International CES 2013 is coming to an end (thank goodness), and it has been a blur of 4K TVs, phablets, mobile processors and more. As I write this, I’m struggling to think of one standout product from the show, but there are few that got my attention. Here are my faves, not because they’re bound to be the next big thing in tech but because they were completely different, utterly ridiculous and hilariously funny — products that made me go WTF. YotaPhone: Let’s face it: Regardless of operating system, most smartphones today look the same. A black or white slab with a touchscreen on front, maybe some buttons below it and a camera on back — yawn. That’s why a handset from a little-known Russian company caught my eye. YotaPhone is an Android Jelly Bean smartphone with a 4.3-inch, 1,280 by 720-pixel touchscreen on front, and a 4.3-inch E Ink display on back. Though you can use the second screen to read e-books, that’s not its primary purpose. Instead, Yota COO Lau Geckler told me in an interview that it was designed to address several problems: Personalization, notifications and battery performance.
About Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named LinkedIn’s “Top Voice in Technology,” he covers tech and business for Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular daily business blog. He's a bestselling author, and the creator of the popular, free online course, Generative AI for Execs. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.