CES 2021: What to expect from the digital Consumer Electronics Show

The biggest tech event in the calendar, CES - the Consumer Electronics Show - rolls around each and every January, bringing heaps of news announcements and product launches. 

However, the 2021 event is set to be rather different - the event will be online-only, like many shows and launches we saw in 2020. 

The organiser of the show, the US Consumer Electronics Association (CTA), announced in July 2020 that next year's event will all be online.

When is CES 2021?

There's also a slight date change that comes with going virtual. CES 2021 will take place on Monday 11 January through to Thursday 14 January, 2021. Expect most of the announcements to take place on 11 January as that's the press, analyst and media day. 

• January 11: Media-only access
• January 12: Exhibitor showcase and conference programming
• January 13: Exhibitor showcase and conference programming
• January 14: Conference programming

The CTA says CES 2021 "will be an all-digital experience connecting exhibitors, customers, thought leaders and media from around the world. The new format will allow participants to hear from technology innovators, see cutting-edge technologies and the latest product launches, and engage with global brands and startups from around the world."

The CTA adds "we plan to return to Las Vegas for CES 2022, combining the best elements of a physical and digital show."

We'll be updating this feature up to and throughout the 2021 show, so you can see all the announcements that actually matter.

What to expect from CES 2021

Acer at CES 2021

Acer kicks off CES each year with a refresh of laptops - although it recently announced updates in October 2020 at the Next At Acer Global Conference. We're expecting to see more from the company in January 2021, however.

Arlo at CES 2021

Arlo is one of those companies that makes regular announcements - but CES is often a stage that it likes to explore. That might see some of the US-only products getting wider availability, it might see an expansion of the Essentials range.

Asus at CES 2020

• 13 January 2021, 09:00 PST

Asus often launches a lot at CES - and we can expect a range of laptop formats, including Chromebooks. The company's teaser site for the event carries the Intel logo, so Intel-powered devices are a certainty. 

Lenovo at CES 2021

Lenovo likes to showcase its technical skill and is often the most disruptive in the latops segments - and we're not expecting 2021 to be any different. The company is running a countdown to 7 January, which is when we're expecting the announcements to be made.

LG at CES 2021

• 11 January 2021, 06:00 PST

LG likes to make a splash at CES, announcing a full range of TVs as well as smart devices. LG has confirmed that it will be hosting a virtual press conference.

The company also drip-feeds its launches and has already confirmed a new version of its InstaView refridgerator for 2021. It's also been confirmed that we'll be seeing the launch of a new QNED Mini LED range of televisions. These are an enhancement on LCD TVs, using thousands of LEDs behind the LCD panel to provide the illumination, moving the experience closer to that of OLED.

On top of these new models, we'd expect to see new OLED models too. 

Panasonic at CES 2021

• 11 January 2021, 07:00 PST

Panasonic has confirmed that it will be hosting a press conference at CES 2021. It says that it will be covering "mobility, entertainment, supply chain, sustainability and consumer electronics". It's the latter that's the most interesting and usually brings the reveal of the latest TV and TV technologies. We'd expect a new flagship TV set to lead the charge.

Samsung at CES 2021

• 12 January 2020 (Exynos)

Samsung's press conference at CES is one of the big shows of the year, covering a wide range of products and innovations. The company will be showcasing new hardware at the virtual CES 2021, and has already announced MicroLED TVs for 2021. We'd also expect a refresh to its QLED TV range - while the company has also announced HDR10+ Adaptive which will be on those TVs. We've also seen leaks for a new Chromebook and the Samsung Galaxy Buds Live Pro, which are likely to be announced in the same event. The exact time of Samsung's press conference is still to be confirmed.

The company has announced that it will be unveiling new Exynos hardware too. This is confirmed for 12 January and may or may not be a separate event to the main consumer electronics reveal. However, it's expect that this Exynos hardware will find its way into the Samsung Galaxy S21 family, which could be announced on 14 January, but again, is still to be confirmed.

Sony at CES 2020

We've not heard much from Sony about CES 2021, but the company usually makes a big splash at the event. We'd expect updated TV and audio hardware.

Who attends CES? 

CES is an industry event so, unlike IFA in Berlin, the public can't attend. But anyone connected to the consumer electronics industry can apply for a pass. In 2019 over 182,000 people attended, which is the show's capacity. That includes 69,000 exhibitors (across more than 4,000 represented companies) and almost 7,000 members of the media.

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