Technology is advancing and is seemly churning out more and more gold every day. A decade ago, smartphones (in the current form) didn’t even exist – we were too busy rushing to grab the next flip or slide-up phone to replace the iconic Nokia 3410.
If we go back another 45 years, personal computers weren’t even a possibility, now we’ve got them in a model that can be carried around, and can perform a then-unimaginable number of tasks at lightning speed. We’ve then got purpose built computers that are meant exclusively for video games – even these machines are capable of playing high definition films and television shows. Generally speaking, things have changed dramatically.
If we now look at the turnaround of new gadgets compared to years gone by, we’re starting to see new smartphone models once or even twice a year, the next version of the latest innovation is discussed before upcoming ideas have even become a reality, and an increasing amount of new technology is being used in an around our lives.
Now, before I continue, it’s important to note that technology and gadgets aren’t the same thing – technology is effectively the same as a director of a Hollywood blockbuster, it makes things happen despite not being on screen. However, gadgets are probably the best physical entity that can demonstrate the way technology has progressed, so we’ll stick with them to explain.
As previously mentioned, the turnaround of gadgets is accelerating with the rate of progression increasing. Imagine manufacturing something, thousands of years ago, it started with hand tools, then power tools arrived, once power tools had been around for a while, assembly lines became a reality and the production gets faster. Using these assembly lines, better tools are then created, which create better tools, which create better tools – Toolception.
This rate of constant improvement is apparent within every aspect of technology and it really does have no immediate signs of slowing down, not for a while at least.
What this acceleration does grant us, is a much clearer way to predict the future of technology, and in doing so, can help us excel within the workplace by predicting and implementing emerging technologies ahead of the competition. So how do we go about predicting what’s next?
Right now, everything is getting smaller – you’ll almost always first be presented with a large version of a gadget or piece of technology, and this will eventually be reduced in size. This concept is evident with just about everything and if the technology itself can be reduced into a non-physical entity, it’ll likely have reached its maximum potential.
Take the remote control, it started off clunky with the purpose of controlling what’s on a screen, now we’re beginning to see the demise of the traditional remote control in the form of apps on our smartphones – why waste manufacturing costs on a remote when we can tuck it into a device the consumer already owns?
This is then being reduced further, where we can look to games consoles and in particular gadgets like the Xbox Kinect, which turn our bodies into the controller – this technology is already being tested to control computers or televisions.
Furthermore, if we continue to think about things getting smaller, how do we get smaller than a non-physical entity? Simple, you recognise that sci-fi films of old weren’t so sci-fi after all, we start to think about brain power and its potential to control things; worth mentioning this is also already being experimented upon.
Now, before I get too carried away, predicting the future of technology is to think big by going small. Anticipating future industry changes can prove profitable for both you and your business – If you can establish where technology is going in the near future, you can prepare for its arrival and become innovators in your field, which only leads to more clients and better publicity.
Have a think about the technology already being used within your business and attempt to predict how it can shrink in size. Look at gadgets being used in daily life and establish ways they could be used to help you at work, you may even end up becoming the name everyone refers to as an innovator in your field, all because you accepted technology is accelerating.
Specific technology won’t continue to evolve forever, but unless you’re reading this in the year 2112, we’re nowhere near that yet.
