It seems mobile phones have plateaued over the last few years. Since the iPhone came out in 2007 (I think) - all we’ve seen is bigger this, more pixels that, and an increase in processing power, memory and storage capacity. But it seems as though there’s been nothing ‘new’ for quite a while now.
Have smartphones reached their limit? Aside from the usual phone stuff, they’ve condensed music players, cameras and PDA’s into one little box - but is there anything else on the horizon?
Recently we’ve seen Samsung experiment with optical lenses and there’s also those wrap around wrist/watch devices - but that’s still tweaks and hardware mainly. I’m talking about actual cool things a phone can be designed to do…
Using technologies that already exist or on their way… off the top of my head I can think of…
RFID-like capabilities - paying for goods automatically when exiting a store.
Built in HD projector for watching movies/TV on a wall.
Some form of biometric health checkup possibilities - saliva testing etc.
I’m out of ideas… can someone please think outside the box…?
I’d say there’s a little way to go on the digital assistant function - ‘extelligence’ - where the device becomes a seamless extension of your own memory and brain power/intellect - Siri and Cortana sort of do this, but rather superficially.
I’m not talking about direct-to-brain interfaces (although maybe one day) - but better AI, better natural language processing, detection of mood, tone of voice, body language etc
Basically what Mangetout said. Services like Google Now can do a decent job of anticipating your needs , but obviously you need to share a lot with such a service. I’m happy to do so, but it’s not for everyone, perhaps.
The big thing with the devices themselves is battery life. Absent a revolution in battery technology, perhaps wireless charging will become ubiquitous.
I was going to say projector technology. Not only would you be able to project on a wall, the wall you are projecting on would effectively become a touch screen.
In order for that to be practical, you’d have to wear the device on your head. Which people have not show any real love for. So maybe not.
We’re already seeing the rise of health apps - FitBit and the like monitoring your sleep, exercise, etc. That will get more and more integrated.
I’m personally predicting that we will see “self winding” technology before long - little flywheels powering generators that keep your phone juiced up, using the motions of your body as you go about your day. It works for watches. Why not phones?
Rather than cramming something else into a smartphone, maybe the future is in external devices that work with smartphones, like Fitbits. Or cars that update themselves via the owner’s smartphone. Maybe the calendar on the smartphone works with the car’s navigation system. So that if you have a medical appointment for next week, the navigation system provides routing for the trip without you needing to enter the destination in it.
The phone might stop being “a” device and become a collection of things.
The first divorce could be between the bulk of the phone and the interface. The main guts would be in your pocket, on your hip, etc. The screen may be a very thin flexible plastic thing on the forearm or some such.
Taking things a step further, as touched on above, is completely overhauling of the interface. Projected screen? Into your eyes? Tracking hand movements instead of touching a screen (plus voice commands, of course)? Direct neural implants?
We are indeed nearing certain limits in the traditional phone. Going beyond “retina” displays is a waste. Many annoying speed limits are due to bandwidth, not processor speed. Nothing on the horizon that’s going to give us a 10x or more bandwidth increase while also bringing usage costs down.
I’m not holding my breath on WiMAX making a turnaround.
The biggest existing bottleneck with moderate hope of improvement are batteries. Alternate fuel sources, improved power density, etc., can really shake things up.
I like this. Smart phones already can detect motion. Mine can automatically shut off the screen when I set it down or put it in my pocket. Why not add a generator to charge the battery?
I think the biggest advance would come from screen technology. Flexible screens would allow for folding the phone to be smaller to put in pockets. Being able to unroll the screen and maybe even flip up a section that is folded under till full extension could rival lap size viewing.
In sci-fi you see this a lot. Fold up or roll up thin film screens.
Then there is my idea for quantum entangled communication. Each phone is entangled with a main switch board. The switch board connects your tangled particle to the other persons particle. Instant communication over any distance. But I do not believe quantum entanglement is real.
I think a lot of the suggestions above seem to be fairly similar to what Google Glass tried to do.
Am I wrong?
So maybe it would be useful to ask what went wrong with Google Glass, and see if those problems are relevant to this thread?
Me, personally: google glass scared me, with its pervasiveness and big-brother abilities to record everything. And when people talk about future phones as wearable, etc, I think we’re going in the same direction. Maybe Google Glass will make a comeback?
Who needs folding screens, etc, if you can see it all on your glasses?
Google Glass failed because people don’t want to walk around looking like Borg drones (or douches) Make a device that does the same thing but looks less conspicuous, and it will be a huge hit.