CES has never been a perfect crystal ball. Not every idea basking in the annual Las Vegas spotlight goes mainstream, and plenty of breakthroughs arrive quietly elsewhere. Still, when the same themes keep cropping up across laptops, TVs, smart home tech, and hardware platforms, it’s usually a decent indication of the latest tech trends.
We got exactly that at CES 2026 – a collection of ideas that suggest how devices might evolve over the next few years. We’ve rounded up some of the key trends below, for a digestible glance at what the tech world could bring to your door over the coming years…
- Read more: Stuff’s Best of CES Awards 2026: the tech that stole the show
Shapeshifting screens
Expandable displays were one of the clearest recurring ideas on the CES 2026 floor – and the best examples weren’t trying to be futuristic for the sake of it, with some pretty compelling use cases all round.
Lenovo’s Legion Pro Rollable Concept stretches a flexible OLED panel horizontally, expanding the display from 16 inches to either 21.5 or 24in with a button press. The appeal is obvious – more space for widescreen multimedia and extra immersion in games, without carrying a physically larger laptop everywhere.
Asus is chasing the same goal from a different angle with the Zenbook Duo, pairing two 14in OLED displays in a single chassis, alongside a redesigned hinge and a larger 99Wh battery. Rather than treating the second screen as a novelty, this generation positions it as a permanent workspace – useful for tools, reference material, or multitasking without an external monitor.
The same thinking has crept into cars too. TCL CSOT used CES 2026 to show a sliding, multi-curved OLED automotive display that can extend from 16 inches to 28 inches, then retract when it isn’t needed. It’s a reminder that flexible screens aren’t just about wow factor – they’re increasingly being used to manage space and reduce clutter.
Screen dreams
CES has always been a major moment for TVs, and this year’s was no different. As for the buzz, peak brightness still matters, but it’s no longer the only headline.
Samsung’s 130-inch Micro RGB TV was one of the show’s more striking sets, using microscopic red, green, and blue LEDs to improve colour precision and colour volume. It’s firmly high-end for now, but it signals a push towards better control over how colours and highlights are rendered, rather than simply pushing brightness higher.
HDR standards are evolving alongside the hardware too. Dolby Vision 2 was also shown off at CES, with Dolby confirming support from brands including Hisense, TCL, and Philips. The update focuses on improved tone mapping, better near-black detail, and more consistent results across different lighting conditions – aiming to make HDR behave more predictably in real living rooms, not just dark demo spaces.
Mini LED continues to advance as well, with denser dimming zones and improved processing, narrowing the gap to OLED for many viewers.
Keep it simple
Not every trend highlighted by CES 2026 started on the show floor, but the event helped underline a growing trend for simpler, more deliberate devices.
The Clicks Communicator is a good example. It’s a standalone Android phone framed explicitly around communication rather than consumption, with a physical keyboard and support for modern features like 5G. Clicks positions it either as a primary phone for people who want less distraction, or as a secondary device that keeps messaging front and centre without pulling users into endless feeds.
There’s a similar mood behind the Pebble Round 2 revival. With its e-paper display, lightweight design, and battery life measured in days rather than hours, it leans hard into the idea that not everyone wants a miniature smartphone strapped to their wrist. It’s not trying to compete with feature-heavy smartwatches either. Instead, it’s offering an alternative for those of us who’d rather not have their Slack messages interrupt our freshly delivered ramen bowl, thank you very much.
Together, these pared-back devices reflect a broader shift in how people want to engage with technology. Staying connected still matters, but even us tech lovers will happily admit that the constant interruptions are wearing increasingly thin.
AI foundations
AI, it will come as no surprise, was everywhere at CES 2026, but the focus had somewhat – and thankfully – shifted away from just flashy demos, and more towards actual hardware capability.
Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm all used CES to talk up new processors built around dedicated NPUs, positioning AI performance as a baseline platform feature rather than a bolt-on extra. Laptop makers followed suit, marketing machines around AI readiness and local processing rather than specific AI-powered apps.
In practice, that means everyday tasks like webcam image processing, background noise removal, live captions, image enhancement, and power management are all being handled directly on-device. These are small improvements individually, but together they add up to machines that feel faster, more responsive, and less dependent on cloud services.
Smart homes finally look more standardised
We’re still waiting for true, utopian smart home standardisation. And there’s hope yet.
Matter continued its momentum, with companies increasingly treating it as core infrastructure rather than an optional extra. Ikea also announced expanded Matter support through its Dirigera hub, including updated versions of its Varmblixt lamps with app control, remotes, and broader colour options.
Privacy-first design is also gaining ground. Eve used CES 2026 to debut a new Matter-over-Thread thermostat, emphasising local operation without subscriptions or mandatory cloud accounts. Aqara also leaned heavily into Matter and Thread across new products and platform updates, continuing the push towards a future where everything, no matter what brand, works seamlessly with its peers and rivals.
There’s still plenty of room for improvement, mind, but at least we’re going in the right direction. Hooray!
Read more: CES 2026: all the key announcements from tech’s biggest show
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