2019 IFA Expo: Nokia and Samsung debut new phones at Berlin tech show
Updated 14:53, 09-Sep-2019
Europe's biggest tech show, the IFA Expo, is taking place in Berlin. The world's leading brands of consumer electronics and home appliances are presenting a record number of new products. Natalie Carney takes us there.
It's a full house filled with seemingly anything and everything electronic from more than 18-hundred exhibitors. Such as Samsung, where visitors must stand in line all day to get their hands on the new foldable phone, the Galaxy Fold 5G; others hover over the Galaxy Note 10.
With so many players in the smartphone market, Telecom pioneer Nokia has brought out a range of new phones in its "Nokia Originals" series.
ERIK MATTHES GENERAL MANAGER, HMD GLOBAL "This is where our heritage comes from and people know the brand. We can use, we can drop so this is our first ruggedised phone and we wanna have people thinking about Nokia on what we did, durability, long-lasting battery, 27 days battery time."
But for those who must stay connected, the 2720 Flip comes complete with 4G technology. IFA offers everything from vacuums and hairdryers to big-screen TVs and drones.   
NATALIE CARNEY BERLIN "These trade shows can be rather subjective. What's 'cool' for one person is not necessarily 'cool' for another. Something I've stumbled across that I find quite 'cool' is this unit right here from Samsung. It's called the hairdresser. Looks like a refrigerator or even a closet, but when you open the door and look inside - it's actually a washing machine and steam iron machine. You put your clothes inside, you close the door, you go off to do something else when you come back, your laundry is done. Goodbye to those hefty dry cleaning bills - perfect, for my household at least."   
Items on display at IFA range from the obvious to the not so obvious. Varram launched its "pet fitness" only three months ago but has already found success in the U.S., South Korea and Japan.
JI YANG LEE VARRAM PET FITNESS "This is a smart robot for entertaining pets like little dogs and cats. If you leave your pets alone at home they feel much more comfortable. They're not bored and can play with the robot. There are also little snacks it drops so that the pet is encouraged to play."
Varram is now hoping to enter the European market. That's also what brought Hong Kong's Artro Digital to IFA. The company launched its LED display technology less than a year ago.
LENNON WONG MARKETING DIRECTOR, ARTRO DIGITAL "We are mainly working with clients in Asia at the moment, with leading brands like Lancom, like Aston Martin, like Pandora, mainly for their retail displays. We also do a lot of innovative events or exhibitions."
Just like a futuristic film, technology has infiltrated almost every aspect of our lives. IFA is a good indicator of what the future holds. The global technology show continues in the German capital for a few more days. Natalie Carney, CGTN, Berlin.