{"id":970,"date":"2026-01-10T03:44:21","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T19:44:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/obagg.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/10\/the-morning-after-the-best-of-ces-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T03:44:21","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T19:44:21","slug":"the-morning-after-the-best-of-ces-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/obagg.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/10\/the-morning-after-the-best-of-ces-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"The Morning After: The best of CES 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019re wrapping up coverage of the biggest tech show in the world. CES 2026 is almost over, and while we have more stories and wrap-ups to come, here are the most interesting products we\u2019ve spotted, written about and critiqued\/praised. That includes our picks for the best of CES. We gave out 15 awards as well as our best of show, and you might be surprised by some of our picks \u2014 I know I was.<\/p>\n

Read on for some of the best things to come out of Las Vegas this week, but first up, our Best of the Best winner, which was Lego Smart Play. As Engadget\u2019s editor-in-chief Aaron Souppouris put it, \u201cLego could almost be seen as the antithesis of the typical CES product.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regardless of trends, Lego has always persisted. And in 2026, it\u2019s getting much smarter.<\/p>\n

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Lego<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

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The system consists of a Smart Brick, Tags and Minifigure<\/a>s. They\u2019re packed with modern technology, so they can respond to how you play with them or the sets you build. The Smart Brick has a 4.1mm ASIC chip, which Lego says is smaller than a standard Lego stud. It senses things like motion, orientation and magnetic fields, but also has a tiny built-in speaker, which produces audio \u201ctied to live play actions,\u201d not just canned clips.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to explain it in only a few words (we\u2019ve got a deep-dive hands-on right here<\/ins><\/a>), but what immediately drew me in was the lack of smartphone pairing and screens. The ability of each part to detect and interact with others can lead to some ridiculous setups, whether it\u2019s ducks and police officers or a helicopter or an X-Wing.<\/p>\n

Naturally, it\u2019s a little pricier than basic Lego, but not out of the realm of being a special gift or birthday present. One of the first sets, with a smart Darth Vader Minifigure, one Smart Brick and one Smart Tag, is $70.<\/p>\n

We’ll be back to our regularly scheduled newsletter next week. Have a great weekend!<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mat Smith<\/p>\n\n

The other big stories (and deals) this morning<\/h3>\n