Customers desire "safety and peace of mind" for their pets, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) states, driving purchases of pet tech such as interactive toys, automated feeders, grooming devices and pet GPS.
The CTA "Pet Technology: Ownership, Use and Perceptions" report covers the emerging pet tech market in the US, but one can safely assume such trends will follow in our side of the Atlantic, sooner, not later. The organisation predicts US sales of devices used to monitor, entertain, feed or track household pets will reach 4.3m units in 2018, a 20% increase over 2017, with revenues growing by 18% to $233 million.
“The nascent pet technology category has burst on to the scene with triple-digit unit sales increases last year,” the CTA continues. “As awareness of this technology grows and pet owners better understand all the benefits tech can deliver to their furry loved ones, the potential for this category will continue to climb.”
The Chromebook Plus (V2) keeps the same form factor as the first model, with a hinge allowing users to switch from notebook to tablet mode. The 12.2-inch 1920 x 1080 resolution touchscreen handles pen input via built-in stylus, and Samsung promises "all day" battery life on a single charge. The company increased the number of cameras to 2, with a 1MP front-facing number and a 13MP rear-facing camera usable whenever the device is in tablet mode.
Dubbed the Zero 2, the tiny controller has all buttons required to play any modern game. It even has motion controls, allowing use with the Nintendo Switch. Meanwhile customers wanting something bigger but with the same retro stylings get the NES30 Pro 2, an update on 2017's N30 Pro featuring new function buttons, vibration and motion controls.
The Y730 is a 15/17-inch notebook, while the Y530 is a 15-inch model. Both come inside an anodised aluminium chassis, and carry 1920 x 1080 IPS panels running at either 60 or 144Hz. The highest end 17-inch model also has G-Sync as an option. As for internals, customers get a choice of Intel Core i5-8300H or 6C/12T Core i7-8750H processor, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 or GTX 1050 Ti graphics and up to 16GB DDR4 RAM.
Available in either graphite or light gray acoustic fabric options, the Bild 3.65 sits on an aluminium stand customers can swap for a table stand. Installers can also mount the TV on walls or floors. Either way, like the other Bild models the 3.65 is very slim (at just 4.6mm), and hides all cables behind magnetic covers on the back and sides to ensure a clean installation.
