OMRON's redesigned ping pong robot no longer holds back

OMRON is best known for its healthcare products like thermometers and blood pressure monitors -- now in the form of a smartwatch, even. But those who have been following our CEATEC coverage over the past five years may remember the company's ambitious exhibit: the Forpheus table tennis robot. Little did I know that I would bump into this old friend here at CES. The machine is now in its fifth generation and packed with some surprising upgrades -- let's just say my parents would be disappointed in me if they were there. Technically speaking, this latest Forpheus is actually an entirely new robot. While previous models tended to reuse a lot of hardware, this new one was apparently built from the ground up just to play ping pong.