LG’s new air conditioner directs cool air towards people it detects

is a senior reporter who’s been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2011, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid. The Artcool AI Air doesn’t look as artsy as LG’s previous Artcool air conditioners, but it does offer improved energy efficiency by detecting the room’s layout and the position of its occupants so it can direct airflow right to them. The company hasn’t announced pricing or availability, nor does it detail what technology the Artcool AI Air is using. Ideally it’s relying on mmWave radar sensing — similar to what Samsung may rely on to bring ambient sensing to its Smart Things devices — which is sensitive enough to even detect a person’s rate of breathing. That technology could potentially allow the Artcool AI Air to differentiate between an actual person in a room, and a plant swaying back and forth in the airflow that it can ignore. Despite being part of LG’s Artcool line, the new air conditioner features a black mirror finish instead ... Read full article.