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We’ve seen hundreds of new products while walking around the CES floor the last few days, but so far, we’ve been particularly intrigued by a few developments:

1. Google Android Alliance
Rumors of a Google-Audi partnership were not only true, but for once, understated–Google’s Open Automotive Alliance brings Android to GM, Honda, and Hyundai, making it easy for developers to create new apps specific to the car.

2. LG webOS TV
LG’s taken the surprising step of adapting a platform once designed for smartphones into a user-friendly one for smart TVs.

3. Roku TV
Set-top box Roku is building its streaming service directly into Hisense and TCL televisions, giving it an edge over industry leader Apple TV.

4. Qualcomm and Sesame Street
Qualcomm announced a partnership with Sesame Street to bring new educational uses for mobile devices and apps to children.

5. Netflix 4K and Sony
Viewers won’t have to wait long for 4K content for their 4K TVs: Netflix announced it will be producing the next season of House of Cards and other original programming in 4K.

6. The Eye Tribe
This affordable eye tracking software and developer kit indicates that this seemingly futuristic technology is on the brink of breaking into the mainstream.

7. GeoPalz ibitz
This digital pedometer tracks children’s activity and rewards them for achieving their fitness goals. They can exchange points for prizes on Club Penguin or Wilson Sporting Goods, or parents can set their own prizes.

8. Steambox
Valve and Steam and teaming up to deliver games through a variety of new consoles for the living room, challenging Xbox and Playstation’s dominance.

9. June Bracelet for Sun Exposure
Although we’re not spending much time outside these days, we love the Netatmo June bracelet, which measures the wearer’s sun exposure and offers advice about how they can protect their skin from damage.

10. Samsung Overlay
This television display lets viewers stream live tweets on the screen at the same time they’re watching a show, making it ideal for sports or reality TV.

We’ll continue to report exciting finds from the floor as we enter the middle stretch of CES 2014.

We’ve all seen the rap sheet on millennials. They’re the “Me Generation.” Their narcissism, sense of entitlement, and constant over-sharing is what make them a menace to work with and even harder to engage with on a deeper level. – or so we hear.

Maybe you know some of them.

• Those friends sitting in a park listening to their Jambox, Instagraming their Sunday picnic (#nofilter).
• The hipster walking head-down, headphones-in on a crowded sidewalk in search of that “free craft beer” check-in on Foursquare.
• The fitness guy wearing a FitBit – saving and sharing his workouts on Facebook to show everyone how enviable he must be.

So, millennials just like to play their own game and show it off, right?

Well, sure. But not because of the egotism many claim. The way they interact with their world represents the new experimental stage of life and consumer tech they find themselves in. Millennials are coming of age at a time when they have more expansive tools to construct, edit, and report their world than any generation before.

They want to uncover and direct their own path, not follow a linear one.

They want more seamlessness between their life and their work.

They want to engage more to further explore the possible and write their own story.

Simply put, they are a generation of “grown-up kids” in an extended period of play.

Playing drives personal discovery and learning, and in the electronics world, leads to fun and sometimes revolutionary products. For economically struggling Millennials, the vast and interactive consumer tech market has enabled a generation of young adults to continue their explorative childhood into their 20’s – a time to seek freedom and enjoy their customized journey.

For brands, it’s a moment in time to be as bold and fun as millennials want to be for themselves – always staying true to self, but stepping into a place of vulnerability to enable personal growth and new meaningful experiences.

The five key behaviors of millennials at play:

1) “We’re Not Rebels, We’re Reformers”
Millennials have grown up as “digital natives.” This has meant that not only are they better versed in tech than any other generation, but also, it’s changed the ways their brains are wired. The rules of the game have changed. They learn differently (Google, Wikipedia), shop differently (Amazon, Yelp), speak differently (Facebook, Twitter), document differently (Instagram).

Millennials look to rework – not reject – the rules and status quo in order to put their mark on the world. Giving them the power to co-create with brands and products, in their own way, builds ongoing trusting relationships.

2) “We’re Minimalists at Heart”
Millennials want to get back into the real even though it looks like all they care about it digital. Yes, they spend more time in digital, and, yes, own more devices. But that’s because millennials value getting out into fruitful real life interactions and relationships – digital connectivity simply enables that in the most efficient way possible.

3) “When It’s Big, We Want Chaperone”
Millennials weren’t able to experience the sense of individual achievement that comes from large purchases – buying a home, car, or appliances – because of the economy. They’ve always needed a guardian to help them achieve big goals. Relying on social networking, crowdsourcing, friends, and parents is second nature when encountering anything close to foreign.

4) “We Need a Bridge”
In order to participate in things millennials don’t think they can achieve, they look for “bridges” to get them to things they can’t reach themselves. These are things that extend their current circumstances and experiences – like a Jambox speaker system instead of surround sound. Millennials look for hip stopgaps until the time is right.

5) “We’re All Millennials Now”
Not only have older generations been adopting tech and electronics pioneered by millennials at a higher rate than ever before, but the world has shrunk from the perspective of any single generation needing a lift from it: people of all ages are in a period of struggle. This struggle creates an atmosphere where we are all defining and redefining out of necessity. Across all generations, your tech is my tech, and because of that, play is here to stay.

In the midst of the announcements on Smart Home, UHD TVs, and the Internet of Things, Samsung announced new partnerships with the PGA and the NBA to bring viewers exclusive content across the incredibly high definition TVs and their respective smart hubs, as well as smart phones, tablets, and PCs. What this means, precisely, has yet to be unveiled, but what we do know is that the NBA app will bring “unrivaled access” to exclusive content; “You can always be courtside.” The partnership with the PGA runs in a similar vein, with exclusive access for Samsung product owners. With association heavyweights Mark Cuban and the CEO of the PGA in attendance to talk up their partnerships, we can be sure that the integration will be deep, across platform, and accessible through Samsung’s Smart Hubs on several devices.

Samsung’s CES press event featured about as many possible developments as one could hope to fit into an hour-long talk. Of particular note, though, was its massive 105″ UHD TV. Last time TVs were front and center at CES was when 3D TV was all the rage, but as we now know, the lack of content and clunky interface ultimately doomed the medium. Curved, UHD TVs, however, don’t have the latter pitfall, but how will they bring users content to warrant the upgrade? Samsung’s addressing this issue with what it’s calling a “Video Pack,” which comes with purchase. The idea is to preload the device with movies from Fox and Paramount, provide UHD streaming from Amazon video, and certain DirectTV channels. Cable providers Comcast, as well as Xfinity, were among the names included in the pack as well.

So, with the content and technological medium in place, will UHD stick where 3D failed? Only time will tell, but it appears that manufacturers and content providers are learning from their mistakes and trying to ensure that the new platform is attractive enough to consumers to drive sales.

The most hyped Samsung Press Event covered the Connected Home in depth. Homes need to be safe and responsive, understanding your behaviors and adapting to your lifestyle. Samsung also mentioned the need for media everywhere like taking a call from your refrigerator, although we imagine they could have come up with a better example.

More interesting was Samsung’s announcement that 2014 will be the year of the internet of things, emphasizing a cohesive ecosystem.  A fitting example was their Smart Home service which manages smart TVs and Smart Home objects.  Say “movie mode”, for instance, on your smart TV controller and the lights in your living room dim and volume on AV system increases.