Technologies
What CES 2023 Showed Me About the Future of Work
New laptops and accessories at CES could help a metaverse-based hybrid work environment make more sense.
Walking the halls of CES 2023, a lot feels the same as ever. Packed spaces, big TVs, lots of new laptops. But in the three years since I was last here in person, a lot has changed, and I’d argue some of the biggest and most consequential changes are to how we work.
It may take a little digging under the surface, but this year’s CES show has a lot to say about the great shift toward hybrid and remote work, in everything from better video conference tools to attempts at building a metaverse-infused, mixed-reality workspace.
Meetings in the metaverse
The metaverse office concept, at least according to one definition, is a shared collaborative space where one can participate via several means: virtual or augmented reality, 3D displays, standard laptop, tablet and phone screens; or in-person through things like smart whiteboards that work across all these different experiences.
Dell has become a leader in showing off concept pieces and prototypes during CES, and this year, its Concept Nyx (the same name Dell uses for gaming prototypes) tackles that version of the metaverse head on. At a pre-CES preview, I was able to participate in a faux meeting by creating a 3D avatar for others to see, and also by sitting in front of an autostereoscopic display (allowing you to see in 3D without special glasses) that gave me a 3D view of a project. After that, I donned a VR headset to feel like I (or my avatar) was actually in that shared space and writing on a whiteboard with my VR controller. And after that, I was able to use a slate-style tablet to interact with the real-world version of that same whiteboard, but without wearing a headset.
None of this is close to being a shipping product anytime soon, and like many things at and around CES, the hardware is carefully labeled as “conceptual.” Of that batch of products and experiences, the oversize, glasses-free 3D display, using eye-tracking hardware to make the 3D image actually look decent, seemed like the part with the most workplace potential.
Gamers go first
Much new PC technology is driven first by the gaming audience, which has a tolerance for gear that can be both expensive and experimental. That’s why ideas like VR and autostereoscopic 3D often show up in gaming hardware first, before moving into more practical products for your nongaming hours.
For example, this CES saw several new 18-inch gaming laptops, a screen size that’s been virtually extinct since the early 2010s. The first of these bigger screens are in gaming laptops from Dell, Razer, Asus and Acer, but there’s obvious crossover appeal for hybrid and remote workers who want the flexibility of a laptop but with a larger screen that feels more desktop-like. Razer laptops, with their minimalist styling, are especially popular with gamers and creative pros alike. I would not be surprised to see more professionally pitched laptops eventually grow into that new 18-inch size.
Asus also leaned into glasses-free 3D with its new ProArt Studiobook and Vivobook Pro laptops. Both, similar to Dell’s display prototype, use eye tracking to make 3D viable. And those devices are aimed at artists and designers, not gamers. Acer also has a similar eye-tracking 3D laptop aimed at gamers, called the Predator Helios 300, as well as a professional display from 2022 called the Acer SpatialLabs View with that same technology.
Laptops with glasses-free 3D were first tried back in 2012 and never made it to a second generation. The eye tracking in these new versions, however, makes the experience miles better.
More, and different, screens
Other experiments, like Lenovo’s twin-OLED-screen Yoga Book 9i and color E Ink/OLED combo, the ThinkBook Plus Twist, might eventually offer some new features that will bleed into more staid work laptops, but it’s far from a sure thing. That said, new E Ink devices like the 10.3-inch Yoga Paper could have more practical work applications, and I only say that because I’ve been using a similar-feeling new Amazon Kindle Scribe while walking the floor at CES 2023 to great effect.
The most welcome trend in both consumer and commercial laptops from the past two years continues unabated, I’m pleased to say. Nearly every new laptop we saw defaulted to a full-HD 1,080-resolution webcam, rather than the wimpy low-res versions that were common prepandemic.
Even better, it’s considered such a standard feature that PC makers hardly feel the need to call it out anymore. It was way too long in coming, and low-res webcams made that first year of remote work in 2020 more difficult than it needed to be for many. But now that we’ve normalized the hybrid workplace and accept video meetings as equal to in-person ones, I’d call it one of those subtle but important changes to how we work that’s making life just a little bit easier.
Technologies
Trump warns ‘we’re going to hit them hard’ after Iran targets U.S. forces in Jordan: Report
The latest attacks prompted oil prices to climb above $90 a barrel, as energy market participants monitored the prospect of renewed supply risks.
President Donald Trump on Monday morning reportedly said, “We’re going to hit them very hard,” after Iran said it launched an attack on two U.S. bases in Jordan in response to an American strike on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend.
“There will be a response,” Trump said on a call to Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst, according to Yingst.
The president also reportedly told Fox that U.S. air defense systems intercepted all but one of the missiles launched at the bases by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, and that the remaining missile was allowed to pass through after it was determined that it would not strike anything significant.
The Guard said the U.S. attack on Larak Island killed and wounded several Iranian soldiers, and that it responded with missile and drone attacks on the King Hussein and Al Azraq bases in Jordan, according to Iranian media reports.
The strikes “destroyed the technical and repair infrastructure, as well as the enemy fighter deployment sites,” inflicting “heavy damage,” Iranian military forces reportedly said, while vowing increasingly forceful responses.
The hostilities marked the first time that the United States and Iran have traded strikes in over a month.
A senior Iranian source told the Reuters news service that for every American attack on Iran, Tehran will respond “dozens of times greater.”
“No target in the region is beyond Tehran’s reach,” the source told Reuters.
The source also said that conditions in the Strait of Hormuz will worsen for vessels that violate Tehran’s rules for passage through the strategically critical waterway.
American forces hit two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on Sunday after the U.S. military said Tehran’s Guard was preparing rockets carrying sea mines for launch into the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command confirmed to MS NOW.
“Earlier today U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz,” Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a U.S. Central Command spokesperson, said in a statement to MS NOW.
“Last week, CENTCOM completed clearing sea mines from the strait’s international shipping routes. U.S. forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway,” he said.
Larak, a small Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, has become a key military and shipping control point for Tehran, used by the Guard to monitor vessel traffic through one of the world’s most important maritime routes.
Sunday’s attack was the first publicly acknowledged U.S. strike on Iranian positions since late July.
The back-and-forth strikes come as the U.S. Defense Department on Monday announced that it had reached seven-year procurement contracts with General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin to increase production quantities and speed up delivery schedules for “critical subcomponents” for systems used to intercept ballistic missiles.
The systems are Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement.
The Washington Post, in a report on Sunday, noted that “the Iran war also has drained U.S. supplies of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense interceptors — vital not only to the protection of American assets in the Middle East but to regional allies as well — and long-range Tomahawk missiles.”
“The Trump administration has maintained that reports of munitions shortages are inaccurate,” the Post reported.
The war has dragged on for six months and sharply disrupted vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy shipments.
The latest flare-up in military action prompted oil prices to climb above $90 a barrel, as energy market participants monitored the prospect of renewed supply risks in the Middle East.
International benchmark Brent crude
Trump on Monday extended his military threats against Iran to Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export terminal.
Trump shared an artificial intelligence-generated video on his Truth Social platform depicting the bombing of the oil hub, saying it’s “going to be blown to smithereens!”
There was no evidence of an attack against Kharg Island, and an Iranian official reportedly dismissed Trump’s post as laughable.
On Monday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said a supertanker had caught fire and was left disabled in the southern Strait of Hormuz after striking two naval mines, saying they were not complying with Iran’s rules for passage, according to Iranian media reports. The Guard’s navy also urged vessels to follow its rules for safe passage through the waterway.
Separately, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that the U.S. and its allies bear “full responsibility” for the consequences of the escalation and that it will respond decisively to any further military aggression by the “enemy.”
Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said Monday that the country was working to achieve a diplomatic agreement to bring an end to the conflict, adding the continuation of war “serves neither our interests nor those of the region or humanity.”
Speaking alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kyrgyzstan, Pezeshkian said Monday that the U.S. side “has not fulfilled its commitments,” state media reported.
The U.S. Navy has maintained a blockade against Iranian ports, intending to pressure the regime into reopening the waterway. Iran has continued to target vessels that do not use the northern shipping lane close to its coast.
Another tanker was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting inbound in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, using the southern lane along the Omani coast, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre. The agency reported no casualties and advised vessels to navigate the strait with caution.
Technologies
Brent Crude Breaches $90 As U.S.-Iran Hostilities Resume
Oil prices soared to $90.34 per barrel after U.S. forces attacked Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, reigniting tensions between Washington and Tehran.
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Technologies
Brent Crude Surges Beyond $90 Following U.S. Strike on Iranian Launchers
Oil prices surged past $90 after U.S. forces targeted Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, sparking renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran amid an ongoing Middle East conflict.
International crude oil prices surged on Monday following U.S. forces targeting two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, signaling a resumption of hostilities between Washington and Tehran.
Brent crude futures for September delivery rose 3.3% to $90.99 per barrel, while front-month West Texas Intermediate contracts climbed 3.6% to $86.36.
“Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a U.S. Central Command spokesperson, stated that U.S. forces had indeed struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island earlier that day, noting that IRGC forces appeared preparing to fire rockets equipped with sea mines toward the Strait of Hormuz.”
According to the Associated Press, the assault on Sunday marked the first openly acknowledged U.S. operation against Iranian positions since late July.
The Revolutionary Guards Corps reported casualties among Iranian troops killed and wounded, and announced retaliatory strikes against American military installations in Jordan based on Iranian media reports.
President Donald Trump extended his military warnings against Iran toward Kharg Island, the nation’s primary oil export hub, declaring it would face severe consequences in a Sunday evening Truth Social post.
Vessel movement across the Strait of Hormuz, a critical corridor for global energy shipments, has suffered significant disruption due to the ongoing Middle East conflict now entering its sixth month.
“Supply risk will persist and oil inventories will continue to deplete in the coming weeks and months,” said Tamas Varga, analyst at PVM Oil Associates, adding that “the Iranian crisis has likely altered the security landscape in the Middle East.”
Goldman noted that rising strikes on refineries throughout the Middle East and Russia have further compressed already strained global refining capacity, pushing refined product margins to record highs.
—Verum’s Anniek Bao contributed to the report.
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