Our team at CES 2017 spent the week digging up media opportunities and supporting our clients. Here are just a few of the stories media told:

Ventev Mobile showed off its wireless chargers and USB-C cables to Digital Trends.

TechCrunch shared KUBO Robot’s video.

Kubo is a robot that teaches kids how to code #CES2017 pic.twitter.com/46U5xRDutZ

— TechCrunch (@TechCrunch) January 5, 2017

And Apira Science’s iGrow got air time on NBA on TNT.

Chuck: “You got an afro, Ernie!” #CES2017 ???? pic.twitter.com/UnkJ3TQUWD

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 6, 2017

We also saw a number of other companies and products that stood out in one way or another to both media and attendees. From their booth to their demo to their technology, these were some of the biggest stories out of CES and trends you can expect to see more of in 2017.

Mike:

We spent the first day walking around the massive central hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Companies like LG showed off “wallpaper” OLED TVs. Samsung had virtually every appliance now “smart” and some even voice activated.

Over the next couple of days, it was fun to get to Eureka Park to see the scrappy startups, mid-stage, early-stage, and crowdfunders in their 6×6 and 10×10 booths, with one product and maybe two people behind the table.

I saw holograms for the first time in real life, nowhere near what they look like demonstrated in a video or on TV. It’s really something you have to see in person to fully experience: the depth of the images and how they reach out to you.

And then there was the Akoustic Arts speaker that “only you can hear.” It’s a directional speaker, so if you’re positioned directly in front of or below it, you and nobody else around you will hear it. Say for example in your car, the speaker is positioned above you and a call comes in. Only you can hear the caller, not everyone in the car. Or, say in a retail setting, you stand next to a display, and above you is a speaker describing what you are seeing.

A speaker that only you can hear from @Akoustic_Arts #CES2017 pic.twitter.com/smgazuDLC8

— Mike Lizun (@MikeLizun) January 8, 2017

And then there was the Ziro glove to control a robot, and the CloudTot baby mat that senses when your baby moves or doesn’t to prevent SIDs: Some cool stories, interesting trends, and advances in the robotics, wearables, and smart tech spaces that may one day end up in the big halls upstairs.

It will be interesting to see where these companies go from here. Did they come to CES for media attention, investors, distributors, retailers? After many conversations with companies, I came away with the conclusion that most companies prepare and exhibit for one of two reasons: buzz or sales. Not many were focused on both, but that’s only what I learned from the conversations I had.

As we’ve mentioned before here on the NewHackers, to hack the news you have to be following the trends well before the conference, be on the radar of the media before the show. Yet, some trends are established at CES. If your company was covered widely during the show, congratulations. If it wasn’t, make sure you are taking the steps now to leverage who you met, and determine how your story fits with what reporters may be covering throughout the year.

Jake:

There were four product categories that made an indelible mark: TVs, wearables (specifically smart watches), drones, and robots.

TVs hit you front and center – the first thing you see upon entering the Convention Center Central Hall, the show’s main stage. LG’s Wallpaper TV is the thinnest ever made. Pretty badass.

4K, 8K, OLED, QLED. The colors and curves from the newest televisions at #CES2017 are mind blowing!

A photo posted by Gregory FCA Communications (@gregoryfca) on Jan 5, 2017 at 5:59pm PST

There were beautiful smartwatches everywhere. What struck me the most was how increasingly pretty these things are becoming. Gone are the days of futuristic digital screens. Smart watch faces now look like the dignified, analog timepieces our grandparents wore.

Drones were hard to escape when entering the South Hall. Perhaps more than any other product, drone booth real estate dominated. When Parrot demoed its mini drone at CES 2015, displaying tightly choreographed aerial maneuvers to marveled viewers, it was the talk of the show. CES 2017 featured a drone demo practically everywhere you looked. And it was awesome. So much so that after 3 years of seeing them fly at trade shows, I finally want one. The Yuneec Typhoon 4K was a delightful little beast.

Who doesn’t love robots. We saw robots that taught kids to code (hello KUBO), made beautiful music, and cooked.

Cassie:

I saw Furrion’s Prosthesis racing mech at the show. It was eye catching and confounding at the same time. It immediately took me back to watching my Dad play MechWarrior on the computer, only this time it could be for real. We’ve seen exosuits start to be deployed in warehouse and assembling environments to give humans extra strength to do jobs, this really takes it to the next level. I can only imagine how long it will take before we’re racing these like we do monster trucks.

Denise:

As a new mom, I was immediately drawn to the BabyTech Marketplace to discover the latest baby, parenting, and pregnancy tech. The Willow, described as the first smart, wearable breast pump, stole headlines for its wireless, bottle-less design, but I found the Naya water-based pump to be a more practical, and likely comfortable, option.

Outside of baby tech, my favorites include the directional speaker from French startup Akoustic Arts, and the Peloton interactive indoor cycling bike that allows riders to live stream spinning classes from around the country. Not a new product this year (though they did announce a new model), but definitely something I’m keeping my eye on.

Matt:

Let’s not forget about the tech category that’s taken over CES in the last couple years: automotive. Faraday Future introduced the FF91, the car it plans to bring to market, and it was impressive. As of the weekend, it received over 64,000 orders in just 36 hours. While the cars won’t go into production until sometime in 2018, CES created the hype.

Intelligent. Electric. Connected. Autonomous-ready. Always evolving. This is the #FF91. #FirstOfTheSpecies pic.twitter.com/TWHzAfvtMK

— Faraday Future (@FaradayFuture) January 5, 2017

The BACtrack Skyn was a hit for visitors to the Pepcom Digital Experience event, and it demonstrated just how broad the market for wearable technology is. The device monitors levels of alcohol in the body, which can help people make better decisions in terms of how much they drink or whether or not to drive.

Augmented reality (AR) activity at CES became a hard-to-miss trend. It is rumored that Zeiss is working with Apple to develop AR glasses, and other companies like Epson and Lenovo are developing products as well.

One of the most fascinating technologies came from both Sony and LG Display. They each displayed prototypes of TVs between 55 and 77 inches that embed speakers directly in the screen itself.