CES 2019, the world’s largest consumer electronic trade show is now taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada, US. The show scheduled from Jan 8 (Tue) to Jan 11 (Fri) 2019 has a large team of analysts from multiple services of Strategy Analytics in attendance, including smartphones, drones, robots, tablets, wearables, smart home, semiconductors and automotive.

Our daily coverage blogs and pre-show report can be accessed as below:

CES 2019 Device Blog: Day 4: Robots (available here)

CES 2019 Device Blog: Day 3: Technologies (available here)

CES 2019 Device Blog: Day 2: Smartphones (available here)

CES 2019 Device Blog: Day 1: Smartphones (available here)

CES 2019 Preview report: Smartphones (available here)

Numerous new smartphones were showcased at CES 2019. Nubia brought two devices – the Red Magic Mars gaming phone and the dual-display Nubia X.

• Nubia Red Magic Mars targets mobile gamers. The device is powered by Qualcomm 845 chipset and with up to 256GB of storage and 10GB RAM. It also comes with a specially-designed cooling system. Red Magic Mars will be available in North America and Europe from the end of this month and will be priced at US$325 wholesale.
• Nubia X comes with a dual-display - a 6.3-inch one on the front and a 5.1-inch OLED display on the back. The device is sold for around US$450 wholesale in China. Innovative design and an impressive 94% screen-to-body are big plus, but it needs to be noted that YotaPhone already failed with a similar device.

Exhibit 1: Nubia X with Dual-Display

 

TCL-Alcatel launched two new budget phones from its 1 Series.     

• Alcatel 1x (2019): The device has a 5.5-inch display and offers enhanced imaging experience in the entry price segment. It boasts both fingerprint and facial recognition as a biometric authentication. It will wholesale at around US$90.
• Alcatel 1c (2019): The 5-inch device would run on the Android GO platform. It features the Google Assistant together with pre-installed Google Go, Files Go, Google Maps Go, YouTube Go and Gmail Go. It will wholesale at around US$60.

Exhibit 2: Alcatel 1x (2019) and Alcatel 1c (2019)

TCL also showcased BlackBerry KEY2 LE, launched in the end of 2018 and now the device would be available to the US customers via Verizon. The version of the KEY2 LE offers Dual-SIM support, 4GB of memory, and 64GB of internal storage. It also comes with Android features such as Google Assistant, Google Lens and Google Pay.

Punch hole display is a new trend emerging in smartphone display technologies. Hisense U30 was announced at CES and it featured not only a punch hole design display, but also a 48Mpix rear camera. Other specs of the device are up to 128GB of storage and 8GB RAM, Snapdragon 675 processor and a 4500mAh battery.

Punch hole display will be one of the main display trends this year replacing notch in some price tiers and Strategy Analytics EDT is following that landscape closely.

Exhibit 3: Hisense U30 with Punch Hole Display

Google Assistant’s functionality has been now expanded on the phones to include real-time translation, Google map integration and Lock screen support for all the Android phones.

• Interpreter mode is a new feature from Google Assistant that will support 27 languages. It will provide both written and spoken translation in real-time to consumers to be their personal interpreter.
• Maps Integration will feature on both Android and iOS devices. Assistants in maps would let the user reply to text messages, play music, search for places, and add a new stop in navigation and share ETA with friends and family.
• Lock Screen Support has only been available with Pixel devices previously, but now support has been extended to all Android users. Once opted in from the settings users would be able to avail it after the update in few weeks’ time.

Besides smartphones and other smart home electronics devices and appliances, AI is increasingly being touted as part of in-car infotainment systems and platforms, too.

For example, Qualcomm introduced its third-generation, Snapdragon 820a based automotive cockpit platform that now incorporates AI upgrades in the form of voice-activated interfaces, improving the in-car user experience overall as well as the more traditional systems such as navigation. Available in three tiers, the new platform will cater to entry-level, mid-range, and high-end (premium) cars.

The Snapdragon 820a platform comprises a multi-core AI engine, image signal processing, and a ‘Kryo’ central processing unit. Key areas of application for AI engine include driver and passenger personalization, virtual assistance in the vehicle, and natural language based voice control and understanding as well as adaptive human-machine interfaces in general. Safety is a key area, too, as the system will improve the monitoring of in-cabin conditions as well as visualizing the outside view of the car.

Besides AI in the car, major announcements and demos related to V2X technology, C-V2X in particular, were a major automotive highlight at CES, covered by Strategy Analytics’ Automotive Practice.

That wraps up our live coverage of CES 2019, but be sure to check out our various insight reports on the newly announced products, services, and key developments from the event.