Roaming through the expansive halls of the annual CES trade show in Las Vegas, one can observe a plethora of smartphones. However, the rarity lies in the unveiling of new smartphones, with major manufacturers predominantly showcasing already-released models rather than debuting them at the event.
While the phone-centric Mobile World Congress (MWC) event is imminent, CES presents a distinct opportunity, particularly for phone brands seeking heightened attention in the U.S. It’s a chance to seize attention that is currently overlooked.
Colours and concepts
Historically, phone brands haven’t treated CES with utmost seriousness. Special editions, new colour variants, and lower-range models have been the norm. The spotlight on big flagship phones in Las Vegas is a true rarity. Instead, manufacturers tend to bring along concept phones. For instance, in 2020, OnePlus exhibited the Concept One featuring cool electrochromic glass over the camera lenses.
LG teased its “rollable” smartphone at CES before its demise, and TCL usually brings concepts to CES too. Concepts and teasers are integral to the CES experience, focusing on future technology and experimental products. It’s not just about tangible releases but also about garnering attention, generating excitement for new products, and introducing audiences to new brands.
This doesn’t pertain to major brands like Samsung, Google, and Apple. They don’t rely on CES or MWC for attention and prefer standalone events where they control everything and dominate headlines for days. For instance, Samsung shifted its “Unpacked” events away from MWC, opting for separate events at different times each year.
CES as prime advertising space
CES serves as a golden opportunity for emerging, upcoming, or slightly smaller phone brands. Given CES’s reputation as a smartphone wasteland, a manufacturer with a genuinely new product set for release could dominate the mobile side of the show by choosing to launch at CES. With tens of thousands of industry professionals, including media, in attendance, CES offers substantial exposure, especially in the U.S. market.
Huawei knew this, and in 2018 it chose CES to launch the Huawei Mate 10 Pro in the U.S., going all-out with a big onstage presentation and external events too. There was no point launching the Mate 10 Pro for the U.S. at MWC a month or so after, as it’s held in Barcelona, Spain. No, CES was the perfect launchpad for Huawei’s U.S. efforts, as it was mostly unknown outside China and Europe at the time.
It wasn’t Huawei’s fault that it also all went wrong at CES 2018 — it was still the correct decision to hold the event at the show. If everything had gone right and the Mate 10 Pro was available through AT&T as initially expected, CES would almost certainly have helped it build its brand quickly and effectively.
Phones at CES 2024
While it might be the last time a significant mobile event happens at CES, it does appear one brand recognizes the potential of CES 2024 for a phone launch, and that’s Asus.
Asus has already confirmed it will launch the ROG Phone 8 at CES 2024, marking the first time it has used the Las Vegas event to showcase its latest gaming phone. Asus is already well-known at CES for its popular computing products; however, it’s not as well-known for its phones in general. Leveraging CES to gain attention for its newest mobile device makes perfect sense, and as I’ve already mentioned, it’s probably not going to have much competition in Las Vegas at all.
Asus sees how CES could help more people find the ROG Phone, especially in the lucrative U.S. market. However, not every new or upcoming brand has been so forward-thinking.
I can’t help but think how CES is ideal for Nothing to plant its flag in the U.S. market, but unfortunately, it appears the brand is doing … um, nothing special at CES 2024. After the Nothing Chats app debacle, which may have soured some U.S. buyers on the brilliant Nothing Phone 2, CES could have been very useful in helping erase that mistake from history.
Instead, Nothing is headed to MWC 2024, where we may get our first look at the rumoured Nothing Phone 2a. It’s exciting, and there’s no doubt that MWC is the sensible, safe choice to launch a smartphone, which is why many other phone brands will launch phones there, leaving Nothing fighting for attention. It wouldn’t need to do so in the same way at CES, and it would also help introduce its fun, unusual brand and identity to more people in the U.S. — all in a very short amount of time.
CES is not, and never has been, a trade show about smartphones. But that shouldn’t mean they are brushed aside. MWC is viewed as the main trade show for mobile devices, but for the last few years, it hasn’t seen many truly major, internationally relevant new model releases. Trade shows themselves have changed since 2020, so attempts to stick to old formulas and traditions seem backward and not befitting of the exciting, always-evolving tech industry.
Asus is taking a risk this year, but it really could pay off. The ROG Phone 8 will likely be quite a niche device, but it could also appeal to a great many people who aren’t even aware Asus makes gaming smartphones. CES is a great place to show off and to gain headlines in a way it may not have if it launched the phone on a random, rainy Wednesday afternoon sometime in February.
Other brands that aren’t called Samsung, Apple, or Google would be wise to watch how Asus gets on at CES 2024 and not to sleep too long on any tentative plans to launch a flagship smartphone at CES 2025. It could give it a special kind of publicity that would be impossible to find elsewhere.
