(Credit: Yukai Engineering)
Things sometimes get weird at CES. It does take place in Las Vegas, after all. But not everything that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, because PCMag staffers who were there want to tell you about the crazy things they saw. On the show floor, that is.
We’re talking about a droid that will heat up your food, a spoon that changes the taste of it, and a tiny cat that blows on it to cool it down. No, we’re not hallucinating after so many days bringing you the best of CES. These products are for real, though they might not all be for sale.
Mirumi
Ever wish you had a BFF to people watch with everywhere you go? This is the life calling of Mirumi, a small fuzzy…monkey? Sloth? Flightless bird? Mirumi clips onto your purse strap and reacts to the world around it. It’s from Yukai Engineering, which plans to crowdfund Mirumi in the fall.
Kirin Electric Salt Spoon
(Credit: Emmett Smith / Mashable)Salt is delicious. But it’s also not the best for you. But with the Kirin Electric Salt Spoon, you can get a salty boost...from electricity. As you eat, the spoon delivers a current to your tongue, tricking it into thinking it’s encountered salt. Right now the spoon is only for sale in Japan but it already earned Most Unexpected in the Best of CES Awards.
LG AeroCatTower
(Credit: Mashable / Chance Townsend)If you are owned by one or more cats, you probably have a cat tower in your home. You might also have an air purifier to deal with all that dander. LG asked itself: why not put these two totally disparate things together? And so we have the LG AeroCatTower, an air purifier/cat tower that will have your cat looking like it lives in an Eero Saarinen-designed building. Do not tell your cat, but it also acts as a scale. The AeroCatTower is not yet on sale.
OpenDroids R2D3
(Credit: OpenDroids / Mashable / Chance Townsend)OpenDroids is really checking on how litigious George Lucas is with its R2D3. The robot is designed to handle numerous household tasks, like folding laundry and washing dishes, though at CES, it was merely popping open cans of bubly brand sparkling water. If you have $55,000 to spend, you can join the waitlist for R2D3.
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Anker Wearable Solar Panel
(Credit: Anker Solix)You can become a sun god on earth with the Anker wearable solar panel. The poncho has 30W maximum input and USB-C output. It's made up of perovskite cells instead of the usual silicon-based cells, which Anker says offer better performance and efficiency.
Nékojita FuFu
(Credit: Yukai Engineering )You do not want an actual cat hovering over your bowl of soup, but Nékojita FuFu is not your ordinary feline. It’s a tiny cat from Yukai Engineering that can sit on the rim of a cup or bowl or right next to it and blow air to cool your beverage or meal. Its name is derived from the term néko-jita—literally “cat tongue”—but it's also the term to describe people who can’t handle hot food. So, just like a real cat, it insults you even if it does not necessarily speak your language. Nékojita FuFu has eight blowing modes and is only for sale in Japan, where it’s about $25.
Asus Fragrance Mouse
(Credit: Asus)Have you ever smelled a mouse? Not the furry kind, that is between you and them. We mean the one that controls your computer. Asus has and decided that it would be best if they wore some scent, so it developed the Asus Fragrance Mouse. Aside from doing all the things a mouse does, it has an internal compartment for "aromatic" oils and scents. Better-smelling tech is a thing with Asus, which recently introduced the Asus Adol 14 Air scented laptop, too.
Mi-Mo
(Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable)Pixar’s logo, Luxo Jr., is an anthropomorphic desk lamp that is by turns cute and creepy. It has now escaped the bounds of animation and entered real life in the form of Mi-Mo from Jizai. Mi-Mo resembles a lamp affixed to a stool and is, in fact, a walking, waving robot. It’s AI-powered but its specific skills have not yet been revealed.
Acer Aspire Vero 16
(Credit: Acer)The Acer Aspire Vero 16 is a laptop that Ariel would love. Its chassis is mostly made of post-consumer recycled plastic and bio-based oyster shell material. It also comes packed in planet-friendly packaging that is 100% recyclable.