The automobile industry is highly visible at CES this year, with electric cars taking centre stage.<\/p>\n
After entering a joint venture last year to make electric cars, Sony and Honda have unveiled a prototype for the Afeela<\/a>.<\/p>\n Although official details on Sony’s first-ever car remain thin, the car looks like a mid-sized sedan. The vehicle will be available to order and purchase in 2025 but will only enter the North American market in 2026.<\/p>\n The car’s driver assistance and safety features will be made by Honda, while Sony will focus on the entertainment system. Fortnite developer Epic Games’ Unreal Engine will also be used to design interfaces for the car.<\/p>\n Volkswagen is also at CES and has revealed its new ID.7<\/a>, “its first fully electric sedan based on the modular electric drive matrix (MEB).” It is set to launch in 2026.<\/p>\n BMW’s also shared a new electric vehicle concept called the i Vision Dee<\/a>, which can change colour.<\/p>\n BMW is also touting the car as a personal companion that can express emotions. The car’s headlights and kidney grille form a uniform physical-digital (phygital) surface on which the car presents animated facial expressions. The vehicle will also recognise the driver and apply a personalised avatar on the driver’s side windows.<\/p>\n BMW CEO Oliver Zipse says the “i Vision Dee shows what’s possible when hardware and software are combined. This allows us to exploit the full potential of digitalisation to transform the car into an intelligent companion.”<\/p>\n Aksa has gone one step further and debuted an electric car that can fly<\/strong> – the AKSA A5<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to ASKA, the A5 can fly up to 150 mph (241 kph) with a range of 250 miles (402km). The company hopes to “obtain highway certification with a speed of 70 mph while in drive mode” but has warned potential customers that the first deliveries may be limited to local roads. The company says it is on track for commercialisation in 2026.<\/p>\n Aksa A5<\/p><\/div>\n Interesting gadgets<\/strong><\/p>\n Although self-driving car technology has been spoken about for numerous years, a new form of driverless technology is set to release soon – a self-driving stroller.<\/p>\n Winner of a CES innovation award, Canadian-based start-up Gluxkind is showing its self-driving stroller – the Ella.<\/a><\/p>\n The stroller is AI-powered and has several safety features – such as applying the brakes as soon as the stroller becomes unattended. It also features a dual-motor drive system that can handle steep hills.<\/p>\n In other news, Chinese electronic company TCL launched its RayNeo X2 augmented reality (AR) smart glasses<\/a>, which can live translate conversations.<\/p>\n The company says in a press statement, “when speaking face-to-face, the AR glasses automatically detect and translate in-person conversations with subtitles displaying on the screen.”<\/p>\n The glasses will be made available in the US in Q1 2023 and have a recommended retail price of $499.00.<\/p>\n German Bionic’s Apogee<\/a> is also at CES and is an exoskeleton intended to help protect the backs of workers when lifting heavy objects.<\/p>\n The Apogee features “active dual-support, ” which supports lifting and walking. The exoskeleton will offer up to 30kg of lifting compensation for the person wearing it.<\/p>\n German BIonic’s Apogee<\/p><\/div>\n Access for the disabled<\/strong><\/p>\n Sony and Samsung have addressed usability, as they have also introduced tech designed for those with disabilities.<\/p>\n Samsung showcased Relumino Mode<\/a>, allowing visually impaired people to view images on a Samsung television with greater clarity.<\/p>\n Relumino Mode outlines objects in the image more clearly, using enhanced contrast ratio, brightness, colour, and sharpness to create an image that the visually impaired can see.<\/p>\n Sony’s PlayStation also says that it wants people with disabilities to have access to its game consoles and has introduced Project Leonardo for PlayStation 5<\/a>.<\/p>\n The controller is highly configurable and is designed for those with “limited motor control, including difficulty holding a controller for long periods, accurately pressing small clusters of buttons or triggers, or positioning thumbs and fingers optimally on a standard controller,” says PlayStation.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/aska-a5.jpg\")
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