Here are our 5 favorite EVs at CES 2022

“The Chrysler Airflow Concept represents the start of the brand’s journey toward a fully electrified future. It is the result of a thoughtful synthesis of the full arsenal of Stellantis’ connected vehicle technology – inside and out,” Ralph Gilles, chief design officer at Stellantis, said in the announcement. On that note, Chrysler says it will be an electric only brand by 2028.

Sony isn’t the first name many of us would associate with cars. Sure, there was a time when people were modifying their vehicles and putting PlayStations in them, but an entire car? Made by Sony? That was something of a dream.

Now, though, the company has two, yes, two electric vehicles in its roster. At CES two years ago, the Japanese electronics giant announced its Vision-S concept car, a sensor packed sedan EV, which it calls the 01. This year, Sony has added an SUV to its lineup with its Vision-S 02.

What’s more noteworthy is that Sony also says that it’s formed Sony Mobility, Inc., a branch of the company to focus specifically on bringing its concept cars to the road for consumers. There’s plenty of talk about tech companies like Google, Amazon and Apple getting into the EV game, but tangible signs of a vehicle still seem a way off from those brands. Sony on the other hand…

Mercedes-Benz unveiled its EQXX EV concept, which, while a concept, is built on many technologies that Mercedes says will be mass market and commonplace in the next decade. We’re talking batteries with double the energy density, energy consumption of under 10 kWh/100km, aerodynamic drag coefficients of under 0.2 cda and the most efficient motors ever. All these things come together in a vehicle which Mercedes says can travel more than 600 miles on a single charge.

The good folks over at Fully Charged did a comprehensive run down of the tech that’s gone into the EQXX, if you’re interested to learn more, check it out. The important thing to take away from this is that we should still take legacy automakers very seriously in the EV world.

While EV startups might have the ability to develop quickly, iterate and reiterate and are challenging the way cars are made, for the better, legacy automakers are putting out a very good showing. They might have taken a while to get going, but I’m certain when the world’s biggest carmakers get behind electric power, we’re going to see some of the most exciting vehicles ever.

It’s easy to get drawn into the world of electric cars and see that as the future of mobility. While cars will be a mainstay of personal transport for years to come, it is likely that we’ll start using them in different ways, and as part of a much wider, mobility modality landscape. With that in mind, let’s zoom out and cast our eyes onto the micromobility world.

Escooter, ebike and electric mobility maker Bird put out a good showing for CES this year, putting its new ebike, escooter and children’s kick scooter on display.

Chinese mobility maker Niu, that’s best known for making electric mopeds used by ride share programs like Felyx and Check, caught our eyes at CES. It’s stepping out from its core business of electric mopeds, and is now offering a robust looking pedal assist ebike that’s capable of travelling at 28 mph. It’s got a built-in rack for luggage, neatly integrated battery, clean belt drive and disc brakes for all weather braking.

It’s very much an ebike designed for the real world demands of commuters and those wanting to reduce their reliance on their car. Electrek’s Micah Toll expects the US and EU available ebike to shakeup and reshape ebike markets as we know it thanks to its pragmatic design and competitive price.

Micromobility is an interesting proposition. It’s won’t replace the car entirely, but what the future does seem to be about is making more appropriate choices for each journey we make.

The car is excellent from a personal transport perspective, but much of our driving is over short distances and on our own. For that we don’t always need a car or its luggage carrying capabilities. But for many, alternate options of public transport or walking, aren’t practical either. However, electrified micromobility tools, like ebikes and escooters, can help us bridge the gap between the car and public transport, and help us on those shorter daily journeys. But of course, that will come with new technological challenges including: how do we navigate a journey which involves multiple modes of transport? How do we move from walking, to bike, to bus, to walking again, without any interruption to our guidance? Or how can we plan multi-modal journeys and obtain accurate ETAs?

There are some clear themes here: the future is electric (we already knew this). But what’s perhaps less appreciated is the fact that legacy automakers aren’t acting as legacy as that name suggests. Of course, the new world of EV startups gave the name legacy to our stalwart vehicle makers suggesting that they would indeed become a thing of the past if they didn’t keep up with the EV times.

Well, with Chrysler’s Airflow Concept, Mercedes-Benz’ EQXX, Chevrolet’s Silverado and more, it seems that those supposed ‘legacy’ automakers aren’t going to become legacy at all.

We keep hearing about who’s going to win the “EV race”, it looks like there will be many winners. What’s more, it’s not just cars taking part in that race, it’s ebikes, escooters and other forms of transport too. In the end, the winners might be us, the riders, drivers and passengers. We’re getting more choice, better experiences and more useful tech than ever before, helping us to lead cleaner more efficient lives.