More on the Future as Predicted by the Consumer Electronics Show

January 22, 2015

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January 22, 2015 – Jessica Oaks in her last guest posting described an autonomous car as the highlight of the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago. But another phenomenon was pervasive throughout the displays – the arrival of the connected and smart home. She describes what homes of the near future will have and how we will interact with the technology.

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It has been promised to us in issues of Popular Mechanics since the 1930s. It has been a staple of past World’s Fairs. And we have seen it on television shows like The Jetsons, Batman and Get Smart. It even made an appearance as early as 1922 in Buster Keaton‘s aptly titled movie, The Electric House. It was the home of the future – automated, connected, efficient and smart.

Well based on what was on display at CES 2015, it may finally have arrived. At CES the modern connected home was on display with manufacturers in various fields and industries touting smart, connected products. Everything from Smart devices to wireless chargers to massive 8K televisions dotted the convention center. Unlike in years past, in which many products shown were prototypes rather than commercially available, this year’s CES featured a large number of off-the-shelf items, available for purchase right now.

There were lots of 4K ultra-high definition televisions scattered around the exhibits. The 3,840 x 2,160 pixel screens for home theater are spectacular with unsurpassed picture detail and clarity. And they are huge, some as large as 75 inches and many featuring touch.

But manufacturers like Samsung were showing even more advanced displays at CES. 8K TV sets with image dimensions measuring 7,680 x 4,320 pixels speak to a future when entire walls in homes will become displays. But even more intriguing is the fact that both 4K and 8K televisions are just a part of what is becoming the interconnected smart home.

At CES developers, Samsung included (see image below), showed applications running on mobile smart phones that replace all the remote controls you use on the devices in your home. These smart apps can operate all your electronics from those enormous wall-sized 4K and 8K displays to the washer and dryer. They can program and time your lights, thermostats, and door locks. They can automatically turn on your espresso machine, oven and other kitchen appliances. They can warm the car and start it on a cold winter morning. They have the capacity to learn your preferences and monitor and adjust automatically to your patterns.

Counter-intuitive, we know, but true – after all, what’s simpler than being able to control all of the devices in your home from a single device, today’s smartphone – a magical, all-in-one remote control that has finally arrived. Who would have guessed that it would come in the form of a mobile phone?