Gadgets

The Weirdest and Wildest Tech We Saw at CES

Published

8 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Mi-Mo AI robot on a carpet, with someone standing in the background

The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas showcases some of the biggest tech releases of the calendar year, but tucked away in the halls are some equally eye-catching, if less well-known, products. Here are some of the weirdest devices we spotted at CES 2025.

To see all our coverage from the show, visit our CES hub.

HoverAir Pro Max

Emma Rowley / Foundry

You need a modicum of skill and coordination to fly a drone, which is something that I, an idiot, lack. There is no space on Earth large enough to prevent me from instantly flying a drone into a tree. If there are no trees, I will immediately fly it into the ground, or my face.

That may explain why the HoverAir caught my eye. It’s perfectly controlled and precise in flight. It differs from traditional drones in that you don’t need dexterity – or even a controller – to fly one. Choose automatic flight mode, and it’ll simply recognize, follow and film you, although it has a further nine flight modes.

There are 4K and 8K camera options, and its filming styles include orbit, bird’s eye, zoom out, side-track and slo-mo.

Best of all, you can launch and land the HoverAir from the palm of your hand.

Also unlike traditional drones, its propellers are enclosed, so you can fold it up and put it in your pocket to transport it.

The HoverAir Pro starts at $499 and the HoverAir Pro Max at $699. You can get more information on options and buy from HoverAir.

We liked the Pro Max so much that we gave it a best of CES award.

The Trumpeter

Emma Rowley / Foundry

Do you long for the sound of a live trumpet playing in your home, but lack a trumpet player within your immediate circle of friends? Don’t worry: it’s a common enough problem. Finally, a solution is at hand. It’s called The Trumpeter.

QRS Music Technology, one of the foremost names in player pianos (self-playing piano technology), has branched out into the world of player trumpets. The tech behind the brand’s device is absolutely mind- (and trumpet-) blowing. I’ll need to paraphrase the process.

QRS’s EmbouchAir wind instrument driver technology has a voice coil inside, which is hooked to an amplifier, which is, in turn, hooked to a processor. The processor listens to a piece of trumpet music and, via an AI chip, peels back the trumpet part, which is sent back to the processor. A sound file is produced and is sent to the voice coil, which converts the sounds into pockets of air and hey presto! the trumpet plays.

It’s incredibly impressive to me, a person admittedly unversed in the world of trumpet-playing, it seems like a niche product. There’s a certain cachet in having a piano in a home, even without a piano player in the household, but is the same really true of a trumpet? I had to ask the QRS representative on the stand: do many people have unused trumpets lying around that they contemplate wistfully?

“A lot of people have trumpets in their closet from when they were in fifth grade, or grandpa’s trumpet. So you take the trumpet out of your closet, put the mouthpiece on, plug it into your piano and you’re done.”

It’s just that simple. Except for one slight snag. The Trumpeter EmbouchAir will set you back a cool $3,200. You’ll also need the PNO4 player-piano system to use it, which is another $3,000. And don’t forget the trumpet.

You can find out more on the QRS website.

Nékojita FuFu and Mirumi

Emma Rowley / Foundry

Once you have your trumpet-playing issues sorted, you’re naturally ready to tackle your next insurmountable crisis, which is how to cool a hot drink or soup.

I know what you’re thinking: I’ll just blow on it. But that’s precisely the kind of antiquated behavior that Yukai Engineering aims to stamp out. Here’s a use case. What if you needed your mouth for – not playing the trumpet, obviously – but say, playing the flute, at the same time your drink needed cooling? It’s a problem as old as time.

Soon, you’ll be able to outsource this task to Nékojita FuFu, a plastic cat that hangs from the rim of your cup (or bowl – it’s multifunctional) and blows on your drink for you.

It’s an obvious solution, and we’re all idiots for not considering it sooner. Crowdfunding for the FuFu will begin in summer 2025. Find out more.

Don’t get up from the floor just yet, because this next product is going to knock you back down. Meet Mirumi, also made by Yukai Engineering.

Emma Rowley / Foundry

I was drawn to Mirumi from across the floor of Hall C by its mesmerizing cuteness. “Tell me about this little robot”, I said (along with some undignified giggling. I must stress: it is very cute).

“He randomly moves his head but in the future, we’re thinking this robot will look at you, using some sort of sensor. But right now, it’s random. It doesn’t use any AI.”

I stupidly persisted. “But what is it for?”

I’ll spare you the embarrassing conversation that followed, in which it slowly dawned on me that Mirumi is simply a furry robot that hangs from your bag strap (or arm – again, it’s multifunctional) and moves his head.

The makers say that its overall look is supposed to be imitative of a baby. It’s unclear whether they’ve ever seen a baby or are aware that they shouldn’t be attached to bags.

In spite of all this, I still want one. Such is the power of Mirumi.