IFA 2025 is over. It’s not that the tech fair’s becoming less important, but there’s a shift in where the focus lies.
With over 1,900 exhibitors from 49 countries and more than 220,000 visitors, IFA 2025 was a success for the event organisers. Yet, it was only during the current trade fair that the contract with the Berlin exhibition halls was extended until 2034. Nevertheless, the character of the tech fair’s changing: the focus is shifting from entertainment in the living room to the kitchen and other areas of the household. It’s still about new technology, though.
Topic shift: household maintenance instead of entertainment
Up-and-coming manufacturers replace brands that have moved away
As a primary school pupil, I used to sit in a friend's living room with many of my classmates to play the Super NES. Now I get my hands on the latest technology and test it for you. In recent years at Curved, Computer Bild and Netzwelt, now at Digitec and Galaxus.
Background information
Interesting facts about products, behind-the-scenes looks at manufacturers and deep-dives on interesting people.
Five of us from the editorial team covered countless kilometres in the Berlin exhibition halls – and many more in the city. And we noticed the focal point of the fair had shifted again. It was still possible to see new television releases, but hardly any new launches were at the trade fair – let alone any major innovations. You’re now more likely to see these at the CES in Las Vegas at the beginning of the year. Nevertheless, Luca was able to get an impression of RGB LED at the Sony stand and explains here what Dolby Vision 2 is all about.
Steam cooking in a drawer. Source: Lorenz Keller
We discovered far more innovations for the kitchen. Traditional German manufacturers in particular use the home trade fair as a showcase. There’s a drawer from Siemens, which cooks food with steam and pots from Miele where nothing can burn or boil over. Those who prefer cooking outside can also look forward to the very first grill from Miele, which also automatically regulates the temperature to suit the food being grilled.
When it comes to keeping the home clean, Eufy and Dreame are the first manufacturers of robot vacuums to find solutions that enable their cleaning devices to climb stairs with the help of aids. Haier washing machines are designed to keep washed laundry fresh in the drum for twelve hours and automatically dispense the correct amount of detergent from a large supply.
When it comes to mobile devices, the focus is also shifting. New products are still being presented – this year, for example, it was the Galaxy S25 FE and the Galaxy Tab S11, a smartphone and two tablets from Samsung – but they weren’t in the spotlight. The days when top devices such as Samsung’s Note series were presented at IFA are over.
Instead, accessory manufacturers are pushing their way into the IFA. Anker’s stand has grown increasingly larger in recent years and this year the CEO even came to Berlin for the keynote. But Ugreen, Belkin and Aukey also made their presence known with advertising all around the exhibition grounds. Plus, they displayed new products. This year, wireless chargers with the Qi2.2 standard and active cooling took centre stage. The fan stops the smartphone from getting too hot so that the wireless charger can transfer more energy. The highlight for me were the power banks from BMX, which don’t burst into flames when pierced by a nail, but continue to charge as if nothing’s happened.
Ugreen even greeted visitors to the trade fair at the S-Bahn station.
The companies exhibiting at IFA have changed. Numerous long-established brands and manufacturers have reduced their presence at trade fairs or stopped attending altogether. Sometimes involuntarily – through insolvency or not staying relevant. But the vacated spaces aren’t empty. They’re increasingly being occupied by up-and-coming Chinese companies. For them, the IFA is a gateway to Europe. Here, they can show their products and make contacts with retailers who then sell them here in Germany. Dreame, for example, is also parting with pennies to have Bastian Schweinsteiger photographed as the new brand ambassador.
On the way from the S-Bahn to the trade fair, Dreame presented its new brand ambassador.
It’s noticeable that more and more manufacturers are taking advantage of the fact there will be many journalists, influencers and content creators visiting Berlin. Instead of spending money on an exhibition stand, they invite people to their own events. A well-known example this year was Dyson. The Dyson store on Tauentzienstraße was bursting at the seams. Visitors were packed in to hear James Dyson present five new products from the manufacturer in person – one of which was it’s dust-compressing cordless vacuum cleaner.
James Dyson presents new arrivals and hardly anyone listens. Source: Lorenz Keller
Dyson pulled up in a vintage Mini, was immediately recognised on the street and asked for selfies like a pop star. However, the keynote in the teeny-tiny store was rather bizarre. The Dyson inventor lectured for an hour on the small stage about small electric motors and vacuum cleaner designs with far too little amplification. The invited influencers weren’t as interested, and the chatter was sometimes louder than Dyson itself. A stand at the IFA with decent technology and an interested audience of specialists would have probably been better.
