The best laptop of CES 2020

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold ($2,499.00 — mid-2020)

The first-ever laptop with a foldable display is undoubtedly a highlight of CES 2020 — a futuristic device that you can actually buy this year.

Way back in May 2019, Lenovo made a lofty promise while showing off a prototype device: that it would release the first-ever laptop with a foldable display, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold, in 2020. Now, Lenovo has clearly made good on that promise.

The tested, stylized version of the product shown off almost a year ago — with literal support tape on it and without a name — easily sells the idea of what foldable screen technology could accomplish in a mobile computing device.

Magazines could look fantastic on the ThinkPad X1 Fold, and with the bundled Bluetooth keyboard, people could work on that document while watching the latest episode of “The Witcher” on Netflix above. These are quaint scenarios, and barely business-related as the “ThinkPad” name would suggest, but these are the first ideas that come to mind.

The best wearable of CES 2020

Suunto 7 smartwatch ($499 — preorders available now, ships January 31)

The Suunto 7 features Google’s WearOS, making it the brand’s first legit smartwatch. It also offers plenty of multi-sport functionality which lets it compete with the likes of Garmin’s Fenix line.

Suunto unveiled its first bonafide smartwatch at CES 2020 this year dubbed the Suunto 7. Outfit with the Google-powered operating system, WearOS, and packed with more multi-sport compatibility than most people will know what to do with, the Suunto 7 looks primed to go toe-to-toe with Garmin’s similar jack-of-all-trades Fenix series ­— for a fraction of the cost, at that.

Available in five different colorways and starting at $500 (as opposed to $700 for the new Fenix 6 Pro), the Suunto 7 is perfect for anyone who likes to keep active. It has built-in GPS and a heart-rate monitor, is water-resistant up to 50 meters, and even offers the ability to download offline outdoor maps for free (a first for any Suunto watch). This means it’s not only designed for the gym or running through the park but also as a suitable companion for exploring the backcountry.

The watch also comes standard with Google’s suite of WearOS features like Google Pay, Google Assistant, and Google Fit, as well as access to the Google Play store. For sport-tracking, the Suunto 7 offers compatibility with more than 70 different activities like biking, swimming, and running, and also allows wearers to sync their headphones to their watch to control their tunes while they workout. Amassed activity stats are able to be viewed via Suunto’s companion app, or easily transferred to apps like Strava or Endomondo. There’s even Suunto Heatmap compatibility which shows wearers the most popular training routes for running or biking in their area.

The best kitchen appliance of CES 2020

Juno Chiller ($199 — now available for pre-order) 

Anyone who entertains often or simply loves to enjoy a cold drink without the hassle will find the sleek and efficient beverage chilling device enticing. 

Juno is like a microwave, but for quickly chilling rather than heating up your drinks. If you want a refreshing soda, juice, tea, coffee, or glass of wine, it usually takes hours to reach an ice-cold temperature in the fridge, and sticking the beverage in the freezer can lead to messy results. Juno’s thermoelectric cooling technology brings temperatures down within minutes (e.g. a 12 oz. can of beer to 39°F in just two minutes, or a 750 ml bottle of wine to 49°F in just five minutes). 

The best accessory of CES 2020

Pockettalk Voice Translator ($299 — now available for pre-order and ships on March 16, 2020)

This portable translation device should make international travel a whole lot easier, making it an essential accessory for frequent travelers on business or leisure.

Clear and accurate communication is a big challenge of traveling abroad, whether for work or pleasure. If you haven’t had the chance to master at least the basics of a foreign language, you’ve probably defaulted to Google Translate, but found the process unwieldy and inconvenient.

The best camera

Insta360 One R ($299.99 — available for order now)

With its modular design, the Insta360 One R is a customizable camera that lets you swap out lenses to suit the shooting mode, changing from action cam to a 360-degree camera in an instant. There’s even a premium lens module designed in collaboration with photography experts at Leica.

What if you could buy one camera that can actually morph into different cameras? That’s the premise of the One R from Insta360. Described as an “adaptive action camera,” the One R is based around a modular system that lets it turn it into other camera types — beyond the standard action cam.

The One R revolves around a Core module that sits on top of a battery base, which has a touchscreen on the back and all the controlling hardware inside. From there, you can attach a wide-angle lens (action cam), 360-degree lens, or a lens with a 1-inch sensor (large sensors can capture high-quality images), depending on the shooting mode. These are the modules available at launch, but down the line, you can add a larger battery, a second wide-angle lens to create 180-degree virtual-reality video, or whatever Insta360 is cooking up. Whatever the configuration, the One R is waterproof and features a variety of shooting modes, creative functions, and image stabilization.

The 1-inch sensor module was developed in collaboration with Leica, one of the best names in photography. The lens is based on Leica design and it can capture high-resolution 19-megapixel photos and 4K video.

We have been playing with the One R and will post more details about use and performance soon. Our initial impressions are that it’s surprisingly lightweight and it’s not much larger than our favorite action cam at the moment, the GoPro Hero8 Black. It’s also well designed and the construction feels solid. There are lots to like, especially the potential of this camera in eliminating the need to carry multiple cameras.

View all deals: The 16 best new products we saw at CES 2020