UPDATE: Jan. 13, 2024, 5:00 a.m. EST This story has been updated with more newly available products from CES 2024.
There are a lot of “maybes” and “hope tos” uttered at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), as many of the products demoed there take months or years to launch. And that’s if they even make it to market at all; prototypes, previews, and proofs of concept are running themes at the annual tech convention in Las Vegas. But fortunately for anyone eager to get their hands on the latest gadgets, there are a few exceptions every year.
The best of CES 2024
Below, we’ve rounded up a list of over 20 products from CES 2024 that are actually available for purchase or preorder immediately, including innovative wearables, stick-on TVs, beefy gaming laptops, and a disembodied AI head. Some of them blew us away, while others just weirded us out. (You can probably guess which are which.)
1. JLab JBuds Lux ANC Over-Ear Headphones
The new Buds Lux ANC are JLab’s first premium headphones with smart active noise cancellation and 40mm drivers. They’re impressive for two reasons: One, they offer up to 70 hours of playtime per charge; and two, they’re priced at just $80. These chunky wireless cans come in four trendy earth tones, including Graphite, Cloud, Sage, and Mauve.
2. Clicks Creator Keyboard Founders Edition
Read Mashable’s review of the Clicks Creator Keyboard Founders Edition.
The Y2K revival rages on. Featuring a physical backlit keyboard that supports standard shortcuts (like CMD + A for “Select All”), this unibody case evoking the Sidekicks and Blackberries of yore is Clicks Technology’s debut product. It didn’t impress Mashable tech reporter Matt Binder — its keys are too soft and close together, he said — but he did like all the screen space it freed up. It’s available in “BumbleBee” (yellow) and “London Sky” (gray) for the iPhone 14 Pro, 15 Pro, and 15 Pro Max.
3. Ohdoki Oh!
From the makers of The Handy automatic stroker comes the Oh!, a remote-shaped sex toy for people with vulvas that vibrates using sound waves (as opposed to motors). This technology makes its patterns and frequencies more customizable, according to a press release. It can also sync up with other devices or be controlled from a distance using Bluetooth. Internet-connected sex toys haven’t impressed us in the past, but associate features editor Anna Iovine said you might have better luck with the Oh! since it’s for external body use.
4. Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming peripherals
Dell’s gaming brand introduced its first-ever peripherals for professional and competitive players at CES 2024. One is the Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Mouse, a featherlight clicker with up to 4,000 Hz wireless and 8,000 Hz wired polling rates. (Polling refers to how often a mouse tells a PC its location; your typical mouse taps out at 1,000 Hz.) The other is the Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard, which has hot-swappable switches for easy customization and a battery life of up to 798 hours with its RBG lighting turned off.
5. Garmin HRM-Fit
Garmin’s new activity-tracking heart rate monitor for women clips right onto the front of a sports bra, so feel free to leave your smartwatch at home. (Or don’t — it’s compatible with Garmin smartwatches as well as Garmin Edge cycling computers and certain other fitness equipment.) It offers up to a year of battery life and can capture data for a variety of activities, including running, cycling, and strength training.
6. rabbit r1
This pocket-sized, retro-looking device is a voice-based AI assistant that’s capable of performing a variety of digital tasks (like booking travel, ordering food, and playing music) by learning how to use your apps for you. It’s been described as “a walkie-talkie for an AI” and a “universal controller for apps,” and it made a huge splash at CES 2024, selling out its first two production runs of 10,000 units each. It’s now back up for preorder.
7. Displace Mini and Displace Flex
They’re not quite as exciting as LG’s new transparent TV, but Displace’s new lightweight, wireless 4K displays are still pretty cool in their own right (and certainly more practical): They have battery-powered suction that allows them to stick onto almost any wall or window — no mounting required. “It’s impossible to pull off unless you actually want to take it off,” said Binder, who took part in a demo at CES. Both the 55-inch Flex model and the 27-inch Mini variant are expected to ship out in late 2024.
8. Garmin Lily 2
Garmin’s latest smartwatch is easily its most fashion-forward wearable to date, with a metal case and patterned lenses that act like stylish screensavers when the display is powered off. It comes with sleep monitoring and built-in sport apps, including a new dance fitness activity that can track different dance styles, and it lasts up to five days on a single charge. The standard Lily 2 comes in two colors with silicone bands, while the slightly pricier Lily 2 Classic (which adds support for Garmin Pay contactless payments) comes in four colors with nylon or leather bands.
9. Evie Ring
The Oura Ring has some new competition. Movano Health’s Evie is an iPhone-compatible smart ring for women that can track health metrics and offer concise insights based on that data using an in-house AI engine. (One such analysis might be, “We’ve noticed your mood improves when you get 1,000 more steps than your average,” to quote a press release.) It’s also got some flex to it, meaning it stays comfortable even if your hand swells because of factors like hormonal changes. Shipped with a portable charging case, it comes in three finishes and eight sizes.
10. Bello
Bello’s eponymous countertop machine can both filter water and infuse it — it’s like a Keurig, but for purified, flavored water. It certainly won’t be life-changing, but we can only imagine the implications it will have for Stanley stans and WaterTok.
11. Apollo
Read Mashable’s full review of the Apollo.
Apollo Neuro says its new wellness wearable can improve your focus, help you sleep better, and ease your stress with the power of “good vibes” — i.e., by stimulating your vagus nerve (which regulates important bodily functions like heart rate and breathing). It didn’t live up to all of those promises when tech editor Kim Gedeon tried it for three weeks ahead of CES, though it did have a positive effect on her social anxiety: “It’s similar to how I feel when I’m listening to binaural beats or ASMR,” she wrote. At the time of publication, it was on sale for almost $70 off on Amazon and the Apollo Neuro website.
Apollo
Starting at $279.99 at Amazon and apolloneuro.com (save $69.01)
12. Barsys 360
The Barsys 360 is a smart automatic cocktail maker with built-in lighting effects and the ability to learn your taste preferences for drink recommendations. It can work with up to six ingredients at one time, including spirits and mixers. It’s even pricier than the Mashable’s Choice Award-winning Bartesian, but if you’re a wannabe mixologist with cash to burn and a flair for the dramatic, drink up.
13. FRENZ Brainband
Read Mashable’s full review of the FRENZ Brainband.
This AI-powered device by Earable Neuroscience uses real-time sleep data to come up with personalized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) audio — a combination of voice coaching and music — which it claims can help improve your ZZZs. Gedeon went into her trial of it with a healthy dose of skepticism, but she said it really did help alleviate her insomnia. The only caveat is that it does require some habit-making, as it needs to be recharged every night before bed.
14. EVOLVE MVMT
Evolve MVMT’s “first-of-its-kind” ankle wearable aims to make your gait more efficient and joint-friendly by tracking the quality (not quantity) of your steps — more specifically, the way your heel strikes the ground. If you’re a flat-footed person who’s “ever had to pay for expensive orthotics or special footwear, which then has to be replaced every few years, this might be a solid alternative,” wrote tech reporter Cecily Mauran.
15. Segway Ninebot eKickScooter E2 Pro
Segway’s new e-scooter is powered by a 750W motor capable of finessing 18% grade inclines, and it can clip along at 15.5 miles per hour for up to 16.8 miles. It’s a great buy for commuters, sporting turn signal indicators and support for Apple’s Find My network in case you forget where you park it. Early birds can save $50 by preordering it before it comes out later this month.
16. Nimble
Read Mashable’s hands-on review of the Nimble.
In one of the less dystopian examples of “robots are taking over the world,” the Nimble is a new 12-inch manicure robot that uses scanning technology and AI to do your nails in about half an hour. “Since there was high demand to test out Nimble, I was only able to get one nail painted,” Mauran reported from CES. “But within minutes, I got polish and a topcoat, and my nail was fully dry. … Nimble is precise and on par with the pros.” Its polish capsules will be available in 30 colors, and new features — including pedicures — are supposedly in the works.
17. XREAL Air 2 Ultra
Billed as a lightweight and subtler alternative to VR headsets like the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3, XREAL’s new augmented reality glasses have six degrees of freedom (6DoF) tracking that lets you move around in virtual environments; they’re more than just glorified wearable monitors. “The XReal Air 2 Ultra were also hands-down the most comfortable AR glasses I tried,” said Binder. All things considered, they were the best wearable our team tried at CES.
18. Acer Swift Go 14
Read Mashable’s hands-on review of the Acer Swift Go 14.
The new Acer Swift Go 14 looks like a very average laptop until you pull up YouTube, which triggers a set of light-up media controls on its touchpad — a neat feature for those who use a PC as their primary entertainment device. (Support for other platforms like Twitch and Spotify are expected to be added at launch in March.) The base configuration is powered by a 13th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, but you can upgrade to a newer Intel Core Ultra 5 CPU.
19. GE Profile Smart Indoor Smoker
Equipped with six food presets, five adjustable smoke settings, and a built-in temperature probe, GE’s new voice-controlled smoker brings the barbecue to your countertop using wood pellets. The best part? It filters the smoke into warm air to avoid setting off your fire alarm.
Mashable Deals
20. Alienware QD-OLED gaming monitors
Dell debuted two “world’s-first” QD-OLED gaming monitors at CES, which promise best-in-class contrast, color, and brightness. The smaller of the two (relatively speaking) is the 27-inch AW2725DF, which has a buttery-smooth 360Hz refresh rate. The larger 32-inch AW3225QF has a curved panel, Dolby Vision support, and a still-exquisite 240Hz refresh rate; it wound up receiving Mashable’s “best monitor of CES 2024” nod.
21. HP Spectre x360 14
Read Mashable’s hands-on review of the HP Spectre x360 14.
HP’s newly refreshed convertible boasts next-gen specs (including an Intel Core Ultra processor with AI tools), a 14-inch OLED touchscreen, and a 9MP webcam. But the real star of the show is its clickety-clackety keyboard, which Gedeon called “the best thing I’ve ever tested. … I actually contemplated chucking my MacBook Pro out the window for that sweet, sweet typing experience on this irresistible HP laptop.”
22. HP OMEN Transcend gaming laptops
Clocking in at just 3.5 pounds, HP’s sleek and thin new OMEN Transcend 14 was heralded as the world’s lightest 14-inch gaming laptop at CES. It’s a real looker, too — peep the 2.8K 120Hz OLED display — and it starts with plenty of power: There’s a new Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 graphics in the $1,500 base configuration. For a larger 240Hz (non-OLED) display and even more next-gen oomph, you can upgrade to the new 16-inch OMEN Transcend 16 with the latest Intel Core i7 processor, 32GB of memory, and a GeForce RTX 4070.
23. Wacom Cintiq Pro tablets
Available in three sizes (17-, 22-, or 27-inch), Wacom’s stunning and spacious new drawing slates were the best tablets Mashable saw at CES. Each one has a vivid 4K display with a 120Hz refresh rate and customizable ExpressKeys for different settings and functions. They also come with the new Wacom Pro Pen 3, an ergonomic, pressure-sensitive stylus that “allowed me to use natural touch gestures, including rotating, zooming, and panning,” Gedeon said post-demo.
24. Wehead GPT Edition
Read Mashable’s hands-on review of the Wehead GPT Edition.
The Wehead puts a literal face to OpenAI’s large-language model GPT via two screens, and it’s as creepy as it sounds. But in its defense, “it gave some practical advice about surviving CES (stay hydrated, wear comfortable shoes) so there might be some redeemable qualities — if you’re willing to spend $5,000,” wrote Gedeon and Mauran. If you don’t want to curse yourself to a lifetime with this thing, you’ve also got the option of renting it for $199 per month.
Honorable mention: Skyted Mask
Another CES gadget that toed the fine line between “wowing” and “weirding out,” the Skyted Muzzle Mask has sound absorption technology that lets you make confidential voice calls when you’re out in public. “[We’re] sure some people who are serious about their privacy may find it to be a must-buy for their lifestyle,” said Gedeon and Mauran. “However, we can’t see ourselves using this product – it’s just too outlandish for our tastes.” Those who fall into the former category can save a serious chunk of cash by backing it on Kickstarter through early February.
Honorable mention: Nanoleaf Skylight
Nanoleaf’s flush-mounted smart LED panels are ceiling lights designed to mimic the look of an actual skylight and can change colors and animations to create different ambiances. They technically launched at CES 2023, but they popped back up at this year’s convention and are now available for preorder.
Honorable mention: Stern ‘Jaws’ pinball machine
Read Mashable’s hands-on review of the Stern JAWS pinball machine.
Stern’s faithful pinball adaptation of the 1975 classic includes that awesome John Williams score, some new voiceover lines from Richard Dreyfuss, and a playfield filled with movie references that’s “immensely fun to look at,” said tech and games reporter Alex Perry. Now, for the catch (of the day): It appears to be limited to commercial dealers and distributors, and it starts at a whopping $7,000; you can go all the way up to $13,000 for the limited-edition model with different cosmetics. Maybe just wait for it to show up at your local dive bar.