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Volkswagen previews its EV future with the I.D. concept
You wouldn't blame Volkswagen if it never wanted to hear the word "diesel" ever again. The German company desperately needs to swing from dirty to clean, so it launched the ID, a new platform for its next-gen EVs. The first model is a concept car, but it will eventually be built in some form and arrive to market in 2020. The company plans to build up to 20 different models based on its "Modular Electric Drive Kit" platform, and hopes to sell up to three million electric cars by the year 2025. I saw the car when it launched yesterday, and if anything, it looks better than the futuristic illustrations that leaked earlier. That design looks sharp from any angle (except maybe head-on) and I like the idea of a sliding rear door on a hatchback, even though it'll probably get axed from the final model. The inside is pure concept, with an LED dash display, retractable steering wheel for autonomous mode, and rear cameras instead of mirrors. Though concept cars are often dark or colorful, it's likely not a coincidence that the ID concept is white with blue interior accents. In effect, VW wants to make a fresh, bright start and put the dark days of diesel-gate and emissions cheating behind it.
A first look at Mercedes-Benz's Generation EQ concept EV
On the first Sunday of each month, you can't drive a car in Paris -- not unless it's electric. That's a trend that might just catch on elsewhere, judging by the fact that rival Tesla has pre-sold over 300,000 Model 3 EVs. So, Mercedes is suddenly taking this electric car thing very seriously with a new initiative called Generation EQ. Fittingly, the German company launched it at the Paris Auto Show with a concept car that's essentially a preview of its future electric tech. The platform can be used on a wide range of EVs, whether they're SUV or coupe-sized, thanks to the module components and battery packs. It also sports autonomous tech that can talk to other cars on the road and intelligent mapping that helps you find a charging station or parking spot. It's also got typical concept stuff like cameras instead of mirrors, screens everywhere and cool, but uncomfortable-looking seats. The biggest problem is the timeline: Mercedes probably should have announced a program like this a couple years ago, and the first vehicles won't be manufactured until 2019.
Hasselblad's V1D camera concept is a modular dream
With Project Ara, Google learned how to build a modular smartphone, and then discovered that nobody actually wants one. Cameras are different, though -- photographers love to accessorize with battery grips, handles, DSLR rigs and more. Hasselblad takes that a step farther with its customizable V1D medium-format concept. You start with a "black box" camera (with the form of a classic Hasselblad V) then add an electronic viewfinder, handles and controls wherever they suit you. The idea is just a dream for now, but Hasselblad is soliciting feedback here at Photokina and might actually build it one day. Aaron Souppouris contributed to this report. We're live all week from Cologne, Germany, for Photokina 2016. Click here to catch up on all the news from the show.
Mercedes-Maybach concept is a look at the future of luxury cars
Stop us if you've read this before: Mercedes-Benz has another ridiculous concept car. At CES 2015, we got a close look at the F015 Luxury in Motion self-driving concept and now the automaker is back with an all-electric coupe. Officially dubbed the Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6, the new vehicle is a mix of "sensual purity" and "aerodynamic efficiency" according to Daimler AG design lead Gorden Wagener. Mercedes also notes that the Vision 6 is an equal mix of "hot" with emotional design and "cold" with so-called intelligent details.
A closer look at Lenovo's bendable concept phone and tablet
We knew Lenovo's Phab2 Pro and Motorola's Moto Z series were breaking cover today, but the moment that drew the loudest gasps was when a YouTuber bent a phone around her wrist. Lenovo's crazy, flexible devices are incredibly far from being real products, but we still had to track them down to get a closer look at what makes them work. After all, these aren't Kyocera Echo-style, half-assed folding screens -- the Folio tablet and the Cplus phone have display panels that actually contort when you bend their respective bodies.
easyJet's hybrid plane design has a hydrogen fuel cell inside
Aiming to save the European airline money, oh and the environment, easyJet hopes to trial new hybrid plane designs later this year. We're not talking about a new paint job or minor wing design changes, however: the company wants to embed a hydrogen fuel cell into a new hybrid plane design, with aircraft brakes that absorb energy on landing to be reused, even powering the jet through taxiing without using its engines.
Self-checkout concept makes your phone the cash register
Even with modern self-checkout machines, every quick shopping trip comes to a screeching halt when it comes time to pay -- every single item needs to be scanned all at once, consecutively. This is why you have to wait in line at the grocery store, but it doesn't have to be that way: Diebold wants to revolutionize shopping by having customers scan each item individually as they place it in their shopping cart.
Audi's hydrogen concept car fuels up in four minutes
CES was a hotbed of car announcements this year, but luckily some surprises have been saved for the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Take Audi's h-tron quattro, a hydrogen-powered concept car with a Tesla-beating range of 372 miles. It has three fuel tanks hidden beneath the passenger or luggage compartments which can be replenished in just four minutes. The fuel cell has an output of up to 110 kW, supported by a lithium-ion battery which supplies a further 100 kW for short, temporary bursts of acceleration. While you're driving, this secondary power source then slowly recharges every time you tap the brake.
Samsung MediaSquare makes watching TV a social experience
Samsung's MediaSquare can either transform a boring party into a fun one or make you want to punch the asshole in the room. The user interface allows everyone to control and interact through a TV, you see, replacing remote controls with everyone's phones. For instance, you and your friends can flick videos, music tracks and photos to the TV all at once, which appear as floating elements on screen. Anybody can switch the music being played or even adjust the volume either through a phone or through a smartwatch. If that sounds hard to envision, the video below the fold can show you exactly how it works.
Faraday Future unveils its FFZero 1 supercar of the future
Faraday Future has unveiled the FFZero1, a concept car that the firm promises will spearhead a complete revolution in the way we drive. "What would happen if we just started clean?" the company's flashy promotional video asked the assembled audience here at CES 2016. The Zero1 is a single-seat race car that, it's likely, will quickly become an object of desire for car fans worldwide. As for its looks, you won't be surprised to see that the craft is pretty much what we saw in the leaked renders from earlier in the day.
BMW to show how gestures will control the cars of the future
BMW, like a number of other automakers, is keen on showing off its latest tech at CES. This year will be no different as the company plans to demo its AirTouch concept in Las Vegas next week. AirTouch is but one feature of BMW's Vision Car that aims "to demonstrate what the interior and the user interface of the future might look like." More specifically, AirTouch allows passengers to control the car's features with gestures rather than having to interact with a touchscreen. There's still a display that shows navigation, entertainment and communication info, but sensors track hand gestures in the space between the dash and the rear-view mirror rather than requiring taps on the screen.
Nissan's concept car is covered in displays for the selfie generation
There's little doubt the cars of the future will be increasingly more high tech. However, if Nissan has anything to do with it, those vehicles could be blanketed in customizable displays, too. The Japanese company revealed its "Teatro for Dayz" (yes, really) concept ahead of the Tokyo Motor Show later this month that covers most of the interior, and some of the exterior, with "a clean canvas" of LED panels. Nissan's goal was to make a car that "share natives" (the selfie generation, in other words) would find appealing. To do that, the automaker designed a vehicle where time spent riding could also be used for "connecting and sharing experiences with friends." And, you know, paying attention to the road.
Panoz unveils a concept version of its arrow-shaped road car
Panoz's years-long vision of an arrow-shaped road car is finally coalescing into something tangible. The automaker has unveiled a real-world concept version of the car, the DeltaWing GT, that shows that the idea isn't far-fetched. Despite Panoz's ambitions, it doesn't have the lowest drag you can get in a car (even a Mercedes CLA250 sedan is slicker). However, the company previously promised highway efficiency of 74 miles per gallon or more -- this could be one of the few gas-powered sports cars that doesn't require frequent top-ups. There's still a huge gap between this and a production-quality DeltaWing that you could drive around town, but the prototype represents a crucial step forward.
Bugatti's 'Gran Turismo' concept car hints at life beyond the Veyron
Bugatti's monstrous 1,000HP-plus Veyron supercar may be riding into the sunset, but you won't have to wait long to get a hint of what the exotic automaker is planning next. The company has taken the wraps off of its own Gran Turismo virtual concept car, the not-so-cleverly-titled Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo. This in-game prototype is a direct hint at both the brand's "future design language" and the kind of performance it's aiming for in an ideal world. Not surprisingly, that means something supremely quick. On a simulated Le Mans track, the VGT is powerful enough (thanks largely to its W16 engine) that it can reach 250MPH four times each lap -- ultimately, it's about as fast as the speediest real-world Le Mans prototypes.
Yamaha's motorcycle design team made this 360-degree drum kit sphere
Like some kind of corporate Freaky Friday, Yahama tasked its motorcycle design team with making some instrument concepts -- and asked the opposite of its instrument design team. With no constraints like commercial viability, designers were able to (and did) go to town. While the fruits were revealed back in the spring, the company has publicly exhibited the results over the weekend to the well-heeled residents of Roppongi, Tokyo. Here's a closer look.
BMW's concept motorcycle carries your surfboard
Like surfing, but would rather not strap your board to a big, stuffy car for the trip to the coastline? BMW's Concept Path 22 motorcycle might just let you travel lighter and enjoy the open road. The retro-inspired scrambler (a bike meant for off-roading) has a surfboard holder, so you can hit the waves at just about any beach without worrying about having the space to drive and park a four-wheeler. You might like the bike even if you're content to remain on terra firma, for that matter. The stripped-down look will trigger more than a few 1950's flashbacks, and there are modern touches like a digital dash and turn signal indicators built into the handlebars. There's no talk of whether or not the Path 22 will go into production, but we could see it being just the ticket if you regularly hang ten.
Lenovo's 'Magic View' smartwatch concept hides a private display
Smartwatches, you know the drill: a touchscreen display, and it feeds you notifications and stuff. Pretty boring, right? Lenovo agrees, so has cooked up a "Magic View" concept to show things don't need to be this way. The problem Magic View solves is simple: the small displays inherent in watches. The answer? A small, second screen in the strap that initially appears cosmetic, until you hold it to your eye. Once you do, you'll see an image the company claims is 20 times larger than the watch's main display. Lenovo says it's using "optical reflection" to achieve this, and that the second display can be used for viewing maps, looking "around" images (using the accelerometer in the watch we gather) and even viewing videos -- should you be ok with holding your wrist to your eye to do so.
The Big Picture: Chevy's self-driving concept car is straight out of sci-fi
Thought that Mercedes' F 015 self-driving car was futuristic? It looks old hat next to GM's autonomous electric concept, the Chevrolet-FNR. The pod-like design appears ripped straight from a sci-fi flick, complete with crystal laser lights, "dragonfly" swinging doors and sensors (including radar) that aren't as conspicuous as they are on other robotic vehicles. And that's just the outside -- inside, it's touting magnetic hubless wheel electric motors, wireless charging, swiveling front seats and eye recognition to verify the owner. As with most out-there concepts, the chances of driving what you see here are slim to none. However, it won't be at all shocking if the technology in the FNR eventually trickles down to more practical (if far less adventurous) cars.
Rinspeed reimagines the BMW i3 EV as a self-driving car
Rinspeed did a fantastic visual recreation of the Tesla Model S as a moving living room last year, and now it has given the BMW i3 EV a similar treatment. The Swiss car restorer and conjurer of futuristic concepts has reimagined the i3 as a self-driving car with rather far-out features in a new concept called "Buddi." For instance, it's equipped with a robotic arm that can move the steering wheel in front of either front-seat passenger or to the middle if nobody wants to drive. That robotic arm can curiously wind the in-car watch, as well, if the camera monitoring it determines that its battery is almost depleted.
Meet Grasp, a wearable that helps instructors micromanage you
Can you imagine having an instructor who peers over your shoulder all the time while you practice, say, cooking or coding? Awkwaaard. But if that's the only way you can force yourself to learn something, then this device called Grasp was made for you. It was designed to perch on your shoulder like a parrot, so an instructor can monitor and guide your every move from anywhere in the world. It has a mic, a camera and a laser pointer, all powered by an Arduino Yún board, to make real-time remote teaching more hands-on.
