New Decade, New Stuff.
January 7, 2010, 10:09 am - By: Chad Halvorson
So what is the next ten years going to bring to interactive technology and gadgets. Here are a few of my thoughts on what's going to gain momentum over the next decade.
- Overall, broadcast and entertainment will evolve the most. Now that we've finally gotten passed the digital television hurdle in 09, we can finally start focusing on what we can do with this new protocol that took 5 years to get everyone transitioned too.
- All TVs will come stock with DLNA clients. This will probably happen inside 5 years. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Living_Network_Alliance
- Television in general will start to transition to non-linear scheduling. Broadcast media will be made on-demand but it's availability will of course still be scheduled.
- Internet connectivity to your new gadget will be standard. This has already started to take place with devices such as the Kindle via the "Amazon Whispernet". Connectivity is going to become an after thought and expected with every new gadget and gizmo.
- Throw away single function gadgets. One function gadgets will be cheaper and already be connected out of the box. You'll be able to buy a cheap flip phone that uploads or streams directly to YouTube. Or get a mobile device just for posting Twitter updates, or Facebook updates. (I think there already is one out for Twitter, I just think they are going to get more trendy, cheaper and run rampant as more social media outlets emerge)
- Free internet. Access to the internet will finally be available for free via some (slow) wireless connectivity, probably the old television spectrum that we finally let go of in 09. If you want a decent speed, you'll still need to fork it over to Comcast or equivalent in your area.
- The Linux market share will go up. Probably not much, but with so many netbooks floating around now, and new simple devices yet to come, plus the tech savvy generation, Linux use is bound to increase.
- Home Media Servers. More homes are going to be equipped with large storage devices for managing terabytes of movies, home videos, photos, etc. If a household has two desktops, three laptops, a PS3, xBox, and a DLNA compatible TV, there is definitely going to be a need to central storage via a home network. This reminds me of Microsoft's book, "Mommy Why is There a Server in the House"
- Internet enabled cars. Like the Kindle, car makers are going to sell their products with internet connectivity standard. Sync music and video wirelessly from your PC to your car's media player, stream movies to the back seat for kids, get reviews on restaurants around your GPS location, traffic stats, weather, etc. I know you CAN do some of this now.
- Mobile devices are going to replace your keychain and wallet. Your mobile device will unlock your car, start your car, open your garage, arm your home security system, unlock your door, pay your bills, pay at vending machines, pay for groceries, pay for gas, etc. Payments in general will go wireless via your mobile device. For example: squareup.com