CES 2021: A Robot Vacuum That Empties Itself and More

House Beautiful Market Director Carisha Swanson spends her time searching for the greatest innovations in home design. This week, she's reporting from CES, the Consumer Electronics Show.

Like most everything this year, CES (the Consumer Electronics Show) was different: The entire experience was virtual, which in some ways made it better for those of us who are used to walking miles and miles of hotel and conference center exhibit floors—and consequently, who's feet don't work for a week after. But on the other hand, the art of discovery, randomly seeing a booth that sparked your interest was lost. That said, for once I had the time to listen to the keynotes and learn how we will be living in the very near future, to understand that this way we have been living isn't going anywhere, and to see that Judy Jetson is coming to your home whether you like it or not.

Every year, the innovations broadcast at CES are pretty spectacular. After a tumultuous year, I found that the selection of products for the home space built on core sensibility of what we really need now and what's truly going to make our lives better, healthier, and allow us to be more connected to ourselves and each other—if still virtually. So the smart home is about ease, access, wellness and you. It's fully focused on making sure that however you choose to engage (or not) with technology, it's not in your face, but rather available for you when necessary.

So, without further ado: Five products I believe will truly impact your life.

I'm not going to lie, Samsung had so many innovations it was hard to keep track. But as a diehard fan of robotic vacuums—because who doesn't want to put up their feet, sip a glass of wine, and watch their floors get cleaned while streaming Bridgerton—the pain point is always the tiny little container that can fill pretty quickly. The new JetBot 90 AI heads back to the Clean Station and empties all the dirt into a bag that you only need to replace once every two to three months. That is GAME CHANGING. Clearly, it has all the advanced smart tech you desire, like a LiDAR sensor—think self-driving cars—that detects distance and tracks location, and it easily identifies and navigates around things like cords and vases. A big deal for those of us that are constantly putting our wine down to go unwind our vacs. It will be arriving on our shores the first half of 2021.

Even if you swear you're not a bath person, this Stillness Bath from Kohler will change your mind. The two foot deep tub is a full submersion experience into complete and utter zen. While you can purchase this as a simple standalone soaker tub, the real effects come by adding in the Experience Tower—complete with light, aromatherapy and yes, fog...because that is clearly necessary to feeling like you're not in your bathroom. To take it one step further, an infinity overflow (yes, like an infinity pool) goes over the sides of the tub into water grates that get reheated and recirculated into your bath. I'm going to need to knock some walls to make room for this, but sign me up! Available late 2021.

In theory, stackable washers and dryers exist naturally to maximize space, but often that can decrease access. How tall do you need to be to get to the top control panel—and can your kids really participate in the art of helping with laundry? That's where the LG Washtower comes in. One of their latest innovations, this single tower has a washer and dryer built-in with the controller for both right in the center—no step stool required. What's the "smart" part? Sensors inside both drums automatically detect the fabric texture and size, and select the right setting for your load. And with "Smart Pairing", the washer will just tell the dryer what the right drying cycle is to complete your laundry--now if only it could move the wash to the dryer. Maybe next year. What's even better is that despite it's space saving capabilities, you can still dry a king-size comforter. To really deck out your laundry room (since you do have so much more room now) add in the LG Styler for perfectly steamed and sanitized clothes in just minutes.

If you have a ceiling fan, you'll fully understand this pain point. You want to change the fan speed. You pull on the dangly string. It slowly starts gearing up. But wait, how many speeds does my fan have? In impatience, did I miss one by pulling too many times? Yeah, you get the idea. By this time you're profusely sweating because you really just want it on turbo and your lack of patience has made this process longer than necessary. If you've stayed with me this long, then you're in the club. Let me introduce you to your new favorite device: The new Cync Fan Speed Smart Switch from GE Lighting answers all these pain points. This handy little switch shows you visually, via little LED lights, which speed you're on and is also controllable by voice or within their newly released app. As with all connected devices, you can also schedule it to come on, let's say, right at bedtime and go off when it's time to wake up. This is set to launch in June.

It might seem dramatic, but it's true. Moen is putting all of its tech in water security to make sure you don't come home to a pool that's NOT in your backyard. Water damage is one of the costliest expenses homeowners deal with and only recently have products popped up to help alert them before the damage can't be undone. At this year's CES, Moen showcased a host of devices meant to arm your home against water damage, including the Flo by Moen Smart Water Shutoff (which automatically turns off the water if a leak or risk is detected) and more DIY add-ons like their Smart Water Detector, that can easily be placed around the house in locations near plumbing lines (like under sinks or near the hot water heater). For those of us lucky enough to have a Sump Pump, you already know you have issues. Moen is making sure your pump does was it's supposed to with a new Smart Sump Pump Monitor that reduces the risk of flooding due to system failures. All in all, the company that's all about water is trying to make sure your home stays dry—alerting you along the way of any problems before they become a real problem.