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Smart faucets, tractors vie for CES 2021 Innovation Awards

Nick Mokey
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Las Vegas will be quiet next year as CES 2021 goes online-only, but that hasn’t stopped technology companies from rolling out their finest wares for the occasion. After previewing more than 1,200 devices, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) on Tuesday revealed Innovation Awards honorees in categories from health and wellness to robotics. We won’t see the whole parade of gadgetry until January 11, but honorees offer a sneak peek at the best of what’s to come.

You’ll find the usual smartphones (Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G) and earbuds (Samsung Galaxy Buds+ BTS Edition), but also surprises like the John Deere X-Series Combine, a machine that knows where it is in a field within inches, and The Fifth Generation Waymo Driver — a new evolution of the autonomous driving tech that benefits from data collected from 20 million miles of real, on-road driving.

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Then there’s Sony’s Spatial Reality Display an eye-sensing monitor that detects and displays 3D images from tracking your position relative to the screen and adjusting the perspective on the fly. And after the success of smart toilets in years past, plumbing will take the spotlight again with the U by Moen Smart Faucet, which can meter out precise quantities of water at precise temperatures. Need two cups of water at 115 degrees for that sourdough recipe? Just ask Google.

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You can peruse the entire list of honorees below, but the CTA will reveal the entire list — and Best of Innovation award winners — on January 11. Check back with Digital Trends during the show, when we’ll go hands-on with many just-announced devices for the first time, and award the best our own Top Tech of CES 2021 awards.

1st Mate Marine Safety & Security System

• Brunswick Corporation

• Category: In-Vehicle Entertainment & Safety

BioButton medical grade device and data services

• BioIntelliSense, Inc., a continuous health monitoring and clinical intelligence company

• Category: Wearable Technologies

Epsy

• Epsy

• Category: Health & Wellness

Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G/Galaxy Note20 5G

• Samsung Electronics, Inc.

• Category: Mobile Devices & Accessories

Imverse Live3D rendering engine and volumetric holograms

• Imverse

• Category: Streaming

LUMI Keys 1

• ROLI

• Category: Computer Peripherals & Accessories

Origin Health – Remote Patient Monitoring

• Origin Wireless

• Category: Software & Mobile Apps

Spatial Reality Display

• Sony Electronics, Inc.

• Category: Computer Hardware & Components

U by Moen™ Smart Faucet

• Moen Incorporated

• Category: Home Appliances

VROR EYE DR

• M2S

• Category: Health & Wellness

AMD Ryzen™ 5000 Series Desktop Processors

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

• Category: Computer Hardware & Components

EES (Electromagnetic Engineered Surfaces)

• E2IP TECHNOLOGIES

• Category: Smart Cities

Galaxy Buds+ BTS Edition

• Samsung Electronics, Inc.

• Category: Headphones & Personal Audio

IBM & The Mayflower Autonomous Ship & The AI Captain

• IBM

• Category: Vehicle Intelligence & Transportation

John Deere X-Series Combine

• John Deere

• Category: Robotics

OrCam Read

• OrCam Technologies

• Category: Accessibility

P-Next3 InstaView® Door-in-Door® with Voice Recognition

• LG Electronics Inc.

• Category: Home Appliances

The Fifth-Generation Waymo Driver

• Waymo

• Category: Vehicle Intelligence & Transportation

Vespera

• Vaonis

• Category: Digital Imaging/Photography

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Nick Mokey
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