Even the stand for Apple's 32-inch, $5,000 Pro Display XDR is famously expensive, but its next external monitor might be more reasonable, according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. In his latest Power On newsletter, he said that Apple's next external monitor is "destined to be about half the price of the Pro Display XDR." 

Gurman also said that he's "hoping" it launches in 2022, so it's not super clear if that's from an informed source. Previously, he said that the cost of building that monitor (which uses LED backlit but not mini-LED technology) "has likely come down, and with a few tweaks and perhaps a slight drop in brightness, Apple might be able to get to a similar quality monitor (at a slightly smaller size) at perhaps about half the price."

Apple is reportedly working on some smaller 24- and 27-inch displays along with a successor to the Pro Display XDR, as 9to5Mac pointed out. The latter could use an A13 Bionic chip and Apple's Neural Engine to accelerate learning tasks. Apple was forced to ditch its "far beyond HDR" claim for the current Pro Display XDR model and was ridiculed by display expert Vincent Teoh for comparing it to a professional Sony reference monitor.

What if you could could start playing Halo Infinite on your TV, continue mowing down grunts during a bathroom break, and finish your session on a laptop when you're supposed to be working? That's the basic idea behind Alienware's Concept Nyx, a server that's powerful enough to run all of your games throughout your home network. Think of it like Plex for gaming, but instead of opening up your video library, it's all about bringing your games to all of your devices.

Given the push towards game streaming from Google Stadia and Xbox, Alienware may have stumbled on an interesting solution for multi-gamer homes. You could conceivably run two games at once on your television, as we saw during a recent demo in NYC. Or you could play Cyberpunk while someone else perfects their Rocket League skills on another device. Since all of the rendering and network processing is happening in your home, Nyx would also be a lower latency experience than traditional cloud gaming, which relies on servers hundreds of miles away.

Concept is the key word here, though. Alienware representatives wouldn't tell us what's powering the mysterious Nyx server, which looked like an enormous gaming desktop. And while Engadget's Cherlynn Low and I were able to play Cyberpunk 2077 and Rocket League simultaneously on a single TV, the games were running in tiny windows. It wasn't anywhere near the sleek half-screen experience Dell is showing off in promotional pictures.

Much like Alienware's Concept UFO, a Switch-like portable gaming PC that was first demoed two years ago, Nyx may never see the light of day. But we could see elements of it in future products, much like the way the UFO controller is being used demonstrate Nyx. The game server concept could eventually simplify streaming from your rig. That's something we can already do with Steam's Remote Play feature, but perhaps Dell could make it a bit easier to play all of your titles throughout your home. The company says it's also exploring ways to run four games at once, as well as methods of collecting all of your titles, no matter where you installed them.

Dell

Given that 2021 was a blockbuster year for NFTs, it’s not particularly surprising that major tech companies are incorporating Non-Fungible Tokens into their CES lineup. The latest comes from Samsung, which revealed a new “NFT Aggregation Platform” designed for its smart TVs.

The platform, which will be available on Samsung’s MicroLed, Neo QLED and The Frame models, allows users to browse and buy NFTs directly from their sets. The platform pulls in NFTs from several marketplaces, so users can preview the art and see other relevant details, like who created the work, as well as relevant blockchain metadata.

Those who already own NFTs can also use the platform to showcase their collection. Samsung notes that its “Smart Calibration” technology can automatically adjust the TV’s settings to match the specifications of the original creator to ensure the image is rendered on the TV as faithfully as possible.

It wouldn't be CES without a new round of Samsung TVs, and the 2022 models promise their share of quality upgrades — plus a few new conveniences. To start, the mainstream Neo QLED sets now include what Samsung says are the first 4K and 8K sets with 144Hz inputs instead of the usual 120Hz. The extra fluidity won't be immediately useful when even the fastest PCs struggle with high-speed 4K and 8K content, but you won't have to worry about your premium TV becoming obsolete any time soon.

The TVs promise image quality improvements regardless of the source. All the 8K and 4K Neo QLED sets have jumped from a 12-bit backlight to 14-bit, providing more accurate brightness. They also boast a new Shape Adaptive Light Control feature that theoretically improves the mini-LED sets' quality, and an AI-driven Object Depth Enhancer can help distinguish a picture's main subject from its background.

Software plays an important role as well. All the 2022 Samsung TVs have a new home screen that helps aggregate streaming content and offers an ambient display when idle. A Gaming Hub can directly launch console- and cloud-based games, while a new Game Bar helps you customize relevant picture settings. Watch Together is a SharePlay-style mode that lets you talk to distant friends while you watch broadcasts and streaming shows. And since this is 2022, you can even shop for and display NFTs.

Samsung

Other sets have their own share of upgrades. Samsung's MicroLED line (shown at middle) is now bezel-free, so your giant luxury TV should blend more seamlessly with your decor. They also tout a 10 percent wider color range, and you can buy a 'small' 89-inch preconfigured set if the 99- and 110-inch variants won't quite fit. And if the bezels are precisely what you want, 2022 The Frame (below) sets now have more canvas-like matte displays and a fresh art store interface.

As is often the case, Samsung hasn't provided availability and price ranges as of this writing. The Frame will be available in sizes between 32 and 85 inches, though, and you can presume both 8K screens and MicroLED models will carry stiff premiums. It's too soon to say whether they'll compete well against rival models from LG, Sony and other brands. With that said, it's evident Samsung still isn't in a rush to embrace OLED TVs and counter its best-known challengers.

Samsung

Samsung is overhauling its TV interface, and it's looking to pull many of your gaming needs together in one place. Via the Gaming Hub, you'll be able to fire up console games directly from TV home screens so you can start playing them a bit faster. 

What's more, you can access Samsung's new game streaming service from the hub. The company teased its latest stab at cloud gaming back in October. You'll be able to connect third-party controllers and headsets to compatible TVs, so you might not need to pick up extra hardware to play games on the platform. 

According to an image Samsung shared, players can access other streaming services from the hub, such as NVIDIA's GeForce Now, Stadia and PC gaming platform Utomik. Microsoft announced at E3 last year that a smart TV app for Xbox Game Pass is on the way, so maybe that'll land on the Gaming Hub at some point.

The hub will offer curated game recommendations with the help of Samsung's AI Gaming Hub tech. With the new Game Bar, you'll be able to customize aspects of your experience, such as the visuals and the settings. Using the Zoom In Mode, you can take a closer look at various parts of the screen, such as a minimap or journal entry. Meanwhile, the ultrawide Multi View will let you watch a YouTube walkthrough of a section you might be struggling with — similar to the PS5's activity cards — side by side with the game.

Samsung is keeping gamers in mind on the hardware front too. It's releasing 4K and 8K TVs with a 144 Hz refresh rate, which could help games look smoother. GeForce Now started offering a 120 fps option in October.

Samsung has revamped the solar-charging remote it debuted at CES 2021. Along with using light to top up the battery, Samsung says the latest Eco Remote can convert routers' radio waves into energy to stay fully charged.

Using radio waves from routers to charge the battery is a smart idea, since that energy goes to waste otherwise. Severalcompanies have tapped into radio frequency (RF) harvesting over the last several years, though the approach seems best suited to low-power devices such as TV remotes.

There's a solar panel on the rear of the remote, which has dedicated buttons for streaming apps like Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video. The remote is made with recycled materials, which aligns with Samsung's sustainability efforts. While last year's Solar Cell Remote Control was only available in black, in 2022, there's a white option to match the look of Samsung's lifestyle TVs.

Microsoft is starting 2022 with a flashback to Y2K bugs. Bleeping Computerreports the company has released a temporary fix for a bug that broke email delivery for on-premises Exchange 2016 and 2019 servers on New Year's Day. As users discovered, Exchange was trying to store version date checks for its antivirus scanning engine in a 32-bit integer variable — a big problem when any date from January 1st, 2022 onward was too large. Any new checks made the malware engine crash and left email stuck in a queue.

The emergency fix uses a PowerShell script to pause two services, replace the older antivirus engine files with newer ones that use a new number sequence, and restart operations. The fix requires manual input and could take a long time to implement for larger companies, but an automatic solution is in development.

This shouldn't affect other Exchange customers. The timing is also 'ideal' as a holiday weekend likely limited the demand for email. Company IT managers probably didn't want to start 2022 patching servers, though, and it's unclear why Microsoft didn't foresee a date issue with software released just a few years ago. Whatever the reasoning, this serves as a clear lesson about anticipating date bugs.

Samsung is coming to CES with two high-end monitors aimed at very different audiences. As The Vergenotes, the company is starting things off with the Smart Monitor M8. The 32-inch 4K display offers TV functionality like its predecessors, but now includes a SmartThings hub to control compatible smart home devices directly from your screen. It's also better-suited for video chats thanks to an included magnetic SlimFit webcam you can use with Google Duo and other apps.

The M8 can also serve as a platform for (as yet unnamed) game streaming services, complete with wireless gamepad support. More details are coming closer to launch, Samsung said. Workspace also folds Microsoft 365 and other cloud productivity services into a single space.

Samsung hasn't mentioned pricing or a release date for the Smart Monitor M8. While it's smaller than the 43-inch M7 (normally $600), the smart home features and webcam could keep the price relatively high.

Samsung

The other display might cost less than previous models, however. Samsung has also unveiled a 32-inch Odyssey Neo G8 gaming monitor that should be far smaller than the 49-inch Neo G9 while preserving the pronounced 1000R curve, mini-LED technology, 240Hz refresh rate and 2,000-nit peak brightness. It even jumps to a 4K resolution — this is the first 4K monitor to support 240Hz and a 1ms pixel response time, Samsung claimed. Support for both NVIDIA's G-Sync and AMD's FreeSync Premium Pro should keep tearing artifacts to a minimum.

There's no mention of a price or ship date for the Odyssey Neo G8. Given the size reduction, it won't be surprising if the screen costs less than the $2,500 G9 even with the resolution bump.

AT&T and Verizon aren't delaying their 5G expansions any further after all. Bloombergnotes the two carriers' CEOs have issued a joint letter rejecting a request from the FAA and Transportation Department to stall their C-band service rollouts beyond January 5th to address concerns of interference with aircraft systems. The companies argued that the government's proposed plan would effectively give oversight of the network expansions to the FAA for an "undetermined number of months or years," and wouldn't cover rivals like T-Mobile.

The move would represent an "irresponsible abdication" of network control, the CEOs said. They also believed honoring the request would be to the "detriment" of customers.

Instead, AT&T and Verizon tried to negotiate a compromise. They vowed not to deploy C-band 5G towers near some airports for six months, but only so long as the aviation industry and regulators didn't do more to halt C-band deployments. American transportation agencies had asked on December 31st for a general delay no longer than two weeks, but called for a gradual deployment of service near "priority" airports through March to safeguard important runways.

It's not clear how the FAA and Transportation Department will respond. The rejection isn't shocking, mind you. C-band service promises to deliver more of the long-touted speed advantages of 5G without the short range and poor indoor service of millimeter wave technology. It could also add capacity to keep 5G networks running smoothly as more users upgrade their devices. However, officials and the aviation industry have a lot to lose as well —they're worried C-band 5G could disrupt flights and put passengers at risk. You might not see either side capitulate quickly.

Tesla's sales success in 2021 continued right to the very end of the year. The company has revealed that it delivered 936,172 electric cars in 2021, about 308,600 of them in the fourth quarter. While that isn't the magic 1 million figure the company might have hoped for, it's close — and nearly double the 499,550 Tesla handed to customers in 2020.

The year gone by wasn't stellar for the Model S and Model X. Deliveries of those higher-end vehicles dropped by more than half in 2021, from 57,039 cars to 24,964. That wasn't a complete shock, though, as many customers wanted to (or had to) wait for S and X revamps that weren't slated to ship until spring, including the high-performance Plaid variants.

The delivery numbers are significant given chip shortages that have plagued the automotive industry and even led Tesla to ship some cars without USB ports. The company is also poised to keep growing between the planned Cybertruck launch in 2022 and new factories in the Austin and the Berlin areas.

This trajectory isn't guaranteed, however. Tesla had a mixed 2021 that included product delays (including the Cybertruck and Semi), gradual price hikes and a string of recalls, including one in December that targeted half a million vehicles with camera and trunk flaws. There are concerns Tesla's growing reputation for build quality issues could weigh the company down. That's also excluding competitive threats — Tesla will have to fend off Ford's F-150 Lightning, the Cadillac Lyriq, the Mercedes EQA and other EVs from big-name rivals. Elon Musk's outfit is in a good position given its existing performance, but the market could change quickly.