In the parade of attention-grabbing items queueing up for CES 2024, LG Labs’ “retro-futuristic concept speaker” is generating early buzz. The DukeBox combines old-timey vacuum tubes with a transparent OLED display that can be used to view programing or provide ambient imagery (of, say, a crackling fireplace that lets the tubes ghost through thanks to the OLED’s adjustable transparency). Also showcasing at the CES LG Labs zone: a biped robot equipped with AI, the Gram Fold 17-inch foldable OLED laptop and the CineBeam Qube 4K projector that displays up to 120-inch images.

Most of the LG Labs items set for display — including the DukeBox and CineBeam Qube — do not have a release date or price attached, but some information is available via an LG pre-show news release.

The DukeBox (above) features front-facing speakers at the bottom and a 360-degree speaker at the top for what LG says is “an immersive audio experience.”

Vacuum tube technology — more than 100 years old and supplanted, starting in the 1960s, with transistors — has made a comeback among audiophiles, due to “its ability to produce a warm sound quality that highlights each instrument — almost creating the sense that musicians are playing the music live,” writes Engadget.

Tom’s Guide points out that vacuum tubes have “lived on jukeboxes dating back to as early as 1890,” adding that “LG isn’t exactly reinventing the wheel … but blending the now over a century old audio technology with a modern touch through the inclusion of an OLED screen.” Engadget describes it as “kind of like a smart speaker for people who want a more sleek, retro design.”

Tom’s says the DukeBox OLED is suitable “to watch shows, movies, and assorted content of the like — though it most certainly won’t be on the levels of an LG C3.” Because the item is designed so the tubes can be visible, LG says it can look like “a vacuum tube audio system enclosed in a transparent glass box.”

CNET writes that “transparent OLEDs have been with us for a number of years, but the technology has yet to really take hold.”

LG’s portable (3 pound) CineBeam Qube also sports a retro feel, with a handle resembling a crankshaft that lets it “double as a stylish art object,” per LG. It is capable of projecting 4K UHD (3,840 x 2,160) resolution images. With LG webOS 6.0, it “provides easy access” to subscription streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video and YouTube.

As for the other items, in September Tom’s Guide did a Gram Fold preview noting that the shape-shifting item (which can also be a tablet) is currently set for release only in LG’s native South Korea.

As for the two-legged robot, Engadget writes that it is “equipped with a camera in its face, a speaker and various sensors throughout that give it the ability to navigate, speak and listen.”

Be sure to check back with us next week. The ETCentric team will be reporting live from the CES show floor January 8-12.

Related:
LG’s New Ultra-Lightweight Gram Laptops Include Some OLED Screens and AI Boost, The Verge, 12/28/23
LG Is Bringing a 4K Projector with a Weird Handle to CES 2024, Engadget, 12/29/23
LG Ushers in ‘Zero Labor Home’ with Its Smart Home AI Agent at CES 2024, LG Newsroom, 12/27/23