What do eye glasses, stoves, and cows have to do with our future? They’re all a part of the rise of “personal technology” that is currently disrupting the way many people live their lives. For the most part, it’s not a bad disruption (unless you’re in an industry that relies on old technology). It’s just a change that is being enhanced by the exponential increase in scientific and technological knowledge being applied to the gadgets we own and the emerging gadgets of tomorrow.
The rise of mobile devices poses a conundrum for businesses. On one hand, they can be used to reach the masses in venues that once weren’t accessible by the internet. Today, literally everywhere many people go has them connected in one way or another. On the other hand, it’s hard to keep people’s attention because of the ease of access; they can be looking at something they want to purchase and change their mind because their mobile phone tells them it’s cheaper down the block or at Amazon.
It’s a love/hate relationship that many have tried to solve. Next week, as Santa Anita Park opens for its 75th winter season, there will be more than horse racing fans watching the events unfold. The eyes of the tech and retail worlds will be on the track as it launches its localized mobile app for wagering and research.
The wolves of the tech-blogging world are circling around Research In Motion, calling them has-beens and tossing out rumors left and right as the once-proud BlackBerry brand fades into antiquity thanks to the rise of iPhone and Android. There are reasons to believe that we haven’t seen the last of RIM, most notably the probability that their weakness in the market today will make them a prime target for a buyout in the future.
By now, most have witnessed or participated in the early stages of the shift towards using mobile devices as a payment method. We’ve seen many different variations over the past few years of digital payments with smartphone credit card interfaces slowly emerging as the frontrunning format. That could change.
Regardless of what style picks up steam, one thing is certain – the industry is growing. In this infographic by our friends at Intuit, we have a breakdown of the trends and direction towards which the mobile payment industry is heading.
Click to enlarge.
(H/T: Automotive SEO)
If you weren’t aware, apps are huge. Most small businesses are using them to some extent, even if they don’t realize it. We stay connected through our mobile devices, of course, but there are literally thousands of other ways that apps are helping small businesses grow and be manageable.
As technology continues to make data storage components smaller and yet able to hold more, the processes and equipment used in knowledge management are becoming much more efficient. As a result, the amount of data that people, companies, and even governments attempt to manage are also growing very quickly.
It wasn’t always like this. There was a time when even a sentence could take a long time to put on a “device” that would be able to store it for extended periods of time. Imagine writing on stone tablets.
Researchers in South Korea are developing a cell phone that can recharge simply through sound.
The device features two strands of zinc oxide surrounded by two electrodes, as well as a sound absorbing pad. When the pad vibrates, the wires compress and release, creating an electrical current. This can then be used to charge the phone's battery.
It’s a gadgetized world. Chances are, you use or interact with dozens of different gadgets every day. We don’t even notice anymore much of the time as the concept of living without them has become a distant memory.
There is a cost. Despite the fact that these household gadgets are more affordable and accessible than ever before, we are creating a tremendous strain on our power grid (and our wallets) that many may not notice. We add surge protectors to our wall sockets in an effort to plug in our ever-growing inventory of gadgets. We often run these gadgets non-stop. It all adds up.
To put it into perspective, we look to our green friends at 1bog to break down exactly what is happening, what the costs associated with gadgetizing are, and we look at different ways to prevent the over-consumption of energy.
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