I remember the day I got my first phone. It was a Samsung flip phone, and I could program a dial-tone version of my favorite song as the ringtone (cue Led Zeppelin). I remember thinking one day my iPod, phone and camera would all be in one device. That future came about 4 years later with the first iPhone.
As we look to the future of smartphone technology, it’s hard not to wonder what we can see in our phones given a few more years. Let’s take a look and explore some ideas currently floating around out there.
- Better augmented reality (AR) – We got a taste of this with Pokèmon Go last summer, and that was just a rudimentary example of the true potential of this technology. Between trying out new furniture in your home and bringing it to life in new phone calls, the future of reality is coming. Google is already planning to unleash this technology in its new “Tango” phone, according to The Verge.
- Bend it like screens – Imagine being able to bend your phone like a piece of rubber or letting it mold right into your hand without losing displayable content. Samsung is expected to release a first-of-its-kind phone this summer. Bloomberg reported the tech giant used new organic light-emitting diodes to create the imaginary come to life.
- Throw it up on the wall – Turn your phone into a theater. People have been talking about this tech for long enough, but it’s apparently still something companies are working to make into a reality. Companies like Lenovo have found ways to make the tech a little more intriguing by promising to make the projection interactive. Now, if they really wanted to turn it up a notch, let’s introduce holograms into this tech.
- Long-range wireless charging – Plugging in phones to charge them is probably one of the oldest pieces of tech in our new phones. At least Apple simplified the process for us with their lightning cable. Samsung plans to take it a step further in their new phone.
- Preventative measures – We’ve all seen the sights of cracked and soaked phones. The technology exists for phones to spit out water or not shatter after a fall. Companies just aren’t giving it to us quite yet.
I’m an iPhone user after having used an Android, and I never looked back. However, iPhones used to be the leader in advancing technology for the future. Today, the most advancing thing they’ve done was remove a headphone jack.
I look at Samung’s ambitions of creating water-resistant phones, better cameras and more versatile designs, and I’m thinking Apple needs to step up it’s game. They’ll get surpassed by their main rival if they don’t.
What would you like to see in upcoming smartphone tech?