Every year, companies take to the CES stage to showcase their innovations for a better future. And while we’ve seen our fair share of flashy gimmicks, the enhanced safety features of smart car systems, the integration of practical home tech, and even the inclusivity into beauty tech have made consumers’ daily lives easier. There is also a renewed focus on improving.
On day two of CES, the L’Oréal Group unveiled two new beauty technology prototypes designed to expand access to self-expression through beauty.
The first prototype, HAPTA, is an ultra-precise, computer-controlled lipstick applicator designed for people with limited mobility. The second device, the L’Oreal Brow Magic, is an electronic brow makeup applicator intended to help users quickly and accurately achieve their ideal brow look at home.
According to L’Oreal, the HAPTA tool appears to be based on the handheld technology buzzword “haptic” and was developed to help the 50 million people worldwide who have limited fine motor skills. Designed by scientists and engineers, his HAPTA incorporates stabilization technology, proprietary to life science research company Verily, into makeup applications.
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In addition to stabilizing features, HAPTA includes a combination of built-in smart motion controls and customizable attachments to improve the user’s range of motion, make stubborn product packaging easier, and of course precision applications. Realize
L’Oréal’s HAPTA uses stabilization technology so users with limited mobility can apply lipstick with precision and ease using a small robotic arm. Screenshot by L’Oréal Groupe / Christina Darby/ZDNET
According to L’Oréal, the purpose of the tool is to empower people to become independent and express themselves through beauty. For example, this tool can help people with cerebral palsy gain more control over their lipstick application. While there are other beauty tech products aimed at promoting accessibility, L’Oréal’s dedication to precision and overall inclusive mission with his HAPTA tools is cutting edge and inspiring.
Barbara Lavernos, L’Oréal’s Deputy CEO Research, Innovation and Technology, said: “We are dedicated and passionate about bringing new technologies that enhance beauty services that augment and fulfill the ultimate desires, expectations and unmet needs of every individual.”
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HAPTA also includes magnetic attachments that contribute to its ergonomic use, 360 degrees of movement and 180 degrees of flexion. According to L’Oreal, HAPTA’s built-in “click” functionality creates an intuitive, customizable and precise user experience, allowing users to “configure” custom his presets for ease of use. The tool contains an internal battery, which L’Oreal says takes him three hours to fully charge.
L’Oréal’s HAPTA applicator will be available in the US later this year and will range in price from $149 to $199.
L’Oréal’s second CES Award winner, the Brow Magic tool, also focuses on aesthetic efficiency. As someone with thick, stubborn brows, I can vouch for L’Oreal’s claim that professional services are often required to achieve the tame brow look. I’m planning on replacing it with a tool, the Brow Magic tool, a handheld electronic device that gives you the feathery look of microblading in seconds.
The first step to using L’Oréal’s Brow Magic tool is to scan your face with the companion app. Built-in AR offers suggestions and lets you customize the look of your brows before committing to ink. L’Oréal Group/Screenshot by Christina Darby/ZDNET
Developed in partnership with temporary tattoo technology company Prinker, Brow Magic aims to provide users with professional-looking microbladed brows at home. According to L’Oréal, the Brow Magic tool uses 2,4000 micro-nozzles, combined with printing technology with a printing resolution of up to 1,200 drops per inch (dpi).
According to L’Oreal, the device uses L’Oréal’s Modiface AR technology to scan the user’s face and connect to a smartphone app that provides eyebrow suggestions. Users can select the desired shape, thickness and overall brow effect via the app before sweeping her Brow Magic across the brows.
After users select their preference, the device glides easily over the face to quickly fill in the eyebrows. L’Oréal Group/Screenshot by Christina Darby/ZDNET
L’Oreal also states that the ink is semi-permanent, so the brow magic look can be removed with a standard makeup wipe or remover.
Due to come out sometime in 2023, my unruly brows and I are very much looking forward to trying this tool out to see if it replaces my 1,000 brow tools. I’m here.
