There's now a more affordable way to wear your devotion to gaming on your wrist. Razer and Fossil have teamed up to release a limited-edition Gen 6 smartwatch built with gamers in mind. The new wristwear adds three custom watch faces — yes, including an RGB-inspired "Chroma" face. You'll also receive two custom silicone straps that include a sober black and Razer's iconic (if slightly eye-searing) green.

This is otherwise the Gen 6 you've come to know. The 44mm steel case, Snapdragon Wear 4100+ chip, 3ATM water resistance, blood oxygen monitoring and 1.28-inch circular display will be familiar if you've shopped Fossil's recent smartwatches. Not these are necessarily bad things — the Razer watch should be a fast, capable timepiece. You won't get LTE and you'll have just 8GB of storage, but the very fast charging (80 percent in 30 minutes) should keep the device powered even if you regularly use sleep tracking.

The Razer x Fossil watch will be available worldwide later in January for a reasonable $329. You'll need to scramble to get one, though. The two companies are making an appropriately nerdy 1,337 units, so you might have to 'settle' for a standard Gen 6. Much like TAG Heuer's Super Mario piece, this is more about exclusivity and flexing than making smartwatches a staple of the gaming community.

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Many companies at CES 2022 have been focused on products you can find on shelves, but Hyundai came to the show with nothing less than a grand vision of the future. The company used its presentation to outline a "metamobility" strategy where robots augment humanity's capabilities — to the point where you could even reconfigure whole rooms, or use a robot as a stand-in while you navigate the metaverse at home.

Boston Dynamics' robots also played a large part in the event, and Hyundai was keen to discuss everything from exoskeletons through to digital twins for machinery. It's a lot to take in, we know. Thankfully, you can learn about those and more through our six-minute supercut.

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Alexa will be the first voice assistant available beyond Earth. Amazon and Lockheed Martin have revealed NASA will carry Alexa to space aboard the Artemis I mission launching later in 2022. While that flight is uncrewed, the companies are planning a "virtual crew experience" at NASA's Johnson Space Center that will let people in Mission Control (including students and special guests) simulate conversations between the digital helper and astronauts.

This is decidedly more sophisticated than the Alexa on your Echo speaker. Alexa will have access to the Orion spacecraft's telemetry data, answer "thousands" of mission-related questions and even control devices like cabin lighting. Amazon has finessed its algorithms to consider Orion's acoustics. Connectivity in space shouldn't be an issue, either. The Callisto technology payload carrying Alexa will both allow local voice control (even with no internet access) and access the Deep Space Network to provide news from home.

The initiative isn't just about bragging rights or bringing a Star Trek-style computer to life. Amazon will use the lessons learned from Artemis I to improve Alexa both for future missions and for everyday users, particularly those who have little to no internet connectivity. The company is also adding new Alexa experiences that will give you access to Artemis I's telemetry, imagery, video (including the launch livestream) and notifications for key mission milestones.

Amazon is hoping to foster the next wave of space explorers in the process. It's introducing an Alexa for Astronauts program that provides access to the virtual crew experience, digital tours of the Johnson Space Center and a STEM curriculum built withe the help of the National Science Teaching Association and Mobile CSP. The move helps Amazon burnish its reputation, of course, but it could be worthwhile if it encourages more students to pursue space industry careers.

NPR's podcast efforts have increasingly revolved around its paid, ad-free NPR+ service, and now it's offering stronger incentives to spend money. Axiosreports the organization will offer content available solely to NPR+ subscribers. The new show The Limits with Jay Williams, for instance, will offer a separate content release in its feed. NPR VP Joel Sucherman also said NPR might test perks like unedited interviews and member-only events.

You'll also have extra motivation to support local stations. NPR will launch a subscription podcast bundle in the second half of 2022 that gives station members wider access to an on-demand podcast library and other content. It's similar to PBS Passport, Sucherman said. The company is also adding more shows to NPR+.

The public broadcaster isn't ditching free, ad-supported podcasts any time soon. However, the shift isn't surprising. Podcasts help bring in a younger, more diverse audience than conventional radio, Axios said. A subscription drive like this could maintain listenership and funding even if fewer people tune into live programming.

Qualcomm's involvement with Microsoft is extending past chips for PCs. The two are partnering on a string of initiatives to foster augmented reality and the metaverse, including the development of custom chips for AR glasses. The companies were shy on the nature of the chips or the end products, but they promised "lightweight," energy-efficient wearables. You might actually want to use this eyewear for extended periods, in other words.

The team-up will unsurprisingly make use of software, including Microsoft's Mesh virtual collaboration tool and Qualcomm's Snapdragon Spaces XR development system. There wasn't any mention of what platforms the glasses would support, although it's safe to presume they'll be Windows-friendly.

An alliance like this doesn't come as a complete shock. Microsoft has long discussed plans to make AR more accessible than its work-oriented HoloLens headsets. These chips won't necessarily reach consumer-oriented glasses, but they could represent a large step in that direction. For Qualcomm, this could also help it control the future of AR — it might not have to worry that Meta and other companies will dominate the metaverse and dictate its terms.

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ASUS' gaming laptops have caught up to the work-from-home era. The PC maker has unveiled its ROG laptop line for early 2022, and the centerpiece for many is likely an updated Zephyrus G14 (shown above) that finally, finally includes a webcam — one with Windows Hello-friendly infrared, no less. ASUS told Engadget gamers didn't mind the absence of a camera in the past, but a combination of shrinking panels and smaller cameras made the inclusion possible. Whatever the reasoning, this will be welcome for anyone who had to forego the G14 (or buy an external webcam) to participate in virtual classrooms and meetings.

There are plenty of performance-related upgrades, of course. The reworked Zephryus G14 uses AMD's new Ryzen 6000-series chips (up to the Ryzen 9 6900HS), a maximum 32GB of DDR5 memory and dedicated Radeon graphics up to the RX 6800S. Cooling has improved, too, thanks to a new vapor chamber, liquid metal on the CPU and GPU, a dust filter and higher-airflow fans. You'll also find slimmer overall display bezels, a 50 percent larger trackpad and a flashier mini-LED lid with 19 percent more lights and smoother animations. It's too soon to say if the G14 will match ASUS' claims of 10-plus hours of video playback on battery, but USB-C fast charging and reduced GPU thermal design power (from 100W to 65W) should minimize the amount of time you need to plug in.

ASUS hasn't divulged pricing for the Zephyrus G14 as of this writing, but you'll have options for 144Hz 1080p and 120Hz 1440p screens, and you can spring for more frugal components like the Ryzen 5 6600HS or Radeon RX 6700S to keep costs down.

ASUS

There are other laptops in store. The new Zephyrus Duo 16 (pictured at middle) builds on the dual-screen concept with some unique display tricks. If you spring for the 120Hz 4K main panel, you can switch to 1080p at 240Hz thanks to a clustering technique — you can trade resolution for speed. You'll also find a tweaked second-screen mechanism that makes for a more "seamless" integration with the primary display. The G14's Ryzen 6000-series CPUs, liquid metal-enhanced cooling and the IR camera have made their way to the Duo, although you'll be using NVIDIA graphics (up to the new RTX 3080 Ti).

 Other laptops aren't quite as eye-catching, but might still scratch the itch for gamers on the move. The ROG Flow Z13 (at bottom) is a Surface Pro-like 13.4-inch detachable for the gamer crowd with up to a 12th-gen Intel Core i9, a 4K screen and RTX 3050 Ti video, while the Strix G15 and G17 are more conventional 15- and 17-inch gaming portables that leap to the newest AMD processors and NVIDIA graphics. While pricing and availability are unknowns here as well, we'd expect machines like the Duo and Flow to carry premiums given their still-rare form factors.

ASUS

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Qualcomm believes it can widen the field for semi-autonomous driving features, and it's launching a new platform to make that happen. The company has unveiled a Snapdragon Ride Vision platform that combines a 4-nanometer system-on-chip with Arriver's computer vision software to give automakers an "open, scalable and modular" way to build Level 2 driver assists and Level 3 partial autonomy into their cars.

Snapdragon Ride Vision can help cars detect road geometry, pedestrians and other cars using 8MP wide-angle cameras. It can also handle driver monitoring (to keep your hands or eyes focused on driving) and perception for near-field parking cameras. More importantly, the system is flexible — car designers can customize it to fit new vehicles and update features over the air.

The platform won't be ready for vehicle production until 2024. That's a long time to wait, particularly when Intel's Mobileye and NVIDIA are teasing chips capable of full self-driving. Still, Qualcomm might have an edge simply by making automated driving features more accessible. Snapdragon Ride Vision works with "virtually all" car price ranges and categories, Qualcomm said — this could be key to semi-autonomy in cars where the tech was previously impractical.

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Acer is often quick to embrace the latest chips in its gaming laptops, and that's particularly true this year. The brand has updated its Predator Helios and Triton portables to use both Intel's 12th-generation Core processors and NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 30 Ti graphics. The Helios 300 (above) is the star of the show with synced RGB light bar on the deck, up to the latest Core i7 chip, as much as 32GB of DDR5 memory and ether RTX 3070 Ti or RTX 3080 graphics. You can also expect a "cleaner" chassis, improved cooling (such as liquid metal thermal grease) and a 1440p screen with a speedy 165Hz panel.

You can also expect a raft of modern connections that include 2.5Gbps Ethernet, WiFi 6e, an HDMI 2.1 port, Thunderbolt and regular USB-C and -A connectors. The new Helios arrives in May starting at $1,650 for a 15.6-inch system and $1,750 for its 17-inch counterpart.

Acer

The Triton 500 SE (middle) is billed as a 'thin' gaming rig, but it might just offer some advantages in the performance realm. You'll have options for a Core i9, RTX 3080 Ti video and the same 32GB DDR5 memory ceiling. Acer is promising aggressive cooling that includes liquid metal, heat pipes and the latest "3D" fans. Only a 16-inch display is available, although the 240Hz 1600p panel isn't hurting for resolution or speed.

You won't have to wait so long for the Triton with its March release, although you'll have to pay a premium with a starting $2,300 price. You'll have to spring for the new Nitro 5 (also unveiled today) to pick up a more affordable Acer gaming laptop — these are for enthusiasts willing to splurge.

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How do you help your gaming monitor stand out when it's neither one of the largest nor a huge bargain? Cater to console gamers, apparently. HP has revealed the Omen 27u, a 27-inch monitor with full support for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. The 4K screen, HDMI 2.1 input, DisplayHDR 400 support and built-in speakers aren't novelties in themselves, but should be appreciated if you want to play some console games at 120Hz without buying a separate TV.

The Omen 27u should be a solid monitor even if you don't care for console games. The IPS panel and 144Hz support will be helpful for color accuracy (95 percent of the DCI-P3 space) and action-heavy PC games, but you might also appreciate the RGB lighting and slicker profile. This is HP's first Omen monitor with thin bezels on all sides — it might be a good fit for a multi-display setup.

You'll have to be patient when the Omen 27u is only due to ship sometime this spring. At $700, though, it will cost significantly less than last year's Acer's HDMI 2.1-equipped Nitro monitor and competes well with other well-equipped 4K rivals. It's certainly easier to rationalize than a full-fledged gaming TV if desk space is at a premium.

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Alienware isn't going to let rivals' small gaming laptops go unanswered. The brand has revealed the X14, its (and Dell's) thinnest gaming laptop yet. The 14-inch design uses a trick dual-torque element hinge and cooling upgrades to keep the design to a 0.57-inch thickness while including high-performance components, including a 12th-generation, 14-core Intel Core i7 and up to GeForce RTX 3060 graphics. It's even billed as the first 14-inch laptop to support both NVIDIA's G-Sync and Advanced Optimus graphics switching.

The 144Hz 1080p display isn't remarkable by itself, but all X14 models support Dolby Vision HDR. There's healthy expansion as well. You can configure the X14 with up to 32GB of (soldered-in) DDR5 memory and 2TB of SSD storage. You won't be hurting for connectivity between the two Thunderbolt 4 ports, USB-C, USB-A, HDMI 2.1 and a microSD card slot.

Alienware ships the X14 sometime this winter at a starting price of $1,799. The base trim will get you 16GB of RAM, RTX 3050 video and 256GB of storage.

There are compromises involved in cramming that hardware into a laptop slimmer than many ultraportables. We had early hands-on time with the Alienware X14, and we found the keyboard particularly cramped — including the WASD configuration you'll likely use with first-person shooters. It is a solid and relatively light (no more than 4.06lbs) machine given the components inside, though, so it's worth considering if you want a gaming rig that easily fits in your backpack.

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