Alchemy by Leban Hyde | UX + Branding

Back from MLK holiday and, as to be expected, running a bit behind with this week’s issue. CES 2024 got the majority of the tech news coverage, so that will be the focus for Week 2. Up for exploring some speculative concepts and tentative future tech? Then come on in!

Week 2 (01/07–01/13)

CES 2024

CES 2024… took wrapped up last Friday and lots of cool consumer tech was announced. Not surprisingly, a lot of which revolved around AI, but also included transparent screen TVs, health and automotive tech. The linked article is a round up of the top gadgets (some of which you can buy now), but I call out a few of the mobile related announcements below.

TCL… debuts the next generation of their NXTPAPER screen technology on a Pro tablet. As the name suggests, the texture of the display is intended to mimic paper, complete with a satin finish to fight glare and fingerprints (also demo’ed on a phone concept). This is exactly the sort of thing that is missing from the tablet experience for those of us used to drawing and writing in sketchbooks.

Samsung… showcased the Flex In & Out, a flip phone concept with a dual-folding display. The hinges allow the phone to fold both forwards and backwards, demonstrating the flexibility of their screen technology. This would also change the possible use cases and the way that apps respond to the viewport. If it ever makes it to market, that is.

Lenovo… released a hybrid 2-in-1 that is both a Windows laptop and an Android tablet. You read that right. It’s an interesting take on the problem that Windows 11 tried to solve by running Android apps directly (sort of) on the OS. I’m not sure how practical it is, but, unlike some of the previously mentioned concepts, this is appears to be a real device, set to hit the market later this year.

And in non-CES news…

Apple… also finally revealed the Vision Pro will launch on February 2nd. The headset is priced at $3,499 and will offer the ability to switch between AR & VR modes. To give you an idea of the experience, here’s what Keynote looks like on Vision Pro. Your app might not be ready for visionOS just yet, but here’s how to adapt your App Icon if it is.


Even though many of these products may never see the light of day beyond CES, I always enjoy see what technology companies are thinking about and, more importantly, the problems they intend to solve with it. And, as today’s concepts may be tomorrow’s innovation, it could give us an idea of what is coming our way. Anything have you particularly excited? Give me a shout!

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