CES 2021: Smart-home market bursting with range of luxury, practical devices

Continuing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic made for a more business- and health-oriented mix of smart-home products at CES 2021, the first online-only edition of the Consumer Technology Association's annual gadget show.

In the U.S., CTA projected that the sale of smart PC displays, video-enabled doorbells, smart speakers, smart appliances and other smart devices will generate $15 billion in sales during 2021, 3% more than in 2020. Health concerns will also drive up sales of smart thermometers, pulse oximeters and other connected-health devices to $845 million, 34% higher than during 2020, according to the tech association.

The market for health and fitness-related devices that includes fitness trackers and smartwatches is expected to grow 6% during 2021, while sales of electric bikes are expected to hit $2.6 billion during 2021, up 44% compared to 2020, as consumers continue to look for alternatives to public transportation.

CES 2021 was packed with devices designed to make computing and health maintenance more convenient, including increasingly smart tools and interfaces as well as augmented or artificial reality displays.

For example, Vuzix's next-generation smart glasses, which won a CES Innovation Award, are designed to provide a see-through, three-dimensional view of a smartphone or PC screen displayed on the lens of glasses designed to look like regular eyewear instead of virtual-reality headsets.

The Vuzix device supports hands-free connectivity using either voice commands or simple gesture controls and as a see-through display.

The ability to exercise at home also became more important during the pandemic.

The success of Peloton Interactive Inc. smart exercycles has led to a host of competitors, including the CES Innovation-Award-winning Bowflex VeloCore from Nautilus Inc., which allows riders to steer their way through training videos by leaning the bike if they wish. CES judges praised the bike's combination of exercise options, machine design and access to the built-in JRNY fitness service, which delivers digital content to the bike's 22-inch high-definition touchscreen. The Bowflex VeloCore is priced at $2,199, or $1,699 with a 16-inch screen.

Among the luxuriant-recovery products that won awards for innovation was the $16,000 Infinity Experience tub introduced by kitchen-and-bath fixture-maker Kohler Co. Inc. The tub generates fog, includes special lighting and dispenses essential oils. A $6,200 Stillness Bath version comes with the sound of water constantly spilling over the side and into a specially designed wooden drain floor below.

Slightly more practical personal-convenience products included the Tau phone charger from Rolling Square, which won a CES Innovation Award for selling a key fob that carried 1,400 mAh of power for smartphones and three different connections options (Lightning, MicroUSB or USB-C) for $29. The charger comes with a magnetic "hook" that charges the battery when the owner hangs up the keys attached to it.

Apps running on smartphones have become the default control interface for nearly all smart devices as well as many consumers' preferred way to access the internet, especially as 5G promises to vastly increase the speed of that access.