TechTheDay

It’s September once again – the month for IFA in Berlin. Just like what’s been said in last year’s similar post, don’t mind the “acronym.” IFA stands for Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin, regardless of how the letters don’t appear to represent the initials of the event’s full name. IFA is one of the oldest tech exhibitions in the world where some of the most iconic and game changing technologies were debuted.

This year’s exhibition is about to conclude (schedule: September 4-9), but has it presented any new or impressive new tech? Which products or innovations stood out? The following are some of the most attention-grabbing products or concepts unveiled at this year’s IFA:

First 4K Smartphone

Well, there’s no stopping the ridiculousness. Probably an attempt to win media coverage to entice buyer interest, Sony, the maker of the Xperia series, introduced the world’s first ever 4k smartphone, the Xperia Z5 Premium. As if QHD was not ridiculous enough, Sony upped the ante by offering a smartphone with an insane 801 ppi pixel density or a resolution of 3840×2160. This is almost twice the number of pixels found in the predecessor Xperia flagship smartphone and over 300 ppi higher than the QHD screens of the LG G4 and Samsung Galaxy S6. Some think that Sony’s intention in releasing the 4K Xperia Z5 Premium is not really to fuel the pixel wars but simply to gain more media coverage and it apparently succeeded.

Phone with a Retina Scanner

The fingerprint scanner has apparently become a standard feature for all 2015 smartphones. Perhaps attempting to be the trendsetter, Chinese smartphone maker announced the Axon Elite on the second day of IFA 2015. Axon Elite is a high end smartphone with a dual-lens camera system and a retina scanner. Of course it also has a fingerprint scanner. It is not the first to introduce a retina scanner in a smartphone (Fujitsu of Japan takes the honor) but it’s nice to see one of the most popular (top-selling) mobile phone brands of the world adopting the feature.

Force Touch Technology

iPhone 6S, apparently, will not be the first device to introduce force touch tech. Some weeks ago, there were already rumors that the followup to the iPhone 6 will carry the feature called force touch, a mobile display tech that recognizes up to three kinds of taps. Chinese smartphone maker Huawei beats Apple to the “first to introduce” race with the force-touch-toting Huawei Mate S, a premium device that likely gives a hint of what tech enthusiasts can expect from the upcoming Huawei-crafted Nexus 6 (2015).

Better Looking Smart Watches

Again, smart watches flooded the IFA floor. There were offerings from Huawei, Asus, Samsung, Motorola, and more. The good thing, though, is that they are now better looking. It took a few iterations before manufacturers finally came up with wearable devices that users would proudly wear. Even Samsung latest Galaxy Gear now looks sleeker. The smart watches featured on IFA 2015 mostly sport rounded screens and have been made slightly smaller.

Tiny PCs

Asus introduced its dongle-sized PC on IFA 2015. Called the Asus VivoStick PC, this impressive device transforms a TV (with a USB port) into a fully functional PC. Sure, there are already many devices similar to this on the market right now. The difference of the Asus VivoStick, however, is that it runs on Windows 10, not Android. As such, it can provide the same kind of user experience popular Windows desktop and laptop computers can offer. This device uses an Intel Cherry Trail chip and comes with 32 GB of storage, 2 GB of RAM, WiFi and Bluetooth 4 connectivity, and two USB ports. A keyboard and mouse may be attached to it through the USB ports or via Bluetooth connection.

Modular Computer

Acer also brought something related to personal computers on the IFA 2015 floor. The Taiwanese company, however, had a different tack. Instead of miniaturizing the computer, Acer opted to make it modular. The product is called the Acer Revo Build. This is indeed a great idea as it takes away the hassle of upgrading or replacing parts. It’s rather strange, though, that each of the modules of the Revo Build needs its own power supply.

Sphero BB-8 Star Wars Droid

IFA 2015 was not just about serious and “adult” gadgetry. Also presented was the Sphero BB-8 Star Wars droid. It’s a $150 app-controlled robot. Some are saying that the Sphero BB-8 droid is the best Star Wars toy yet. It is notable because it actually behaves or works like the real BB-8. It has a sturdy build and is really durable (it withstood getting knocked out a couple of times during demonstration). It only has a 60-minute battery life but you can easily have it recharged through its inductive charging system.

These are just some of the most interesting and highly covered products showcased on IFA 2015. Don’t hesitate to drop us a comment below if you think there were other more interesting tech introduced or presented at this year’s IFA.