Matter was a big player at CES 2022. Built around the premise that smart homes need a single, unifying interface standard that makes devices “secure, reliable and seamless to use,” the Matter alliance now has more than 220 member companies, including Apple, Comcast, LG and Samsung. Amazon announced developers can add Frustration-Free Setup on Matter-certified devices using the Matter SDK, and Google declared its Fast Pair simple setup is supporting Matter. As companies build new smart products, Matter believes that users should merely plug them in to make them operational on the home network. Read more

During CES, Canon introduced two new software-based collaborative tools it has in development: AMLOS, a video meeting platform based on gestures, and the VR platform Kokomo, a social VR platform for immersive video calls. Under the theme “Together Next,” Canon enlisted actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt and his online collaborative media platform HitRecord to demonstrate using the new hybrid collaboration technology in a virtual, real-time writers’ room. In addition to operation through gesture control and connectivity with Microsoft Teams and other collaboration apps, AMLOS will allow a single camera to capture multiple angles when it debuts later this year. Read more

TCL, the No. 2 TV-maker in the world after Samsung, raised the curtain on a new flagship model at CES 2022. The X925 Pro is a super-thin, 85-inch, 8K Google TV powered by the company’s own flavor of Mini-LED, featuring OD-Zero technology. Measuring just 10mm thick — half that of some competing models — the 8K display has local dimming, QLED color, a built-in webcam for video chats, 120Hz refresh rate and, to make gamers happy, variable refresh rate (VRR). The Google TV OS enables hands-free “Hey, Google” voice commands. The X925 Pro touts numerous high-end touches and has a $10,000 price to match. Read more

TVs continue to gain computer functionality as Sony borrows a page from the monitor playbook by adding camera functionality to models in the 2022 Bravia XR lineup introduced at CES 2022. The Z9K Mini-LED (8K) and A95K HDR OLED (4K) will ship with Bravia Cam, which adds video chat and gesture control. The camera will also help with brightness settings, dialogue emphasis and sound balance by tracking the viewer’s position with regard to the screen. Bravia Cam is an option on other 4K models, including the X95K Mini-LED series, A90K and A80K OLED models, and the X90K LED. Read more

Samsung announced a dazzling lineup of TVs at CES 2022, including the ultimate MicroLED, which one writer called “110 inches of entertainment insanity,” with a $150,000 price tag to match. The Neo QLED line and Lifestyle TVs also impressed. But one model generating a lot of attention wasn’t introduced as part of the company’s 2022 lineup. Rather, the Samsung Electronics QD-OLED that quietly earned the company a CES 2022 Innovation Award launched speculation as to whether Samsung was about to enter a race with Sony to get the first consumer QD-OLED to market. Read more