CES is a big show for PC makers and laptops. Most major Windows PC brands—aside from Microsoft—use it as the launchpad for their yearly refreshes. This remained true at CES 2026, though the tone of the show was notably more humble than in the past. While many new laptop designs included Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors, the new AMD Ryzen AI 400 and Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 chips seemed less popular with PC makers. Rapidly rising memory prices have also struck fear in PC makers, and several brands (including Acer, Asus, and MSI) said that retail pricing won’t be announced until their respective laptops are closer to release. On the plus side, Intel’s new Core Ultra Series 3 CPUs seem to have PC makers excited. It was a popular choice in new designs, many of which are thin-and-light with promises of good battery life. OLED displays also continue to improve while pricing falls. As a result, the bulk of laptops announced at CES 2026 had OLED displays, and many quoted peak HDR brightness at 1,000 nits or more. I got to see it all on the show floor and there were some clear winners among them. Here are the best laptops at CES 2026. Acer Swift 16 AI: The world’s largest haptic touchpad Matthew Smith / Foundry The Acer Swift 16 AI is the company’s new flagship and, to back that up, it’s packing the world’s largest haptic touchpad. It measures nearly 7 inches across and about 4.25 inches deep, a size that easily surpasses most laptops in its class. And while haptic touchpads aren’t uncommon at higher price points, many of Acer’s competitors don’t offer them. It’s a shame because haptic touchpads are freakin’ awesome. The touchpad also supports stylus input (and a stylus is included), which means you can use it to jot notes, sketch, animate, or do anything else normally supported by a digital drawing surface. Corning Gorilla Glass is used to provide extra protection for the touchpad and deliver a smooth surface. Touchpad aside, the Acer Swift 16 AI has the features you’d expect from a flagship laptop. It serves up Intel Core Ultra X9 388H processors with Intel Arc integrated graphics and has a 16-inch 3K OLED touchscreen with a refresh rate up to 120Hz. Connectivity includes dual Thunderbolt 4, HDMI, USB-A, and a microSD card slot. Acer says the Swift 16 AI will arrive in Q1 2026. Pricing to be announced. Asus Zenbook Duo: The redesign we didn’t know we needed Matt Smith / Foundry The second-generation Zenbook Duo was already the best dual-screen laptop on the market, yet Asus found several ways to improve on it with the latest Zenbook Duo (model number UX8407AA). The newest Duo switches from an aluminum chassis to Asus’ unique ceraluminum. It also has a redesigned hinge that reduces the gap separating the two displays, and a new kickstand that looks more elegant and operates a hair more smoothly than its predecessor. These improvements aren’t so dramatic that last-gen Zenbook Duo users will feel a need to upgrade, but they’re noticeable when the two are side by side. The reduced gap between displays is particularly nice. The redesigned chassis accommodates impressive hardware. The new Duo equips Intel Core Ultra X9 Series 3 processors with Intel Arc integrated graphics. It also has dual 14-inch 3K OLED touchscreens with up to a 144Hz refresh rate. The battery is larger, too, expanding from 75 watt-hours to 99 watt-hours. Pricing and availability were not announced. Asus ExpertBook Ultra: A low-key ultraportable hero Matt Smith / Foundry Asus’ ExpertBook Ultra probably won’t attract much attention, as the Asus ExpertBook line isn’t as well-known as competitors like Lenovo’s ThinkPad—which is a shame because the ExpertBook Ultra was arguably the most impressive ultraportable laptop at CES 2026. The ExpertBook Ultra weighs less than a kilogram (or roughly 2.2 pounds) and measures under half an inch thick. The result is a featherlight laptop that’s easier to pick up and handle than most notebooks. Yet despite its low weight, the ExpertBook Ultra didn’t strike me as flimsy. It felt light yet slate-like in my hand. I also love the display. It’s a 14-inch 3K tandem OLED touchscreen that can hit a maximum HDR brightness of 1,400 nits and provides a refresh rate up to 120Hz. The display also has an unusual low-gloss coat that’s extremely effective at reducing glare. The CES show floor included plenty of bright overhead lights, yet the ExpertBook Ultra’s display was easy to use and suffered very little glare. The ExpertBook Ultra also offers up to Intel Core Ultra X9 Series 3 processors with Intel Arc integrated graphics, a 70 watt-hour battery, and dual Thunderbolt 4 ports. Pricing remains to be announced. Asus Zenbook A16: A Qualcomm-powered beauty of a laptop Matt Smith / Foundry The Asus Zenbook A16 is my pick for the most beautiful laptop at CES 2026. It has a chassis coated in Asus’ unique ceraluminum, an aluminum-ceramic material with a unique texture. The ceraluminum used in the Zenbook A16 also contains magnesium-aluminum alloy, a popular super-light material. The laptop weighs in at a hair over 2.6 pounds, which is incredibly light for a 16-inch machine. That’s not the only reason the Zenbook A16 stands out. It’s also one of just a handful of new laptops to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme chip. The X2 Elite Extreme has 18 CPU cores, an 80 TOPs NPU, and improved integrated graphics. Other features include a large touchpad, 16-inch 3K 120Hz OLED display, up to 21 hours of battery life, and a 130-watt USB-C power adapter. The Zenbook A16’s pricing and availability are still under wraps. Dell XPS 14 and 16: A return to form Matthew Smith / Foundry XPS is back! And it’s not just a change of name. The new XPS 14 and XPS 16 abandon the controversial capacitive touch function row and return to good, old-fashioned physical keys. The new Dell XPS laptops go all-in on Intel hardware. They use Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors and rely on Intel Arc integrated graphics. There’s a renewed focus on size and portability, as the new models measure under 0.6 inches thick. The XPS 14 comes in at 3 pounds while the XPS 16 tips the scales at 3.6 pounds. Dell will also offer a tandem OLED panel. If other tandem OLED displays are any guide, the panel will offer a decent boost in brightness and some gain in color performance. However, Dell will also sell an LCD panel, claiming that the laptop will offer best-in-class battery life when equipped with the LCD option—up to 27 hours of battery life in use, or over 40 hours in video playback. (We’ll have to test for ourselves.) Unlike some other laptops on this list, you don’t have to wait for the Dell XPS 14/16. They’re available now. The XPS 14 starts at $2,049.99 and the XPS 16 starts at $2,199.99. The launch models are higher-end configurations; Dell says less expensive configs are planned for later this year. Dell also announced it will bring back the XPS 13 and showed an early version at CES, though it didn’t allow photos. That laptop’s exact specifications remain under wraps until later this year. HyperX Omen Max 16: New name, more power Matt Smith / Foundry HP announced its own brand shakeup at CES 2026: The company is moving its gaming laptops under HyperX, the gaming peripheral brand owned by HP. However, HP couldn’t bring itself to part with Omen, another brand it acquired when it bought gaming PC maker Voodoo all the way back in 2006. As a result, HP’s newest high-end gaming laptop is called the HyperX Omen Max 16. Branding shenanigans aside, it looks impressive. The Omen Max 16 can handle up to 300 watts of total system power, a 50-watt gain over the prior generation. More power generally leads to more performance, and that power is sent up to Nvidia’s RTX 5090 graphics card and Intel’s Core Ultra 200HX processor. This is likely to place the Omen Max 16 among the quickest gaming laptops sold this year, though we’ll have to review the laptop in full to be sure. Though the Omen Max 16 has the HyperX logo on the lid, it looks rather similar to prior Omen laptops—which isn’t a bad thing. Omen laptops tend towards a simple but refined design with minimalist badging and a good port selection. All of this remains present on the Omen Max 16. The laptop also has a 16-inch 2560×1600 240Hz OLED display. One thing not present, though, is the price. It’ll be revealed closer to the laptop’s launch in spring of 2026. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Aura Edition: More repairable design Matt Smith / Foundry The super-thin Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon is now on its 14th generation (and now I feel old since I remember the CES where Lenovo launched the first one). This time around, though, Lenovo is doing more than updating the chassis to accommodate a new generation of silicon—the laptop is completely redesigned with a new Space Frame build for cramming in more hardware while also making it easier to repair. The Space Frame is so named because it’s meant to free up space. To do that, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Aura Edition (as well as its sibling, the ThinkPad X1 2-in-1) has a new mainboard that’s built to allow component placement on both sides of the PCB. Space Frame is also more modular and allows easier replacement of USB ports, battery, keyboard, speakers, and fans. Don’t get too excited, though. I asked a Lenovo rep if users will be able to take advantage of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon’s repairability at home and the answer, for now, is… mostly no. While the Space Frame will make repairs easier, Lenovo has no plans to sell specific components (like USB ports) to end users for home repair. The focus is instead on serviceability for enterprise clients with ThinkPad fleets. Space Frame aside, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Aura Edition is a high-end laptop with Intel Core Ultra X7 Series 3 processors, Intel Arc integrated graphics, and a 10-megapixel camera. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 14 Aura Edition will arrive in March 2026 at $1,999. The ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 Gen 11 Aura Edition will arrive in March 2026 at $2,149. Lenovo Legion Pro Rollable: Please, take my money Matt Smith / Foundry Last year, Lenovo showed off a rollable OLED laptop concept that could roll out its OLED panel to increase the laptop’s vertical display space. (It’s now available and even won a PCWorld Editors’ Choice award). Now, Lenovo has turned that idea on its side with the Lenovo Legion Pro Rollable. It can expand from a 16-inch widescreen OLED display to a 21-inch or 24-inch ultrawide display. The basic idea is very similar to Lenovo’s prior rollable OLED endeavors. The Legion Pro Rollable has a flexible OLED panel paired with motors that expand or retract the display. However, instead of expanding upward, the display now expands both left and right. It’s a great piece of eye candy, to be sure, but also looks extremely functional. Laptops have always been bound by the simple physical reality that a larger display requires a larger chassis, which means big-screen laptops are gigantic. (Acer’s Predator 21X—the only ultrawide laptop ever sold—was 22 inches wide and weighed almost 19 pounds.) Of course, the Legion Pro Rollable is just a concept for now. I’d wager Lenovo will end up selling it—or something like it—but I also expect it’ll be rather expensive. (The ThinkBook Plus Rollable was $3,299 at MSRP.) Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition: Firing on all cylinders Matt Smith / Foundry Most of the laptops on this list have a particular strength, gimmick, or angle, but the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition takes a different approach. It tries to do everything at once. This 16-inch machine is packed with high-end hardware, including up to Intel Core Ultra 9 Series 3 processors and up to Nvidia RTX 5070 mobile graphics. That’s paired with a 3.2K tandem OLED display that can deliver up to 1,600 nits of brightness and is VESA HDR True Black 1000 certified. The combo of high-end Intel processors, RTX graphics, and a top-shelf tandem OLED display should make the Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition a powerhouse in both games and creative professional workflows. But that’s not all. Like the Acer Swift 16 AI, the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition has a large touchpad with stylus support that can be used as a drawing surface. It’s compatible with Lenovo’s Yoga Pen Gen 2. The laptop also has a six-speaker sound system (Lenovo’s Yoga Pro laptops often have best-in-class sound quality), Thunderbolt 4, and USB-A ports with 10Gbps data rates. Lenovo says the Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition will be available in Q2 2026 starting at $1,899.99. MSI Raider 16 Max HX: Serious gaming performance and high-end HDR Matthew Smith / Foundry MSI has a long history of going all-out with its gaming laptops, and the Raider 16 Max HX keeps that reputation alive. Though it’s a 16-inch machine, MSI says it’s the world’s first gaming laptop capable of handling up to 300 watts of total system power. (The aforementioned HyperX Omen Max 16 will also deliver that much power, by the way.) A 400-watt power brick will feed the laptop. The majority of that power (up to 175 watts) is delivered to the laptop’s Nvidia RTX 5080 or RTX 5090 GPU. The remainder (up to 125 watts) flows to the Intel Core Ultra 200HX processor. Higher power draw leads to hotter thermals, so MSI says the Max HX has a complicated “Cooler Boost Trinity with Intra Flow” cooling system. It includes three fans, six heat pipes, and five vents. The laptop will also provide easy access to its RAM and storage for upgrades. A 16-inch 2.5K 240Hz OLED display with VESA DisplayHDR True Black certification rounds out the specifications. MSI says the laptop’s price and availability will be revealed at a later date. Read...

At CES 2026, UGREEN signaled a decisive shift in the evolution of network-attached storage with the launch of two new flagship systems: the NASync iDX6011 and NASync iDX6011 Pro. Positioned as “AI-native” private cloud solutions, these devices go far beyond traditional NAS roles of backup and file sharing. Instead, they reimagine local storage as an intelligent, high-performance data partner—one that understands, organizes, and protects your data entirely on-device, without dependence on the cloud. From passive storage to intelligent private cloud As personal and professional data volumes continue to grow, many NAS systems struggle to offer anything more than raw capacity. UGREEN’s NASync iDX Series addresses this gap with a secure Local AI Engine that transforms stored files into an interactive knowledge base. Designed for single creators and families to studios and small businesses, both the iDX6011 and iDX6011 Pro combine enterprise-grade performance with fully local AI that keeps sensitive data private and under user control. Both the NASync iDX6011 and iDX6011 Pro can become your home media hub with up to 8K HDMI video output.UGREEN At the heart of both systems are Intel® Core™ Ultra processors paired with up to 64GB of LPDDR5x memory. This platform enables real-time AI processing alongside demanding workloads such as media editing, virtualization, and multi-user access. Dual 10GbE networking delivers up to 20Gbps via aggregation, while dual Thunderbolt™ 4 ports provide up to 40Gbps connectivity for ultra-fast external storage and peripherals. With support for six SATA drives and two NVMe SSDs, total storage can scale up to a massive 196TB, making the iDX Series suitable for long-term archives as well as performance-sensitive projects. The AI intelligently assigns tags based on file content, letting you find what you’re looking for quickly and easily.UGREEN AI that lives on the device What truly differentiates the NASync iDX Series is its approach to artificial intelligence. Instead of relying on cloud-based services, UGREEN’s AI runs entirely on the device. This ensures faster responses, consistent availability, and—most importantly—airtight privacy. Universal Search allows users to find files the way humans think, not the way folders are structured. You can search using descriptions, concepts, or partial memories, and the system instantly surfaces relevant documents, photos, videos, or app data. Uliya AI Chat, UGREEN’s built-in large language model, enables natural-language interaction with stored content. Users can ask questions about their files, summarize documents, or generate notes, all offline and securely. For visual content, AI Album automatically recognizes faces, pets, objects, scenes, and even text within images. Typing a phrase like “dad riding a bike” or “whiteboard notes from meeting” retrieves the right photos in seconds. Voice Memos extend these capabilities to audio, allowing recordings to be transcribed, translated, and summarized on-device—ideal for meetings, interviews, classrooms, or personal archives. Meanwhile, AI File Organization keeps everything tidy by automatically sorting uploads by type, date, and name the moment they arrive. The NASync iDX6011 Pro smart touch display shows CPU, GPU & NPU, RAM & storage usage, plus network status at a glance.UGREEN Choosing between iDX6011 and iDX6011 Pro While both models share the same core philosophy, they are optimized for different workloads. The NASync iDX6011, aimed at creators, prosumers and families, is powered by an Intel® Core™ Ultra 5 125H processor and is available with either 32GB or 64GB of LPDDR5x memory. It is aimed at creators, families, and prosumers who want high-speed performance, intelligent organization, and private AI without unnecessary complexity. The NASync iDX6011 Pro steps up to an Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 255H processor with more cores and higher turbo speeds, paired exclusively with 64GB of memory, and will appeal to studios and production teams, particularly those with AI-intensive workflows. Its standout feature is an OCuLink port that enables low-latency, high-bandwidth connectivity to external GPUs. This allows studios and power users to scale AI inference, rendering, and compute-heavy workflows, effectively turning the NAS into a hybrid storage-and-workstation platform. The Pro model also adds a smart touch LED display that shows system status, resource usage, and network activity at a glance. Both offer up to 196TB of storage, six SATA drive bays, 128GB system drive capacity, two M.2 SSD drive slots, JBOD/Basic/RAID 0/1/5/6/10, two 10GbE LAN ports, two 40Gbps Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB 3.2, two USB 2.0, X8 x1 PCIe expansion, SD Card 4.0 slot, 8K HDMI, plus UPS and Docker support. UGREEN Performance, security, and design Beyond raw speed and AI features, UGREEN emphasizes reliability and usability. Both systems support multiple RAID levels for data protection, pro-grade encryption, real-time virus scanning, and flexible permission management. A three-year warranty and five years of security updates underscore their long-term focus. The hardware itself reflects a premium approach: a durable aluminum-alloy chassis with a matte finish, magnetic dust filtering, and a low-noise hydraulic fan that keeps operation quiet at 29–34 dB. The UGOS Pro interface simplifies setup and daily management, even for users new to NAS systems. Both the NASync iDX6011 & iDX6011 Pro boast fastest dual 10GbE networking.UGREEN Pricing and availability Pre-orders for the NASync iDX Series are now open, with significant early savings available. The iDX6011 starts at $999 for the 32GB model, while the 64GB version is priced at $1,199. The iDX6011 Pro with 64GB memory is available for $1,559. A Kickstarter campaign is scheduled to launch in March. With the NASync iDX6011 and iDX6011 Pro, UGREEN sets a new benchmark for what local storage can be: fast, intelligent, and private by design—an AI-powered private cloud that truly understands your data. Read...

At CES 2026, Lenovo rolled out refreshed Yoga Aura Edition laptops. The idea is that the laptop figures out what you’re doing and quietly adjusts itself, instead of you constantly poking around in your settings wondering why your battery is dying so fast.  Foundry / Mark Hachman The big one is the Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition. This thing is clearly built for creators who want power without going the full desktop route. It runs Intel Core Ultra Series 3 chips with Nvidia RTX 50-series graphics, and Lenovo redesigned the thermal system so it can run harder without overheating or getting super loud.  The most interesting thing is the new Force Pad, though. It looks like a normal touchpad, but you can draw directly on it with the included Yoga Pen. This is kind of perfect for quick sketches or marking things up without whipping out another device. And because this is an Aura Edition device, you get access to Lenovo’s Smart features. Whether you’re deep in the throes of a complicated spreadsheet or binge-watching your favorite Netflix show, Smart Modes quietly alters performance, battery life, and so on based on whatever you’re doing.  Smart Share, on the other hand, lets you tap your phone to the laptop for quickly moving photos and videos around. And, if anything goes horribly wrong, Smart Care lets you connect with Lenovo’s support team with a single click. Foundry / Mark Hachman If you don’t want a big, heavy laptop, there are lighter options too. The Yoga Slim 7i Ultra Aura Edition packs a lot of power into a sub-2.2-pound body, while the Yoga Slim 7x is all about long battery life (you can thank the Snapdragon chip for that one!). No matter which one you gander at, OLED screens and solid speakers are pretty much a given. Depending on the model, Yoga Aura Edition laptops will cost between $949 and $1,899 and are expected to hit stores in Q2 2026. Read...

At CES 2026, Lenovo officially pulled the curtain back on the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 14 Aura Edition and the ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 Gen 11 Aura Edition. It’s a refreshed take that focuses less on gimmicks and more on smarter performance and AI that actually does something useful. The biggest change, however, is the redesigned cooling system. Foundry / Mark Hachman Lenovo has a new internal design, dubbed “Space Frame,” that reorganizes the laptop’s internals so the components now sit on both sides of the motherboard. This reorganization should result in better cooling, higher sustained performance, and… easy repairs! USB ports, the battery, keyboard, speakers, even the fans! It’s all modular, which is pretty interesting. Performance gets a sizable bump this year thanks to the inclusion of new Intel Core Ultra X7 Series 3 processors with built-in NPUs for AI stuff you can use directly on the laptop itself. Lenovo says the improved thermals allow up to 30W of sustained power, and they’ve got faster LPDDR5x memory too, so, given the equipment we’re working with here, these ThinkPads should have zero problems tackling some heavy multitasking. Foundry / Mark Hachman Lenovo’s also rolling out new AI-powered software features on Aura Edition laptops. There’s Smart Modes, which automatically adjust performance, privacy, and focus settings based on whatever it is you’re doing at the time. Smart Share enables tap-to-share photos and videos, and Smart Care acts like an AI troubleshooting assistant when things go sideways. There are hardware upgrades too, including a new 10MP ultra-wide webcam, larger haptic touchpads, a better pen for the 2-in-1 model, and more sustainable materials throughout the chassis. The ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 14 Aura Edition and the X1 2-in-1 Gen 11 Aura Edition are expected to launch in March 2026, with prices starting at $1,999 and $2,149, respectively. Read...

Smart appliances that can be controlled with voice commands are nothing new, but IAI Smart is showing a new line of Emerson Smart appliances at CES that respond directly to voice commands. They don’t need a smart speaker in the middle, and they don’t rely on a broadband connection, an app, or anything other infrastructure—everything is processed locally. If you’re leery of the privacy and security vulnerabilities of IoT devices, this could be the answer. Emerson Smart devices—tower fans, space heaters, air fryers, and smart plugs, to start—use IAI Smart’s proprietary SmartVoice technology, which embeds natural-language voice processing directly into the appliance. Each device has an integrated microphone, so you can speak a wake word relevant to the appliance you want to use: “Hey Fan,” “Hey Heater,” or “Hey Air Fryer,” for example. Most also include an onboard speaker to provide audible confirmation of your command without relying on an intermediary device or an internet connection. There’s nothing new about smart plugs, except that this Emerson Smart model can be controlled with voice commands without depending on Wi-Fi.IAI Smart Emerson Smart is not marketing its technology as a replacement for Alexa- or Google-powered smart homes, but SmartVoice’s disconnected nature will be a compelling feature to many. Since all processing occurs on the device itself, recordings of your voice—and your usage data—will never leave your home. And if you have slow or limited broadband service—or an onerous data upload cap—they eliminate the need for persistent connectivity to the internet. The Emerson Smart SmartVoice Air Fryers (one is pictured up top) are the most ambitious products in the new lineup. Available in 5.3-quart ($129.99) and 10-quart ($169.99) sizes, the cookers support more than 1,000 voice commands and have more than 100 cooking presets. Users can issue commands such as “Cook salmon,” “Reheat pizza,” or “Increase temperature,” allowing basic meal prep without ever touching the controls. The company is also showing three SmartVoice tower fans: 29-inch ($89.99), 40-inch $99.99), and 42-inch models ($119.99). The fans have 15-hour sleep timers, wide-angle oscillation, and LED touch controls. The 42-inch model also features an integrated aroma diffuser. SmartVoice Fan-Heaters will be available in two sizes: 25-inch ($129.99) and 32-inch ($169.99). Both provide up to 1,500 watts of heating power, with oscillation options and multiple heat modes. Safety features include tip-over protection and automatic shutoff timers. There will also be Emerson Smart tower fans and fan-powered space heaters with local voice processing.IAI Smart To control lamps or dumb appliances, there will be SmartVoice Electrical Plugs in two configurations: A single-outlet ($24.99) model and a dual-outlet ($29.99) SKU that includes USB charging ports ($34.99). Using the wake phrase “Hey Emerson,” users will be able to issue more than 30 preset voice commands to turn devices on or off, set timers, schedule routines, or group multiple plugs–all without a Wi-Fi connection. Emerson Smart has started with the basics (aside from the air fryer), possibly to find out if there’s a market for its offline approach. If there’s a sizable contingent of buyers who want all the features with none of the connectivity, can refrigerators, washers and dryers be far behind? As novel as these appliances sound, they aren’t the first household products we’ve seen that have local voice-command processing. Simple Human introduced a pricey garbage can that responds to simple voice commands (“open can,” “close can,” “stay open”) way back in 2020. If you’re attending CES in person, Emerson Smart appliances are on display at the Venetian Expo Center, booth #52808. Read...

Mammotion is best known for building robot lawn mowers, having only introduced its first robotic pool cleaner in July 2025, but it’s looking to shake up the market with its second effort, now on display at CES. The Mammotion Spino S1 Pro promises nearly hands-off operation, thanks to a pool-side dock with a robotic arm that lifts the scrubber out of the water when its work is done. When you consider that pool robots can easily weigh 30 or 40 pounds when they’re full of water, this innovation promises to make that task much easier for pool owners—especially older or less steady individuals—and it sounds like a potential major selling point. Mammotion calls this land-bound component AutoShoreCharge, and the robotic arm is only one of its capabilities. AutoShoreCharge also communicates with the Spino S1 Pro via an underwater-friendly wireless link with a 10-meter range, improving navigation and troubleshooting while the robot is working in the water. It can also guide the machine back to the dock when its battery begins to run low. The Mammotion Spino S1 Pro itself features treads with front and rear scrubbers.Mammotion Once the bot is out of the water, the AutoShoreCharge automatically recharges it, ensuring it’s ready for its next deployment without the user needing to lift a finger. Users will still need to empty the filter basket before it is returned to service. In the water, the Spino S1 Pro features an onboard AI-powered camera and various sensors that help it identify debris, obstacles, and pool features such as steps and ledges, all of which are cleaned via dual roller brushes and a suction system that can process up to 6,800 gallons of water per hour. A dual-layer filter captures debris as small as 180 microns in size with its first-level screen, while 38-micron particles are trapped by its finer-grained second screen. The unit is of course able to traverse both the pool floor and its walls, and a waterline cleaning mode is also included. The robot’s complete specs—and its price tag­—have not yet been published, but the Wybot S2 Solar Vision is the only competing robot with a docking station that we’ve reviewed, and its currently selling for a hefty $1,599. I’d expect to see an even higher price point for the Spino S1 Pro when it’s launched later in the first quarter of 2026. If you’re attending CES and would like to check out the Mammotion Spino S1 Pro in person, visit the company’s Venetian Expo booth #51632. This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best robotic pool cleaners. Read...

Minisforum has announced two new mini PCs at CES 2026. The two models are: the AI X1 Pro-470 a mini PC for creators, gamers, remote workers, and developers; and the MS 02-Ultra, a 4.8L mini workstation aimed at video editors, photography studios, content production companies, small media teams, and also gamers. The AI X1 Pro-470 is a flagship mini PC for Minisforum. It’s powered by an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX470 processor designed to handle remote work, content creation, and gaming. For its GPU the AI X1 Pro-470 sports a Radeon 890M for smooth gaming performance. It also has an OcuLink port for easy access to external GPUs like Nvidia RTX or Radeon RX series cards for ultra-high frame-rates and 4K/8K gameplay. As well as a kickass CPU and GPU, this mini PC has a dual microphone array with AI noise reduction as well as high-quality speakers for seamless communication. The I/O looks to be very solid too. You can expect USB4, HDMI 2.1, and an SD card slot for seamless multi-device connectivity. Creators will be pleased with the up to 12TB of storage for handling large 4K videos, 3D projects, or AI data sets. The AI X1 Pro-470 will be available worldwide next month. Pictured: The AI X1 Pro-470 mini PC. Minisforum The other new model, the MS 02-Ultra is an Arrow-Lake refresh. The top configuration features a high-performance Intel Core Ultra 9 285 HX processor making it powerful enough for engineering design, video editing, and 3D modelling applications. The PC’s tiny chassis supports up to 256GB of ECC memory, plus it includes four M.2 slots and three PCIe slots for storage. It also utilizes a pull-out structure for easy upgrades and maintenance. The mini PC’s ports include two USB4 V2 (80Gbps) ports and dual 25 Gigabit Ethernet ports, ensuring very quick throughput for tasks like 4K/8K video editing, color grading, rendering, and content distribution. This new version of the MS 02 Ultra expands its versatility further by supporting high-performance gaming GPUs. Its robust PCIe bandwidth and enhanced cooling capacity means users can expect high frame rates and immersive graphics while also enjoying workstation class stability. The Minisforum Intel® Core™ Ultra 9 285 HX/275HX MS-02 Ultra is available worldwide at the company’s brand shop, priced at $1,199 for the 285 HX Barebone and $949 for the 275 HX Barebone. Roy Jiang chairman of Minisforum had this to say about the two new models of mini PC. “With AI X1 Pro-470 and MS-02 Ultra, we set out to prove that ‘mini’ no longer means ‘compromise,” said Jiang. “By combining serious AI compute, 4K/8K-ready performance, and enterprise-grade connectivity in ultra-compact designs, we’re giving creators, gamers, and modern businesses the freedom to build full production and workstation workflows without sacrificing space, flexibility, or power.” Read...

It’s been a little less than a year since I first saw the Asus Zenbook A14, a super-light, super-thin Windows laptop with incredible battery life. And it’s been six months since I bought one for myself (in fact I’m typing on it now). Apparently I’m not the only fan, because Asus is back with a bigger, bolder sequel: the Zenbook A16.  With a sandy color and a distinctive “ceraluminum” material (which Asus is bringing to other Zenbook laptops this year), it’s obviously a relative of the A14. But this larger member of the family isn’t focused on the bare minimums. With a huge, high-resolution screen and more (figurative) power thanks to a newer Qualcomm chip, I get the impression that Asus wants to position this design as a competitor to the larger Surface Laptop and MacBook designs.  Michael Crider / Foundry The biggest upgrade, in both a figurative and literal sense, is the 16-inch screen. It’s still an OLED panel (a highlight of the A14, at that price and weight), but it’s now rocking a much better 2880×1800 resolution, allowing more breathing room for office tasks and browsing. And like the original design, it does without a touch component, for those who don’t need anything but a laptop and a pointer. I really like that, since that helps keep weight down and battery life up.  That said, the spacious battery (70 watt-hours) isn’t any bigger for the new design. With a bigger screen and a more powerful chip, both drawing more wattage, it seems almost inevitable that the battery life of the A16 will be shorter. That was one of the best features of the A14, but Asus representatives told me that it was a priority to keep the weight down.  Michael Crider / Foundry Speaking of weight: 1.2 kilograms, or 2.6 pounds for those of us in less civilized countries. That’s only 20 percent more chunky than the smaller A14, for a significantly larger device. But that space isn’t wasted. You get six speakers spread out (strangely none of them straddling the keyboard like most laptops this size), plus a full-sized SD card slot, which wasn’t available on the A14. Other ports are identical, with two USB-C on the left side (booo!), full-sized HDMI, and a USB-A port on the right. Asus might be most excited about the new chip powering this laptop, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme, at least on the configuration being promoted at CES. That’s the top-of-the-line Arm chip with 18 cores topping out at 5GHz. That’s screaming performance for a thin-and-light laptop, though gamers or those who depend on specialized, high-end software might balk at anything but an Intel or AMD chip. You also get up to 48GB of DDR5 memory (if you happen to have won the lottery lately), but just 1TB of PCIe storage, according to the spec sheet.  Michael Crider / Foundry The biggest question for the Zenbook A16 will be the price, and Asus isn’t answering it, despite an “end of Q1 [2026]” release target. The original A14, which is also getting that X2 processor and no other major changes, really only became compelling to me when it went on sale. So I can’t imagine this one turning heads as an ARM-based laptop, especially if the RAM crunch drives the price too far above the $1500 mark. I can see this matching up well against the larger MacBook Air… less so for the MacBook Pro. Read...

It’s time to finally upgrade your gaming setup with a gorgeous monitor. The Samsung Odyssey G50D is currently 42% off on Amazon, bringing its price down to a super affordable $250 (was $430). Not bad for a monitor of this size and specs. Keep reading to see why! View this Amazon deal The 32-inch Samsung Odyssey G50D has a fast IPS panel that delivers sharp and detailed visuals, a great overall performance, great contrast, and fantastic colors. With its 2560×1440 resolution, images will be crisp and clear no matter if you’re playing games, streaming Netflix and YouTube, working through spreadsheets, or browsing the web. Gamers will love this monitor knowing that it can hit a speedy 180Hz refresh rate with a 1ms response time. Overall, this will ensure lag-free gameplay and a smooth experience when gaming with a modestly powerful machine. This display also features AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync compatibility for minimal screen tearing. Snag this 32-inch Samsung Odyssey G50D for $130 off before the deal runs out. This isn’t the lowest price we’ve seen for this model, but it’s super close! So don’t miss this chance. Save $130 on this 32-inch Samsung 1440p gaming monitorBuy now at Amazon Read...

Better known for its smart TVs than its smart home products, TCL has nonetheless impressed us with its highly affordable smart locks. At CES today, the company announced an upgraded version of its TCL D2 Pro Palm Vein Smart Lock and the entirely new TCL D2L Fingerprint Lever Lock. Both locks feature Matter-over-Thread support and ANSI/BHMA Grade 3 certification (those are the upgrades to the D2 Pro). TCL D2 Pro Palm Vein Smart Lock TCL When we reviewed the first-generation TCL D2 Pro Palm Vein Smart Lock in September 2025, we praised its ease of installation and the speed with which it unlocked upon recognition of enrolled palms. TCL says this second-generation model is even faster, thanks to local AI learning that also improves the palm vein scanner’s accuracy. Meanwhile, the new lock’s support for Matter-over-Thread should both increase its smart home ecosystem support and increase its battery life compared to the Wi-Fi radio in the original model. On that note, TCL says the D2 Pro will operate for up to 8 months on a single charge. TCL didn’t publish ANSI or BHMA certifications for its earlier lock, but it says this new model is certified BHMA Grade 3. That actually means it’s rated ANSI Grade 3, and while that’s the lowest of the three ANSI grades, that standard is for commercial locks (BHMA certification is for residential locks). So, the new D2 Pro should prove to be very durable. TCL D2L Fingerprint Lever Lock TCL If your door uses a lever lock instead of—or in addition to—a deadbolt, the TCL D2L Fingerprint Lock features an integrated fingerprint reader that’s positioned so you can grip the handle with your thumb on the scanner, and then lift up or down to open the door. TCL says its biometric technology can recognize an authorized fingerprint in just 0.3 seconds. Matter-over-Thread support endows TCL’s new lever lock with even better battery life than its new smart deadbolt: up to 12 months on a charge. The TCL D2L Fingerprint Lever Lock is likewise certified BHMA Grade 3, and it features Matter-over-Thread support for broad compatibility with smart home ecosystems, including Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings. TCL has not yet published prices for either the D2 Pro Palm Vein Smart Lock and D2L Fingerprint Lever Lock, but says both smart locks should be available for purchase in the second quarter of 2026. This news story is part of TechHive’s ind-depth coverage of the best smart locks. Read...