January 7th sees the start of CES 2024, the annual gathering of the technology industry in Las Vegas.
CES is the biggest tech trade show going, and while it’s become less of a hotbed of big launches, it still sets the tone for the year in tech and beyond.
Read on for our guide to CES 2024 in terms of wearables and connected health tech, with what we expect from each big player, and also key dates for your diary.
Garmin
Garmin is always active at CES, and it seems like we’ll get some new additions at CES 2024. It’s not fully clear what – but there have been rumblings of an updated Garmin Lily 2 smartwatch for a few months (there was a leak back in early Dec), and trademarks for a potential HRM-Fit.
Garmin does leave its bigger launches for later in the year, and we just had the Venu 3 and Vivoactive 5 – so don’t expect a bumper showing. But CES is also about innovation, so we could see more expansion of Garmin Health or AI integrations.
Samsung
Likely a quiet show for Samsung – but there’s a chance of seeing the Samsung Galaxy Fit 3, which is MIA after being spotted at regulators. We’d also love to see the Galaxy Ring, and CES would logically be the perfect place to tease it, ahead of a late 2024 launch. But Samsung is the leakiest company going, and the fact that isn’t common knowledge would indicate it’s probably not happening.
Withings
Withings is always big at CES, and last year it brought the pee-sensing U-Scan. We will certainly see something at CES, but expect it to be something in the consumer medical space, and less about shiny wearables. We will also get hands-on with the ScanWatch Nova, which was already confirmed earlier in December.
Fitbit
Who knows if Fitbit could update one of its devices at CES. It’s a new world under Google, and there are a lot of products in its ranks that are overdue updates. The Luxe would be the obvious candidate, given that Google appears to see Fitbit as a vehicle for activity bands, it could happen. It feels unlikely given the lack of leaks – but one to keep an eye on.
Abbott
Abbott will show off its consumer CGM play at CES, which has been in the works for over a year and has been previewed in the UK. Lingo is the company’s “biowearable” and is designed to train users to live a lower glucose life. It’s not the only device of its kind, but given Abbott makes the sensors that its rivals use, it’s one to take notice of.
Vuzix
Vuzix will be showing off its new connected smartglasses at CES – and while they will be OEM specs likely headed to enterprise markets, we’re keen to see the progress made. We spoke to Vuzix CEO Paul Travers earlier this year, and his comments about the progress of the company’s lenses made for interesting reading. The future of AR should be here to see.
L’Oreal
L’Oreal has a history in wearables, and its CEO Nicolas Hieronimus is taking one of the CES keynote slots. There’s no indication about whether this will be launched to the release of a wearable, but there’s a strong indication that there could be a link to its UV protection sensing capabilities.
Health and AI
If there’s set to be a theme of this year’s show, AI will be it. You won’t be able to move for AI, AI start-ups, brandnameGPT, and shoehorned in ways for companies to be relevant by using the word AI.
But one area of significant interest for AI will be health and wearables. Smarter algorithms are the missing link between the sensors and making insights interesting and actionable. This is a problem we’ve been talking about for 10 years.
Interesting start-ups such as January AI, which uses AI to predict sensor data when you’re not wearing one, will show us how AI can improve healthcare.
Digital Health and wearables tracks/keynotes worth watching
Sun 7 Jan:
1-2:45pm, Showstoppers preview, Mandalay Bay Palm A
4-4:45pm, CES 2023 Tech Trends To Watch, Mandalay Bay Shoreline Exhibit Hall
5-8:30pm, CES Unveiled party, a showcase of CES Innovation Award honorees, Mandalay Bay Shoreline Exhibit Hall
Tues 9 Jan – 8:30AM
CTA Opening Remarks with Gary Shapiro, L’Oreal CEO Nicolas Hieronimus
Tues 9 Jan – 4PM – LVCC
Medicine without borders – global health driven by AI
Wed 10 Jan – 4PM - LVCC
Future of biosensing technology: Diabetes and beyond
Wed 10 Jan - 2PM – Venetian
The personalized food future
Wed 10 Jan – 1PM – LVCC
Gen AI and the future of healthcare
Thurs 11 Jan – 1PM – LVCC
How tech can transform women's health
How we test
James is the co-founder of Wareable, and he has been a technology journalist for 15 years.
He started his career at Future Publishing, James became the features editor of T3 Magazine and T3.com and was a regular contributor to TechRadar – before leaving Future Publishing to found Wareable in 2014.
James has been at the helm of Wareable since 2014 and has become one of the leading experts in wearable technologies globally. He has reviewed, tested, and covered pretty much every wearable on the market, and is passionate about the evolving industry, and wearables helping people achieve healthier and happier lives.