Mobile technology in the next 30 years

Future Man Looking

The year was 1985 -- a-ha were racing to the top of the music charts with their smash-hit "Take on Me", Roger Moore was appearing in what was to be his final outing as James Bond, and a young high-school teenager inadvertently stumbled across time travel with his much older scientist friend.

This year of course marks the 30th anniversary of Back to the Future which, as we all know, is one of the most iconic and celebrated films of the 20th Century. Starring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly and Christopher Lloyd as Dr. Emmett Brown (or Doc for short), the film was celebrated for its ingenious and fun take on time travel and later went on to spawn two sequels. Most notable was the 1989 follow-up Back to the Future II in which our plucky heroes travel to the year 2015 in a world which is dominated by hoverboards, self-tying shoes and tablet computers -- remarkably all of which have come to fruition (sort of). Naturally some of the films’ more outlandish predictions haven’t yet left the realms of cinema imagination, like flying cars and power clothing, but nonetheless these are still some amazing technological advances that have helped shape the world we live in today.

With technology constantly evolving and improving at an astronomical rate, it won’t be long until some of these sci-fi inventions actually see the light of day. One of the biggest advances in modern times has been in mobile technology, especially in recent years with the invention of smartphones. Prior to this, mobile phones were chunky, slow devices which were predominantly used for telephone calls and sending text messages -- truly terrifying times indeed.

Mobile technology is in such an advanced state that we are now able to incorporate other technologies in ways which were never before imaginable. Want to check the weather? Done. Need to find the nearest coffee shop? Easy. In the mood to listen to your favorite song? No problem. It’s scary how much mobile phones can do and yet we haven’t even come close to realizing their full potential, as they are becoming more compatible and compliant with similar technologies.

Society has changed dramatically in that people demand instant results from everything they come into contact with. It’s moving at such an alarming rate that once high-demand industries are starting to become redundant, with the decline of the printed press being perhaps one of the most notable conclusions of this. It will eventually get to a stage where things such as next-day delivery are too slow or carrying phones around is too clunky.

So, with that being said what can we expect from mobile technology in the next 30 years? Here’s what the experts seem to think…

Household benefits

Mobile technology is expected to transform the way we live in such a way that even our homes will become a more technologically advanced domain. The explosion of mobile technology and connectivity means that the home of the future will be a smarter more efficient place to be, with home appliances becoming more practical. It can be used to adjust water temperature in the bathroom or even as a means of cooking a meal in a safer environment. The possibilities are endless.

Intelligent operating systems

If you thought Siri or Cortana were amazing then you haven’t seen anything yet. That’s just the beginning, before you know it the technology will have us rethinking what it truly means to be human. Once terrifying sci-fi figures like HAL 9000 in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) will actually learn to have meaningful relationships with us, helping us with our chores and organizing our schedules to make us a much more efficient species.

Open-source technology

According to Joshua Bell, an anthropologist and curator of globalization at the Natural History Museum who has been researching mobile phone culture, he believes that open-source technology is the "only way to have a redemptive future with our technology -- not only to even out its unevenly-distributed nature, but so that we can work to create better devices".

In effect this means that by becoming a part of this new technology we will get a better understanding of it, therefore pushing the boundaries of what we previously thought was possible to create a better, more connected society.

Mobile-human technology

There are some out there who believe our relationship with mobile technology is still in its infancy and that one day mobile phones will become a part of us -- literally. It is believed that we will soon have the power to become our own keyboard, removing the use for a physical device in favor of a microchip implant. Users will be able to search the internet, make a phone call or send messages simply by tapping their arm.

This of course may be a step too far for some, as there are still those of us who are skeptical about the invasion of privacy and the negatives that come with having a mobile system as part of us… Just like phones of today, there’s always the chance they are prone to malfunction.

Photo Credit: alphaspirit/Shutterstock

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