9 great reads from CNET this week: CES delivers TVs, laptops and a humanoid robot

This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon.

The first week of the New Year brought us 2022’s biggest tech show, though in a pandemic-altered state. CES 2022 soldiered on in a hybrid format, with many of its headliners showing off their latest wares and boldest concepts in virtual events, forgoing the traditional live stage shows, convention hall schmoozing and late-into-the-night after-parties. 

But it was hardly a bust. There’s all sorts of new stuff to reckon with, whether we’re hunkering down in our home offices, kicking back in the family room or heading out on the road.  We saw Samsung TVs and projectors, Dell laptops, Nokia phones, smartglasses from TCL and no shortage of electric vehicles, and that just begins to scratch the surface. 

We wrote a lot of stories out of CES, and some of them are here among the many in-depth features and thought-provoking commentaries that appeared on CNET this week. So here you go. These are the stories you don’t want to miss. 

Samsung’s QD-OLED TV tech explained: Welcome to the quantum dot era

The electronics giant says quantum dots offer more-vivid colors than regular OLED TVs made by rival LG. But they’re gonna cost you.

The laptops of 2022 look ahead to the future of work

Better webcams and seamless switching may help make hybrid work more practical. 

‘You have to distance yourself from it being a human’: Meeting Ameca the humanoid  

At CES 2022, I got the first public demonstration of this lifelike robot, and saw just how blurred the lines between human and android are becoming.

The internet is a great source for facts, but Jan. 6 reminds us truth isn’t the problem

Commentary: Social media has ushered in a golden age of disinformation. But the real issue is people who aren’t interested in the truth. 

NASA to blast Amazon Alexa into space in 2022

“Alexa, set a timer for T-minus 10 seconds.” 

John Deere breaks new ground with self-driving tractors you can control from a phone 

Fully autonomous tractors promise to change how food is grown in America. 

The metaverse isn’t what you think it is, because we don’t know what it is 

Is the metaverse VR, AR or the second coming of Second Life? Yes to all three. But we need to know more than that.

Skydio 2 Plus hands-on: Drone’s cinema-style video offers new flying smarts 

The new drone, unveiled at CES 2022, easily tracked me while I was mountain biking. It also has longer-range communications and can fly for 27 minutes.

CES needs to be in person, as soon as it’s safe

The biggest losers of the massive tech industry trade show are the small companies you’ll never hear about. 

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