The curtains came down on CES in Vegas a few days ago, and for a few days, the tech world was regaled with some of the latest and best that brands big and small in the field had to offer. While there was a surfeit of superb products at the show, when the dust finally settled, some stood out more than others, and could well define not just 2024 but also the years that follow. These seven were the best products of the show for us:

Rabbit R1: Simple Smartphone Companion

At an event riddled with complicated hardware, it was a ridiculously simple device that stood out as the star of the show. This was the Rabbit R1, a compact device in bright red with a 2.88-inch touchscreen, a rotatable camera and a single scroll wheel. 

It comes with its own RabbitOS and dollops of AI, but no apps of its own. It lets you use apps on your smartphone and responds to voice commands for different functions, all in a manner that is incredibly simple and distraction-free. 

The sheer simplicity of the device and its being a blend of phone (it can support a SIM card), AI assistant and ability to learn and adapt won hearts all over the show, and at $199, it did not cost a bomb either. We do not think we have really seen the full potential of the device, but this could well be the beginning of a new genre of unobtrusive phone companions that let you do more with less fuss. 

Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid: A Notebook With Windows, A Tablet With Android  

CES was overrun with high-specced notebooks that oozed power, but the one that really grabbed our attention was Lenovo’s rather elaborately named ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid. A 2 in 1 device– it can be used as a notebook in its full form or as a tablet after detaching its keyboard. But what made it special was not its specs or its versatility, but the simple fact that it ran both Android and Windows and lets you switch between them by just hitting a key. So imagine a full-fledged Windows notebook that morphs into an Android notebook the moment you detach its keyboard. 

Lenovo just made that happen at CES 2024. Mind you, it does not come cheap – its $1,999 price tag is a hefty one. Hopefully, we will see more affordable variants in the course of the year. 

Amazfit Helio Ring: Ringing In Effective Sleep 

Smart rings could well be the next big thing in wearables, and Amazfit turned heads at CES this year with its first ring – the Helio. Designed for high-level athletes, the ring comes with a number of sensors to provide deep sleep and fitness insights, by analysing pulse, heart rate and blood oxygen. 

Its forte is its ability to tell the wearer when they are relaxed and when they need to rest more. Amazfit claims that the ring will also provide a more detailed analysis of fitness activities as compared to a routine tracker. It also comes with lots of AI, enabling it to not just play soothing sounds through your smartphone when you sleep, but even regulate the volume depending on how deeply you are sleeping. 

All this in a frame of titanium alloy weighing less than four grams which is water resistant up to 100 metres.

Pricing details are being awaited, but this could ring in a new set of wearables. 

Withings BeamO: Handy Health Monitor 

The Withings BeamO is insanely compact and looks like a cross between an AC remote and a highlighter, with a very tiny display. But in that compact frame is a truckload of health monitoring ability. The BeamO is capable of measuring your temperature, and blood oxygen and tracking your heart rate. It can also generate ECG ratings and can even act as a digital stethoscope if needed. 

Withings claims that it can keep track of signs of health issues like atrial fibrillation (AFib), heart murmurs, asthma, and COPD. One can share data easily with a medical professional using the Withings app, and the device also comes with support for the Apple Health app. 

It is expected to be priced at $250, and that price we think is a terrific deal for anyone who wants a great health monitor right in their pockets, without the fuss of smartwatches. 

Samsung Ballie: The Friendly Robot

It would not be a CES without a lot of futuristic robots, and this year’s edition had more than its share of robots ambling around the floor. The star of them all was Samsung’s Ballie, which resembled a bright yellow round letter box but came loaded with AI as well as front and rear cameras to detect and analyse its surroundings. This enables it to go and open a door when the doorbell rings and also to respond when you summon it. 

It can do tasks at designated times (turn on the oven, washing machine, etc.) and best of all, it comes with an inbuilt projector that lets it project content from your phone on to the wall — you can even watch the person you are talking to on a video call on a large screen. And when you are sleeping, Ballie projects stars on the roof to ensure a smooth snooze. This rolling robot could be a rockstar. 

LG Smart WashCombo: The Really Smart Washing Machine 

Imagine a washing machine that not only cleans and dries a full load of clothes in under two hours but also comes with inbuilt intelligence to work out which mode to use the moment you put clothes into it. 

LG’s Smart WashCombo washing machine does just that. Its AI allows it to pick the best wash mode and even the water temperature based on an analysis of fabric texture, soil and load size. 

It even works out the amount of detergent the wash needs and dispenses just the right amount. It integrates seamlessly into your smart home and can even respond to voice commands as it supports both Google Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa. At $2,999, it does not come cheap, but that’s the price you pay for a really smart wash. Oh, and did we tell you that it also consumes 60 per cent less power than most washing machines? 

JBL Live TWS 3: TWS With Touchscreen

JBL has been showing us TWS with cases with touchscreen displays for a while now (remember the JBL Tour Pro 2 last year), and the audio brand took its TWS game to another level with the JBL Live TWS 3 at CES 2024. The TWS come with a case that has a large 1.45-inch LED touchscreen display that lets you control a number of TWS functions right from the case itself, without ever needing to take out your connected smartphone. 

Of course, coming from JBL, the Live TWS 3 deliver excellent sound (there is support for Hi-Res audio) and come with ANC and multi-point connectivity, allowing you to connect simultaneously to more than one device and even switch between them if needed. Add an IP55 dust and water rating and 50-hour battery life (with the case), and these could be decent travel and gym buddies too. 

We left the best for last — they are expected to be priced at $199, which is very decent for what they offer.