Every year, CES brings us some of the most innovative, futuristic concepts — things we expect to be talking about for years to come. Maicat AI-enabled robocat Robotic pets have been around for more than 20 years but Macroact wants to bring these toys into the future with Maicat. A “social robot,” Maicat is designed to adapt to your home environment, which sounds a bit like a robot vacuum with four legs and no cleaning function. However, Maicat can do more than just learn how not to bump into walls. Macroact says Maicat is “equipped with face, voice and emotion-recognition” and “capable of analyzing and evaluating situations via emotional intelligence algorithm.” Y-shaped toothbrush The new Y-Brush concept has bristles on both sides of the retainer, meaning that users don’t need to pull the device out and flip it over to do the bottom half of their mouths. Instead, you’ll just need to move it to the sides a bit to ensure perfect coverage. More importantly, however, is that rather than just one program, this proposed new model will offer six vibration modes, including Gum Care, Whitening and Polishing. OWO Game haptic VR vest OWO Game wants you to feel the games you play, not just emotionally, but physically. The wireless vest uses haptic technology to mimic real-world sensations. Imagine putting on a form-fitting vest, almost like an athletic compression shirt, that responds to what’s happening in the virtual world. As gaming tech evolves, people are looking for more ways to make them feel more immersive, and a haptic vest is just the latest stop on that quest. Beomni robot Beyond Imagination showed off its Beomni humanoid robot featuring a friendly face, two arms and an Iron Man-like chest display. Its actions can be controlled by a person using a VR headset and gloves from anywhere in the world. Harry Kloor, chief founder of Beyond Imagination, says one of the first things he wants to do with a Beomni robot is place one in his elderly mother’s home so he can take care of tasks from afar. But Beomni isn’t just about tackling Earth-bound jobs. Beyond Imagination plans to build a hardened version capable of handling future space work. Beyond Imagination also says that eventually Beomni robots will be able to do things without having to be virtually controlled by humans. The robots will be capable of learning over time. Bob the mini dishwasher The Wi-Fi-connected, microwave-sized dishwasher snuggles up next to your sink and can wash dinner dishes for two or a day’s worth of dishes for one using the 4-liter integrated water tank, so you don’t have to attach it to a water supply. The wash cycle is a super-fast 20 minutes, and the company says it uses five times less water than you would do the dishes by hand. And it’s another one of these just-in-time-for-COVID-19 gadgets, with a UV-C sanitation option that kills 99 percent of bacteria and viruses with a waterless cycle. It comes in an array of snappy colors, and is as perfect as it gets for cramped apartments or escaping to a tiny home. Amagami Ham Ham robot toy When you’re feeling stressed, do you sometimes absentmindedly nibble on your finger? It helps a little, right? Now imagine a robot that can do it for you. That’s the simple and slightly strange concept behind Yukai Engineering’s new Amagami Ham Ham robot bear. This is no simple bitey robot, either. The Amagami Ham Ham is driven by a “Hamgorithm” that’s armed with over 20 nibbling patterns, so you can be surprised every time you stick your finger in your new cuddly friend’s mouth. Moen smart faucets Moen revealed its latest smart faucet: the Moen Smart Faucet With Motion Control. The new feature adds completely handle-free operation, using gestures to control temperature as well as flow. The idea is you operate the faucet using swipe and push motions in front of the sensor to get hot, warm or cold water. The new faucet has all the features of the existing Moen Smart Faucet, including voice activation (with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant). There’s also the ability to dispense precise measurements and temperatures, so you can ask for one cup of 100-degree water. (SD-Agencies) | 