For the most part, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas raises few eyebrows among Apple users. Ever since Apple ended Macworld Expo in 2009, January has traditionally been a very quiet month for Apple. And the slew of CES news isn’t doing much to change that.
Sure, there are news aimed at Apple users, like the Otterbox Ottergrip, which gives you Magsafe and a built-in grip, or Plugable’s new Thunderbolt 4 dock for the Macbook Pro, but most CES news won’t register on Apple fans’ radars. But maybe they should. Among all the laptops, televisions and sonar, there are a few CES trends that Apple users should definitely know about.
Apple Display imitations look good
They may be expensive, but Apple’s Studio Display and Pro Display XDR are two of the best and best-looking displays you can buy. A couple of Thunderbolt-compatible CES news are looking to change that.
Samsung’s 27-inch 5K Viewfinity S9 is a direct competitor to the Studio Display with a sleek metal frame, 4k camera and a matte finish to reduce reflections. And Dell’s new Ultrasharp display has the same 32-inch, 6k resolution as the Pro Display XDR, but also adds a 4k camera and a height-adjustable stand with “intuitive easy access to ports, so you can easily connect your accessories and devices.”
We don’t know how much they’ll cost when they ship in the first half of 2023 or what display news Apple has in store for 2023 — but Mac users looking for an attractive display will have a few more options soon.
Magsafes are everywhere
Magsafe hasn’t changed much since it was released for the iPhone 12, but 2023 could be the breakthrough year. During CES, the Wireless Power Consortium announced a new Qi2 standard with a new Magnetic Power Profile built on Apple’s Magsafe technology. That means Magsafe should be better as the consortium promises “significant increases in wireless charging speed”.
A foldable iPhone is somewhat more realistic
We are probably still far from a foldable iPhone, mainly because the benefits are questionable to say the least. At CES, however, Samsung showed off two new flexible OLED displays: the Flex Hybrid, which can both slide and fold from a 10.5-inch screen to a 12.4-inch one, and the Flex Slidable Duet, which expands in both directions from 13.5 inches to 17 inches.
Both screens are concepts that are probably years away from mass production, but it shows how technology is moving forward. A foldable iPad makes a lot more sense for Apple than a foldable iPhone, two new screens that are sure to pique Apple’s interest.
Apple lives rent-free in the minds of PC chip makers
Apple didn’t launch a new chip or laptop at WWDC, but you’d think so if you listened to Intel and AMD. Intel showed off the 13th generation Intel Core mobile processor family by boasting that it has the highest clock speed available for the notebook market. Meanwhile, AMD claimed that its new Ryzen 7040 Series Mobile processors “outperform Apple M2 by up to 20 percent while being up to 50 percent more energy efficient,” while Ryzen 7040HS Series Mobile processors offer “up to 34 percent faster multithreaded performance” over a M1 Pro Macbook Pro with 32 gigabytes of working memory.
For being two companies that should be fighting each other, they are instead paying a lot of attention to Apple and its 15 percent market share. With only two Mac chips, Apple has yet to reveal its most powerful machine and it’s already got the biggest processor makers scrambling. If that’s not a sign that Apple is doing the right thing, I don’t know what is.
The Apple Car is suddenly not so far-fetched
We’ve been hearing about the Apple Car for over 10 years. A company that makes wearables and computers building a car seems unlikely. But we saw a few things at CES that got us thinking.
Sony is partnering with Honda to realize its electric car vision with the Afeela, which is aiming for a 2025 launch. The car has futuristic styling and a sleek interior reminiscent of Apple’s next-generation Carplay system.
Also read: This year’s CES fair is overflowing with electric cars
Also making its debut was BMW’s Vision Dee, which can change colors thanks to 240 individual E Ink panels, as well as a touch-sensitive steering wheel and a windshield display controlled by a Mixed Reality Slider. It’s a far-reaching concept, though BMW says some of the Vision Dee’s features will be available in 2025.
Both concepts are less about the car than the technology, and it’s hard not to see them as a preemptive strike against a mythical Apple car. It’s also not hard to see how Apple could shock the world with a vehicle of its own one day, especially if they partner with an existing manufacturer. As Sony did.
Translated and edited by Petter Ahrnstedt
