Tech wise, the world goes through inspired periods of innovation. However, 2013 wasn\’t one of those periods.
3D televisions are a dud, music services popped up like daisies, it seemed like such a muddling period.
There were innovative products that were shown and introduced this year, but the strange thing was that they were based on technologies that weren\’t new eg: The Oculus Rift
Apple bored us again with incremental refreshes (Thumbprint reader excluded), while Google had a number of blue sky ideas that you weren\’t sure whether they were serious or not eg Project Loon.
The main product for me that really got people excited was a small TV gadget called the Chromecast, It plugs into the back of your TV and allows media to be played across your WIFI network through your TV. So far only a few services work, such as Netflix, Youtube, Google Play, but the concept is an awesome one. (Unfortunately not available in NZ)
The early signs of CES this year seem that 2014 will be a year of further consolidation. The improvement of earlier innovation into usable and clever devices that will have a real impact on users.
Smart watches made a ripple last year, Samsung making the loudest attempt. But it was still essentially an early stab at things, with updates needed to make it truly useful.
Advancements in battery life, data plans and mobile platforms in general make this maturing of the last few years of gadgets something that I am looking forward to.
CES is often the place you see pie in the sky ideas put forward as the future of tech. Many of these things never see the light of day. But I sense that this year some of the previous years goofy stuff will find it\’s way (or the technology it is based on) into real products this year.
However, we may be still waiting for the wow moment of 2014 when this year ends.
What do you think we will see this year? Who will produce the must have product that we never thought we needed?
