Abstract:
In early autumn in Berlin, Germany, IFA 2026 has been in full swing for two days. Although many places in the country are still so hot at this time that one is questioning life, Berlin has cooled down a lot, and media, geeks and technology practitioners from all over the world are still crowded in the exhibition hall. We endured several hours of jet lag and walked 20,000 to 30,000 steps in the venue every day, relying on the not-so-cheap expo fast food and coffee to survive, with only one purpose:
Look at what will revolutionize our lives in the next few years.
As one of the trendsetters of global consumer electronics, IFA every year is a feast for global technology enthusiasts. There is no shortage of innovative black technologies that lead industry trends, and there is no shortage of "weird products" that make people's eyes pop.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
This time IFA26 is no exception. A number of seemingly creative but incomprehensible products appeared together. They either challenge the boundaries of privacy or focus on novel experiences. They are "non-mainstream" products in the exhibition, but they are also highly topical.
As usual, we shuttled between the large and small exhibition halls of the Berlin Exhibition Center to dig out the weirdest, coolest and most interesting new gadgets for everyone.
Next, let’s take a look at the impressive novel exhibits!Lingverse iKairos: A “third eye” suitable for both your desk and neck
AI companionship is probably one of the favorite research issues of technology companies in the past two years.
Although we have already had AI assistants in mobile phones to solve the trouble of answering questions, AI headsets to solve the trouble of recording meetings, and a series of tabletops to solve the problem of "making AI look like a thing", how to make AI follow you has always been a troublesome part of AI hardware.
It is easy to put the product on the table. It can see and hear you when you are sitting at your workstation, but as soon as you go out, it can only wait for you to come back. For an AI that claims to "get to know you better and better," this memory gap is somewhat embarrassing.
So, at this year’s exhibition, Lingverse brought a strange solution——
iKairos
.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
iKairos also looks like a round little desk pet, with a camera, display and interactive capabilities, but the really special thing is that its core module can be pulled out directly.
Lingverse calls the circular module in the middle
Neural Core
, it is usually plugged into the base and relies on LifeOS to record the user's habits, schedule and environmental information; when you are ready to go out, you can pull it out directly from the base and stuff it into the lanyard accessory.Laughing, this picture is indeed a bit abstract.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
According to the staff, the main selling point of this product is Memory Aware. They
hope to provide capabilities and equipment based on the current entire archetype to capture all the wonderful moments in your life and help you create a memory of your own.
Carrying Neural Core with you like this ensures that the context received by the device is coherent. For example, in the on-site demonstration, when a father was carrying the device, the device recorded that he was often pointed at while doing housework. Then the next time he did housework, iKairos could remind him "Who told you how to clean it?"
What? You ask, what is the use of putting this thing on the table?
This is what the staff said. Through the two modes of wearing/base, iKairos can achieve first-person/third-person dual-perspective recording, obtain richer information, and of course have various expression companionship functions. I think this thing is really practical for people with poor memory or who like to record life.
Unfortunately, Lingverse has not announced the pricing and launch information of iKairos, and it seems that it has no plans to launch it in the domestic market in the short term.
As for the privacy issues that everyone is concerned about, the on-site staff introduced that the official has added physical camera blocking and mute buttons to it, and stated that user data will not be used to train the model.
Whether you believe it or not is another matter.
SwitchBot AI MindClip: an AI memory device that can be hung on the body
In the past two years, it can be said that AI recording cards have made meeting recordings completely popular. However, this type of product is essentially an advanced recorder. You need to press the recording button yourself. After recording, you can go to the App to read the transcription and summary. If you forget to press it, you will not remember it at all. It is far from the active service concept that Agent currently focuses on.
But this one shown by SwitchBot
AI MindClip
Different, it claims to be an AI memory device that can truly be worn on the body all the time.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
Looking at the design, MindClip is indeed more inconspicuous than many AI recording devices in a broad sense - at least it does not have a camera that can be seen at a glance like AI glasses, and it does not need to be taken out separately like a recording card. It is a small clip with only 16.8g, which can be directly clipped on the collar, clothes or bag straps.
In terms of function, MindClip has 64GB of local storage, a theoretical battery life of up to 20 hours of continuous recording, and a pickup range of about 3 meters. It can then transcribe and organize daily conversations through AI.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
This eliminates the need for users to take out their mobile phones to start recording before each meeting. As long as the device is worn all the time, the user can save all the tasks suddenly assigned by the boss, the time casually mentioned by colleagues, and the content discussed in the meeting, and automatically extract the deadlines, to-dos and commitments.
You can even use SwitchBot's OpenAPI to continue throwing these contents to agents such as ChatGPT and Claude Code for processing.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
In my opinion, the most valuable thing about this thing is the office scene. For example, if you meet your boss in the elevator at noon one day, the other person may have mentioned his needs for a long time, but you only have the idea of just having lunch, and you talk about it, but your mind has completely forgotten it.
Even if your boss sends you a "?" at two o'clock in the afternoon the next day, at least MindClip still has a chance to save your life.
And it has almost no learning cost. You don’t have to hold it every time, and you don’t have to think about whether to remember this content all the time. You just need to wear it all the time.
Let me tell you, in addition to the price of $119.99, there are privacy issues that are difficult to solve quickly
, for those who hold five or six meetings a day and are bombarded by all kinds of trivial matters every day, MindClip is indeed a very practical "external brain".Dyson CameraJet: The toothbrush has eyes, what the hell is AI brushing your teeth about?
If you think the above AI hardware is still a bit far away from life, then this next one may hit you right between the teeth.
For many people, brushing their teeth every day is not a problem. The real trouble is flossing and flossing. You obviously know that it is easy to hide things in the gaps between teeth, but after brushing, you have to floss one by one. Many people persist for three days and then are too lazy to continue.
Dyson brought a product called
Dyson CameraJet
at this year's Berlin display event The smart toothbrush claims to be able to remove even the gaps between your teeth.
(Photo source: Dyson)
Before use, you must first install the special brush head.
Next, just brush your teeth normally. Through a 100,000-pixel macro camera equipped near the brush head, CameraJet claims to be able to analyze 28 images per second, and then use the so-called Gap Optical Targeting algorithm to find the gaps between the teeth.
When you hold the toothbrush and move it near the gap between your teeth, the system will automatically determine the position and spray a small amount of mouthwash from near the brush head. For example, if you brush between two back molars and the camera finds an obvious gap, the internal spray system will directly fill it there.
The most amazing thing is that it can really "see". Users can see the oral pictures captured by the camera in real time through the MyDyson App
, to see what is happening in the gaps between teeth, the manufacturer even developed low-foaming toothpaste and mouthwash specifically to prevent foam from blocking the lens.
(Photo source: Dyson)
It should be noted that although this thing has a camera, Dyson said that the relevant images are only used for real-time recognition and will not be stored in the toothbrush or the cloud.
Currently, the price of CameraJet has been announced, and the overseas price is as high as US$499.99. Obviously, this product is not designed for users who buy electric toothbrushes that cost more than ten yuan, but is aimed at high-end consumers who are willing to leave brushing to technology.
Although it may not subvert the oral care industry, this device may reduce the number of people who buy dental rinsers and end up leaving them on the sink to collect dust. I estimate that domestic manufacturers will soon explore and popularize them. Anyone who is interested can just sit tight and wait.
Acer Project DualPlay Mini: Close it as a handheld device, open it as a computer
At IFA 2026, the old PC manufacturer Acer did something renaissance.
First look at this
Project DualPlay Mini
, you may think that it is just an ordinary Windows handheld machine, with an 8-inch screen, joysticks, direction keys and buttons on both sides. When you hold it in your hand, it is no different from the products currently on the market.But when you flip the screen up and then rotate it, a complete set of QWERTY keyboards hidden underneath will be exposed.
Yes, this is actually a deformable mini notebook.
(Source: Notebookcheck)
I know this is not a new concept. Old players may think of those UMPCs and Netbooks in the past, and even VAIO in the Sony era also produced many products of this type.
It’s just that the small computers back then could barely open a few web pages, but now Acer’s product uses the Arc G3 Extreme processor.
Intel 18A process, 14 cores and 14 threads, coupled with Arc B390 core display, the performance is the first-line level of all-round notebooks. It can play some games, cut videos, run code, and even the terminal-side AIGC is no problem.With the support of this processor, you can regard this product as an excellent office machine.
And in the final analysis, the current Windows handheld machine is essentially a complete PC, but without a keyboard, it is a bit of a torture to enter text. To log in to an account, change file names, reply to emails, or even just enter a Wi-Fi password, you have to tap the virtual keyboard on the small screen.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
After using DualPlay Mini, the keyboard will be completely covered by the screen in handheld mode. When holding and playing games normally, it is not much different from ordinary Windows handheld devices.
When you need to enter text, flip the screen up and rotate it to the front, and the QWERTY keyboard below will be fully exposed. You can finish a game on the plane, turn the screen, reply to two emails, then close it and continue playing.
This practicality is just right for me who likes to take a 2-in-1 tablet on business trips.
Even with this 8-inch screen, it is still a bit small. It can be used to reply to WeChat or change two lines of Word. If you really want to use it to create content for an afternoon, your eyes will probably be overwhelmed. Moreover, with this complex flip structure, keyboard, and handle all crammed together, it is difficult to make the weight and thickness very light.
At present, Project DualPlay Mini is still in the concept stage, and the price and launch time have not been announced.
If you ask me, it may not be the answer to the next generation of handheld consoles, but at least it is more interesting than another "big black brick" that looks almost the same.
iRobot Roomba Duo: a “mother-child machine” created by the originator of sweeping machines
When it comes to complete tasks, a sweeping robot is definitely indispensable.
Sweeping machines have become ridiculously heavy in recent years. Self-cleaning, robotic arms, automatic dust collection, and all the functions that can be added are basically crammed into them. The machines are becoming thicker and thicker, but the bottom of the bed and the bottom of the sofa are the most likely to accumulate dust. How to clean these nooks and crannies has become a problem.
So, at this year’s IFA, iRobot simply brought a set of concept products that looked like cartoons -
Roomba Duo
.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
This thing is not a sweeping robot, but a combination of two robots, one large and one small.
Usually, it is this white barrel-shaped main robot that cleans, responsible for open areas and heavier cleaning tasks. The official claims that it has the ability to climb and overcome obstacles at a height of about 35mm. At this time, the ultra-thin little Roomba lies directly on the main body, like a mother carrying a baby out.
Once it encounters a place like the bottom of a bed or a sofa that it cannot get into, the mechanical structure on the top will put the small robot on the ground, and then let it go in and work on its own.
Go ahead, baby.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
What’s more interesting is that the two machines do not scan each other. They share the same home map and know which areas the other has cleared. In this way, the main machine is responsible for vacuuming large areas, wet cleaning and stubborn stains, while the small robot specializes in handling low furniture and narrow corners. It is a clear division of labor and each has its own strengths.
I have to say that although the idea of iRobot seems a bit silly, it is really not just for the sake of living.
If a sweeping robot wants greater suction power, a larger battery and a water tank, it will be difficult to continue to make it thinner; if the body is really made thin, the cleaning ability will inevitably shrink.
The solution is very straightforward:
If adults don’t make a choice, I want both.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
But don’t worry, everyone, this thing is still a concept machine, and the price and mass production time have not yet been announced.
Two robots, two drive systems, two sets of sensors, plus a mechanical structure specifically responsible for handling small robots, the cost will definitely be high, and if there is a problem in any place, repairing it will probably not be too pleasant.
I just want to ask, if things continue like this, will the next generation have to carry a big Roomba on its back, a middle Roomba on its back, and then a small Roomba on its back? What Russian matryoshka doll?
Summary: AI is bringing new possibilities to hardware
Okay, these are some of the black technology exhibits at IFA 2026 that impressed Xiao Lei.
Due to limited space and time, this content will only report this. In the next few days, the entire Lei Technology IFA reporting team will be stationed at the scene throughout the entire process to output more content.
It is not difficult to see that the rapid development of AI not only brings more innovation and competitiveness to the consumer electronics industry, but also makes the interaction between users and smart products richer and more diverse.
In the past few years, many categories of consumer electronics have become quite mature. Needless to say, mobile phones and PCs. Even products that have existed for many years, such as toothbrushes and sweeping robots, seem to be increasingly limited in the innovation they can do.
But at this year’s IFA, the situation has obviously changed.
With the rapid improvement of device-side chip performance and AI computing power, the large model itself continues to evolve, especially as agents begin to have stronger understanding, decision-making and execution capabilities. AI is finally not just a chat box in mobile phones and computers, but is increasingly integrated into various hardware.
(Photo source: Lei Technology)
So we have seen new AI hardware such as iKairos and AI MindClip, as well as old categories such as toothbrushes and sweeping robots, all of which have developed new forms that were never thought of before due to visual models, environmental perception and agent capabilities.
Lei Technology believes that the accelerated combination of AI and hardware, AI and terminals is a very obvious trend at this IFA.
Including the "physical AI" that Xiaomi has repeatedly emphasized this year, it is essentially doing similar things, allowing AI to break digital boundaries, perform perception and reasoning in real environments, and truly enter people, cars, and homes.
It can be said that the explosion of AI hardware is a manifestation of the accelerated implementation of physical AI.
And this may be the key to the next round of consumer electronics innovation.
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