CES 2025 preview: Mashables guide on what to expect

More than 100,000 people are expected to make their annual trek to Las Vegas this coming January – and no they're not taking the trip to gamble (mostly).

We're, of course, talking about the Consumer Electronics Show, better known as CES. The annual trade show is the largest technology conference of its kind. Every January, some of the biggest and some of the newest tech companies and startups show up to show off their latest products as well as prototypes for potential future technologies.

And CES 2025 will be no exception. So, what should you expect to come out of this CES. Mashable takes a look at some of the latest news, rumors, and announcements to give you a sneak peek at what's likely to be the main events of CES.

New TVs

Televisions are always a showstopper at CES and CES 2025 will likely continue that streak. We'll likely see plenty of new Smart TVs touting AI-integration.

But, alongside announcements regarding new TV consumer products, will be the real headline-stealers that you likely won't find in-stores anytime soon.

LG, for example, is already promoting its "World Premiere press conference" at CES on Jan. 6, the day before the show floor opens to the public. It's very possible that they are going to announce a brand new TV product that attendees will be able to experience in-person the very next day. Just last month, LG announced a new stretchable display, the first that's able to expand by 50 percent – from a 12-inch display to an 18-inch one. LG might have that at the event.

HDMI 2.2

Along with brighter OLED displays and more affordable Mini-LED options, there's another big TV announcement likely coming to CES: HDMI 2.2. 

HDMI Forum will announce a "new HDMI specification release" at CES 2025. It's expected to be HDMI 2.2, which will bring higher resolutions and refresh rates to your TV set. While there have been some minor updates, the latest major release was HDMI 2.1 in 2017. TV technology has certainly improved since then, so HDMI 2.2 will be much-talked about at CES.

AI wearables 

There's no doubt about it: AI will be the big buzz word out of CES this year. And it won't just be in TVs. Artificial intelligence products, led by industry leader OpenAI and its hit ChatGPT, will be everywhere at CES and ingrained in every product category imaginable.

For example, at last year's CES, Mashable was able to get hands-on with multiple smartglass products from companies like TCL and XReal. Conversational AI, AI-powered translations, and chatbots could be found in nearly every smartglass wearable that was demoed at the 2024 event.

Yes, some big AI wearable launches have been major flops over the past year, but the AI space as a whole has only grown since then, so expect even more AI-related products looking to improve in areas where others failed at CES.

Next-generation laptops

Speaking of AI, don't be surprised to see new laptop models from basically every PC brand to integrate AI in some way.

In fact, if you want a look into what to expect at CES, just look at what the newest Innovation Award honorees showcase. Yes, CES has already issued awards for 2025. And award-winning laptops like the HP OmniBook 14" Ultra Flip and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura Edition are both winners that highlight AI capabilities. So, look forward to plenty of new laptops accentuating their AI capabilities and Microsoft Copilot integrations.

As always, expect a few next generation laptops that introduce something new to the space. For example, one 2025 Innovation Award winner to keep an eye out for is the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid. There are plenty of tablets out there that you can connect a keyboard accessory to and touch-screen laptops are also a growing market as well. So what's unique about this? Well, for one, the "hybrid" part of this laptop isn't that it's a laptop and tablet. The innovative aspect here is  that the computer is both a Windows and Android device.

Gaming computers and laptops should also make their mark at this year's CES for a very specific reason, which brings me to the next likely big CES 2025 announcement.

Nvidia RTX 50-series

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is delivering a keynote at CES 2025 and rumors are spreading that the company is planning to use the big event to launch its latest GPUs, specifically the GeForce RTX 5090.

Nvidia's products have been very successful and in-demand thanks to AI. But, don't forget that gamers have been a reliable consumer base for the company too. The Nvidia RTX 50-series will be the first powered by the company's new powerful Blackwell architecture. 

At the point, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 is expected to be the big announcement as part of Huang CES keynote on Jan. 6, 2025. So, while CES officially starts on Jan. 7, it seems the party will get started a day before the show floor opens to the public.

An interesting CES for EVs

Electric vehicles always steal at least some of the headlines at CES. Aptera Motors, for example, is going to debut its solar-powered EV at CES 2025.

But, the conversation around EVs at CES will likely be something that can't be showcased: The incoming Trump administration's hostile policies regarding electric vehicles. Trump will likely look to end the EV tax credits, which would hurt many EV companies, especially startup EV manufacturers like the ones that attend CES. Combine that with a global slowdown of EV sales in general and the EV news coming out of this CES may not be all about what new technology was unveiled, but who isn't there this year.

CES 2025 in Las Vegas opens to the public on Jan. 7. Mashable will be there live at the show floor and at the media days before the public opening covering all the latest news from the event.