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I'm Dave priest and we are here at CES 2014 to look at some of the coolest smart displays that this show has to offer.
So right now we're right in front of the movie labs panel, which is a really unique kind of smart display.
Now it's been around for a couple of years but the panel is about to launch for the first time in the coming weeks.
So this something that you could legitimately buy really soon.
Now, part of what this does that's so different from a lot of other smart displays is not in the smart, but it's in the aesthetic.
This is a real piece of wood that has an inset LED display.
Now the whole philosophy behind this device is really interesting.
It's meant not to distract you or dry your eye in the way that the screens all around us do all of the time.
So instead, it's just this piece of wood right here, and you can tap it to open things up.
And once you do, you can control your lights and you can go and take a look at some different settings.
But there are also these really nice touches, too.
So theres a setting right here, for instance, that helps you breathe during the day, that helps you kind of calm down.
There's another one here that is setting a timer.
And it doesn't seem that practical because you don't set it by picking numbers.
Instead, you draw a line.
And the length of the line that you draw determines the amount of time that's there on the timer.
And so, when you press play, you kind of see these little dots disappearing for each second in the timer.
It's a really unique, aesthetic approach to these kind of practical, everyday things that you should be doing or might want to be doing.
So this is just one device, but there are a lot of devices out there right now from smaller developers, like Movie Labs, that are really pushing the boundaries not in terms of smarts exactly, but in terms of those smarts.
And really pushing the way that we can think of how a smart home can look.
Here's another example.
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Another really cool device is this smart display right here.
It's from a company called Mystic Pants, which is one of my favorite company names that I've come across here at CES.
But it's called the lyf board and it looks like a pretty standard smart display at first but it actually has this really cool retro aesthetic as you can see.
Now, it gives you really useful information, so things like when a train departs or if you have appointments or if you have to still get steps in at the end of the day Things like that, but it doesn't in this kind of minimalist way you have this black background you have these kind of simple messages.
It also has some really clever quality of life features here like one thing is, it gives you personalized messages based on who's in the room with the device at any given time.
That's just based on whoever's phone is nearby using a Bluetooth signal right?
So unlike the movie tablet this one is a little bit earlier in development and actually hasn't even hit Kickstarter yet.
So, you know, a lot of times these kinds of devices go through big changes.
From their early stages to when they actually reach your countertop, but I really like the beginning of a product that we see here.
And again, this is kind of fitting in with this trend that we're seeing of smart displays, really prioritizing aesthetics and a unique and compelling way.
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