Christmas is fast approaching and then we’ll be welcoming a whole new year for techonlogy! Have you begun to consider how advances in technology will be changing our lives in 2019? Will free wifi be more freely available? What features will the next iPhone? Perhaps you’re considering an electric or hybrid car? How will energy, security, hospitality, medicine, business and the environment shape 2019?
Virgin hope to launch Hyperloop One
As city boundaries are growing, our current public transport system is increasingly coming under strain and compared to other nations could also be seen as quite dated. As a result, Hyperloop One has been unveiled as a viable solution in the coming years for locations all over the world.
“In the way that railways powered the last 100 years, hyperloop could transform the next… Imagine the impact a whole new level of immediate access will have. Trips could be reduced, for example, from three hours by train to 30 minutes, with prices comparable to intra-city public travel.” – Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group
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Digital medical devices will do more than help us – they could enhance us
Experts predict that in 2019, we will see a dramatic change in how we use smart technology to improve and enhance our health. Wearables such as fit-bits already provide a limited amount of information to users about fitness and well being, but innovations in technology means that this will soon extend to physical and mental health and fitness advice, bespoke to the user.
“we are already dependent on our mobile technologies for many of our everyday tasks and goals, but we will also soon rely on digital technologies for the optimal functioning of our bodies.” -Pattie Maes, a professor of media technology at MIT Media Lab
Tiny satellites will change how we look at the world
There is a new satellite on the block, replacing the huge and cumbersome satellites that we’ve used to-date. CubeSat, is just 10 x 10 x 11.35 cm and comes packed with components which have been recycled from old smartphones. These new tiny satellites can be launched into space for a fraction of the typical price. It is hoped that as well as day to day tasks such as telecommunications, they could also be used to take millions of photographs of the surface of our world.
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Autonomous Driving Becomes The Norm
With an announcement this year that most new cars will be required by law to be electric by 2030, comes the opportunity for autonomous driving to be integrated more easily into the cars we drive every day. With the continuous development of AI (artificial intelligence), ML (machine learning), enhanced processing powers and advanced sensors, this integration is more viable than ever before.
“Once you trust a self-driving car with your life, you pretty much will trust artificial intelligence with anything” – Dave Waters, University of Oxford, Earth Sciences Department
One of the most notable driverless cars to-date is Google’s Waymo model. This is now an independent self-driving technology company with ‘a mission to make it safe and easy for everyone to get around—without the need for anyone in the driver’s seat.’
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How the iPhone of 2019 is shaping up
Roll on September 2019, when we will see the launch of the iPhone 11 or XI or ElEvEn… or whatever Apple choose to call it this time around! iPhone users are rumoured to be able to look forward to upgraded A13 chips on all models from supplier TSMC, meaning improved performance and efficiency. They are also aiming to allow use of an Apple Pencil style stylus, as well as making notable enhancements to the front-facing TrueDepth Camera System which plays an important role in the iPhone’s Face ID security feature.
Looking ahead to 2020, it is said that Apple plan to release their first ever 5G phone and are continuously working towards a streamline phone with no ports or buttons at all. Even further into the future, we can expect to see folding displays and being able to control your iPhone with gestures.
