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Computex 2018: The weirdest gadgets at Asia's biggest tech show

Silicon Valley can keep its tech giants -- there's no shortage of freaky and weird gadgets at Computex in Taiwan.

Claire Reilly
Claire Reilly was a video host, journalist and producer covering all things space, futurism, science and culture. Whether she's covering breaking news, explaining complex science topics or exploring the weirder sides of tech culture, Claire gets to the heart of why technology matters to everyone. She's been a regular commentator on broadcast news, and in her spare time, she's a cabaret enthusiast, Simpsons aficionado and closet country music lover. She originally hails from Sydney but now calls San Francisco home.
Claire Reilly
coolermasterchair
1 of 11 Aloysius Low/CNET

Cooler Master's game pod chair

Reclusive gamers rejoice -- Cooler Master has created a prototype gaming pod that lets you relax while you destroy people at PUBG. 

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2 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

Orii Smart Ring

The Orii Smart Ring turns your finger into a phone. Connect it to your actual phone via Bluetooth and the ring will vibrate when you get a call -- press your fingertip to your ear and the ring then vibrates the audio through your finger bone and up to your ear. We tried it out and it works -- it's not as crisp as a real speaker next to your ear, but it's a nifty alternative!

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3 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

R-Pur anti-pollution mask

This mask from French company R-Pur cuts out pollutants and particles in the air, extracts the hot air you breathe out and pairs with a smartphone app that tells you when you need to replace the filter based on pollution data targeted to your local area.

iu-translator-computex-2018
4 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

IU Translator

About the size of two matchboxes, the IU Translator translates speech between more than 20 languages and can also do offline translation between Traditional Chinese and English. When I want to talk, I press the "I" button and say something in English -- my paired phone will then read the phrase in the second language. Your new friend wants to reply? They press the "U" button and the phone will translate their phrase back into English. 

computex-smart-ring
5 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

SmartX Ring and Necklace

This smart jewellery lights up when you get a phone call and has an RFID chip embedded inside that can be used to unlock smart locks. Oh, and the creators say the necklace shoots perfume when you get a call too... just in case the lights weren't enough.

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6 of 11 Intel

Intel's AI band

Intel showed off its Movidius VPU tech by putting VP Gregory Bryant onstage with an invisible drum kit and pairing him with two AI musician avatars. The result was pretty out of sync...

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7 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

3DRudder

This tilting footboard lets you control movement in VR games, rather than using hand controllers. Sit down with your feet on the board and tilt forward to move forward, or side to side to pan around in your VR game. No more getting tangled in cords...

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8 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

A rotating pooper scooper for your cat

This rotating kitty litter tray is just about the weirdest thing we saw at Computex. The cat goes inside, does its business, then the machine starts up to scoop up the mess for you.

nums-smart-keyboard-computex-2018
9 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

Nums Smart Keyboard

The Nums Smart Keyboard is a glass plate that sits over your MacBook or Surface trackpad and turns it into a numpad. Swipe down from the left to bring up a calculator or down from the right to input numbers. Thanks to an app on your laptop, you can also create a shortcut bar in your laptop and use the numbers to quickly open programs like Chrome.

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10 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

Uspace

Want to rent out your car space? The Uspace stops strangers from parking a car in your space, but with a quick swipe in the Uspace app you can remotely fold it down to enable anyone to park there.

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11 of 11 Claire Reilly/CNET

Avori smart toothbrush

Have you brushed all your pearly whites? The Avori smart toothbrush uses sensors inside the handle to detect where you're brushing and how hard you're pressing to give you analytics on your clean -- the app will tell you where you need to brush more and just how healthy your smile is.

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