra X1 utilizes its most advanced PC architecture for graphics processing units, called Maxwell, that packs in a 256-core GPU on top of an eight-core central processing unit.
Nvidia
In your home
Roku TV, our favorite smart TV platform, will expand to two new hardware brands, and for the first time it will venture into 4K territory. Both Haier and Insignia will begin selling Roku TVs later this year. And at least one existing manufacturer, TCL, will offer a 4K-compatible Roku TV. Get more details about the changes to Roku TV in our story here.
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HP today showed off a few high-end monitors — two with 4K and even 5K video capabilities, and a few curved models as well.
Belkin is building out its WeMo smart home platform with a set of new sensors, including a wireless motion sensor, an alarm sensor, a keychain attachment and a sensor for doors and windows. They’re all due sometime this year. Belkin also introduced a product called Echo , which it says will be able to track water and power consumption, but sounds like it would arrive late in 2015 at the very earliest.
Kwikset announced an upgrade program to its smart lock system. Kevo Plus allows for remote locking and unlocking, unlimited eKeys and real-time activity monitoring. Unfortunately, it’s a premium service upgrade (meaning you’ll have to pay more for the new features).
Over in the kitchen, Dacor unveiled Dual-Fuel Ranges that can be controlled with voice commands through a mobile app.
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On the road
General Motors gave us a sneak peek at the next-generation Chevy Volt. The debut was very brief and lacking in major details, but we’ll learn much more about the car next week at the Detroit Auto Show.
Audi is putting a spotlight on its autonomous auto capabilities, sending a self-driving Audi A7 named Jack for a 550-mile-long demo from San Francisco to Las Vegas. The trip should give us a good picture of how far the company’s “Piloted Driving” technology has come in the last year, and where it still falls short. We have more details on the project in our story here.
General Motors unveiled a few improvements we can expect to see in its in-car assistance program, OnStar, in the next year or two. Starting in 2016 model year cars, OnStar will help keep drivers from getting stranded, by sending notifications when it first spots trouble with a car’s battery, starter motor or fuel system. It’s also working on deals that would allow people to book hotels, buy audio books or get coupons for nearby restaurants.
Another interesting tidbit for cars is a new system from Peq, which has previously focused on home automation tech. With Peq’s app, you’ll be able to connect your car with its Zubie device. Zubie’s wireless connectivity and GPS help you monitor your driving habits, track the location of your or your kids’ vehicle, and spot issues with your battery and engine as they arise.
On your body
While we don’t expect to hear anything about Apple’s upcoming smartwatch this week (look for that sometime in the next month), we do anticipate hearing from a lot of other manufacturers rolling out all manner of watches, trackers, sensors and other bits of tech for your body.
One gadget announced by Withings today is decidedly not an Apple Watch competitor. Call it a semi-smartwatch. The Activité Pop looks like a pretty typical watch, but it has some underlying fitness- and sleep-tracking features built in. And it’ll cost only $150.
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CES Unveiled
CES Unveiled is a crazy affair, packed wall-to-wall with gadgets of all kinds. It is often our first look at many of the things we’ll be learning about at CES, and our reporters scour the floor looking for the best new products and tech oddities on display. This year’s highlights included a ring that lets you control your phone with custom hand gestures, a food printer , a handheld stabilization system for a 4K drone camera and a smart belt (no, we’re not joking).
Wearables and the smart home dominate CES Unveiled
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What’s to come
Sunday is largely a setup day on the show floor, which doesn’t officially open to the public until Tuesday. But Monday is Press Day here at CES, and that’s when we’ll see the news start to pour in with back-to-back press conferences all day long. We’ll be covering all the biggest events live, so check our CES landing page for the latest.
Want to stay on top of our coverage in real time? Here’s a list of our primary social-media accounts and the editors we have on the ground at CES who are tweeting up a storm. Follow us to get the latest CES news no matter where you are.
If you want more consolidated summaries, you can sign up for our CNET In-Depth newsletter series here. You’ll receive daily updates on all the most important things that have happened at the show so far. Once the show is over, you won’t hear from us again. It’s easy as that.
Getting ready to raise the curtain at CES 2015 (pictures)
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