Consumer Electronics Show Product Reviews

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2022 had lots of Home Automation products this year! Some of the WTE Geeks got to attend virtually, thanks to free tickets from GE Lighting and Panasonic. After looking at everything that was displayed, here are our top picks. There were many, many gadgets at the show, but these are what stood out to us. As normal, there were a few weird picks. There will be a few honorable mentions. By the way, providing us with free tickets and swag DOES NOT mean we add their products to this list. We like free stuff, but you cannot buy our reviews. The items are either good or not.

TOP PICKS

• Masonite Smart Door
  Yes, really. The door has a Yale smart deadbolt and a very cool RING doorbell built in. The door frame is powered and drives all of the electronics. No price was provided and WTE thinks this is a builder or contractor installed item. We don’t think it will be geared for Home Depot and the weekend project person. It is a very heavy full door frame replacement and door.
• TP-LINK Archer AX10000 Tri Band WIFI 6 Router
  OK, this is super geeky, but it’s solid. It works with older devices and the new WIFI 6 that uses the 6GHz band (normal is 5 GHz). The range for 6GHz is low (makes sense as it’s a shorter wavelength), but the speed is amazing. Our suggestion is to buy this later this year once the firmware gets updated. It’s still currently available, but selling out fast at $287.
• Timberline Solar Shingles by GAF
  These shingles are very low profile, and about 50% of the cost of Tesla or other solar shingle solutions.
• BELKIN WEMO Doorbell
  This doorbell is sleeker than RING and works with tech link SmartThings and other Belkin Wemo products. If you have Apple Homekit, this is the doorbell you want. It will use new Secure Storage.
• Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra Vacuum and Mop
  Think Roomba, but much more advanced. Although it’s expensive at $1400 (!?!?) it’s also very smart and cool. It also has a built-in nanny cam and 2-way audio. The camera and lidar are good for pet owners. This allows the robot to avoid many “puppy piles” that may be on the floor. Nothing is worse than smearing that mess all over the floor! If you don’t like the robot, the same company has a product called the Dyad which is self-cleaning vacuum mop. Both do the same thing, but the Dyad uses human navigation and movement.
• SMART SLYDER
  This device opens and closes sliding windows and doors. Then a separate company (WAAY) makes motorized pocket doors. Personally we think they missed out on a golden opportunity as neither makes the Star Trek door sound when they open and close.
• GOVEE
  This is an RGB light panel for behind your TV. It’s a rope light, but it’s OLED type which means the colors will be brighter and more intense. You can buy a number of their items today but keep an eye out in July for some more items. Really cool for the man cave or the she shed.
• Health Sensing Smart Bulb from Sengled
  This smart bulb can check your heart rate, using radar. WTE has some privacy concerns for this type of smart bulb. Just say we don’t suggest installing it in your bedroom. It’s very cool tech, but we’re not 100% sure of all it has the capability to monitor.
• Air Quality Monitors
  Amazon has released a new air monitor designed to be part of Alexa Echo system. There are also smart air purifiers coming out. ViraWarn is in need of FDA clearance for theirs to hit the market, but it looks like a great workplace item.

WEIRD PICKS

• Kohler’s Suspen
  This seems uber odd to us. This is a ceiling mounted smart faucet for the kitchen. It has a $6000 price tab! The control puck is electronic but does not seem to be Alexa connected.
• RAINSTICK
  This is the first WIFI Enabled Circular Shower. It recycles water, meaning it sucks some up and pushes it back to the top. Sounds a little like a product you would have on Mars or Dune Planet…so it ends up in weird. And it was $3500!
• Qoobo Animated Pets
  These probably top the charts of weird-dom. A cushion with a tail that moves when you pet it? It reminds me of Morris, the chicken-pig critter from Marvel’s Shang-Chi movie. Cute and weird.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

• TCL NXT Wear Air
  Computer screens in a pair of glasses that are not super expensive.
• ANKERWorks B600 Camera and video bar
  This seems perfect for work-from-home and for those people who are video content creators. Really cool all in one camera and light system.
• iBabi Smart
  An AI-powered baby monitor that can tell the difference in crying, babbling, and voice. Very cool baby safety tech.
• BirdBuddy
  BirdBuddy is an HD WIFI camera / bird feeder that mounts on a window so you can watch and record your fine feathered friends.

Technology just keeps on advancing and we’re here to try to stay on top of it and provide you with updates on things we think may enhance your enjoyment of life, or at least make things a little easier to handle.