CES 2018: Cannabis, face creams and a robot that sleeps with you
While it's easy to think CES is all about speakers and TVs — hidden tech treasures dot the halls if you know where to look. From dispensaries spinning cannabis into tinctures to robots that lull you to sleep, there's more to consumer electronics than just screens.
Oblend
Think of Oblend like a Keurig — but instead of coffee, you pump customized blends of oils that can be used in your tea and on your skin. Some of the ingredients are derived from cannabis extracts — except, ahem, for the THC. Paired to a smartphone app, Oblend searched recipes to help with pain relief and anxiety, for example, then brews up the result. The device comes with 24 cartridges that include blood orange to tumeric. And while priced at $949, pre-sells for the device will be half off, with shipping starting July 2018.
Valt
Few of us have the mental capability to remember all of our passwords. Random strings of numbers are exhausting to recall. That's the idea behind Valt, a visual password app that uses nine images as your digital lock. Founder Brent Heeringa, a professor of theoretical computer science from Williams College, developed the app, which trains you to remember images by linking them with words. The app is live now for iOS and Mac — Android and Windows support is coming this year. For now, you can download Valt for free — but eventually you'll pay $2 a month.
Somnox Sleep Robot
Ever thought you'd go to bed with a robot? Somnox might change your mind. Designed for those with insomnia, this 3.3-pound pillow vibrates and plays music to lull you to sleep, while sensors inside measure your C02. The pillow case is detachable — which means you can wash it — and plays white noise, lullabies and even some meditation tracks. Two years of research and development went into Somnox, which starts shipping in July for $549.
Romy
A cream designed just for your own face? That's the idea behind the French-based Romy, which cooks up a beauty product based on your life. If you're a swimmer who drinks a lot of coffee? Romy has you covered. Using the app, you select personal data to then find the gel you need that day. Romy stores bubble packs of ingredients which are then swirled together to produce what the company calls a serum. Romy has no pricing set as of yet — but hopes to start selling in the U.S. by the end of 2018.
Aveine
Aveine is made for those wine drinkers who need their vino just so before they indulge. The gadget is a connected aerator, which scans the label on a bottle to recognize the wine, which is then poured through Aveine so it's perfectly aerated. The company will start selling the $200 device in March, which comes out in June. That's just enough time to get your wine cellar up and running.
