Digital’s next big thing for 2011. We take a closer look at the disruptive technologies set to change the way your business works next year
We’ve taken a look in the Growing Business crystal ball and analysed the technologies that are set to make a big impact on your business in 2011 – and beyond.
Facial recognition
Facial recognition systems will be popping up everywhere in 2011. 3D expert Holition has perfected the virtual mirror, where you can try on 3D Ray-Bans by using your computer’s webcam. It’s just a quick jump from there to trying on 3D clothes or seeing how you look in the driving seat of the latest BMW.
The next step for facial recognition is even cleverer: take a billboard advert and make it relevant for everyone walking by – think Tom Cruise in Minority Report. In Japan, NEC has already created a sign that can identify a shopper’s gender, ethnicity and approximate age. There’s even a vending machine in Tokyo that suggests drinks to consumers according to weather conditions, age and gender.
Contactless payments
Next year will see the start of mobile contactless payment systems using near field communication (NFC). In London, millions of people already use NFC in their Oyster cards, and the technology is now coming to mobile. Devices using the next version of the Android operating system, code-named Gingerbread, will have NFC chips built-in; the iPhone 5 is expected to have NFC, and the latest Nokia devices have the chips built-in, but deactivated.
To a business, NFC is a loyalty card, an ID card, and the passport to a long customer relationship. The industry is bullish about NFC, but take-up will depend on the consumer feeling that they’re in control, and that it’s secure.
There’s an app for that
There are now more than 700,000 apps available for iPhones, Android and Blackberrys. For developers and apptimisation businesses (more on this next month) this represents a great revenue stream, but for firms it’s an expensive headache. Do you develop for iPhone, Android, or all platforms? HTML5 eliminates the problem by allowing firms to develop apps that work across platforms, which are standards based, utilise the functions of the phone, simple to develop, and approval-process free. HTML5 will kill the apps market, it’s just a question of when.
The web on your TV
2010 was the year of 3D for TV manufacturers but it’s not been a great success. 2011 is the year that the net will come to your TV, and that will change things significantly.
At present, only high-end TVs are internet-enabled, but from 2011 the technology will start to filter out to the rest of the market. BBC iPlayer has proved that there’s a market for on-demand TV, but who wants to watch TV on a laptop? By adding the internet as a TV channel, consumer choice multiplies overnight.
The good news is your current website will work with web TV, and a 32” screen means you get more products per page, but you’ll need to ensure your graphics are up to scratch.
Cloud
Cloud is finally coming of age and 2011 will be the year when everything is hosted. It’s simple to use and firms such as Cloudbase and Outsourcery are making cloud almost a tick-box solution. It’s opex-based so there’s no need to get a bank loan to expand and, more importantly, there are standards being developed that will allow you to swap cloud providers at the click of a mouse.
Video you can click on
When internet TV takes off we’ll all be consuming a lot more video. So where’s the potential to sell? Companies such as Coull and new business Brainient allow you to put advertising within a video. Click on the Aston Martin driven by James Bond and up comes a pop-up with the details of the car and a test-drive opportunity at your nearest garage. Click on a handbag in Sex and the City and you’ll get the cheapest online price.
Mobile visual search
Applications such as RedLaser have shown that the public are very happy to point their mobile phone cameras at barcodes to get price comparison data. The next stage is to search on the object itself. With visual search the world becomes a salesroom; it allows you to point your camera at any object, be it a building, a car or a kettle, and get a result.
How to Android hints and tips
Speed up and get more from your Android device
Android is now the second most popular mobile operating system behind Apple’s iPhone, but quarter one of 2011 should see it hit the top spot, as the number of manufacturers selling Android devices increases, and the devices running Android move into triple figures. So here’s our top Android hints and tips to get more out of your smartphone in 2011.
Create a hotspot
One of the features of Android 2.2 is the ability to create a WiFi hotspot to allow you to share your phone’s mobile internet connection with WiFi-enabled devices such as your laptop or tablet. It’s easy to set up and significantly cheaper than buying a dongle or a dedicated hotspot device like a ‘MiFi’. To make it work, just launch the ‘WiFi Hotspot’ application, create a name for your hotspot, select a password and security type, and you’re off.
Add life
Battery life is a big problem with any smartphone; all that video and web use eats power and Android phones are no exception. You can increase your battery life by switching off features that aren’t being used, such as 3G, Wifi, GPS and Bluetooth. Android 2.1 and above come with a built-in power app, but apps such as Curvefish’s OnOff suite of free and paid apps (http://curvefish.com) can do it better.
Add speed
Just like your desktop, by stopping applications running in the background you can speed up your Android phone. Unfortunately, unlike in Windows or on a Mac it’s not possible to do it quickly or easily in Android. ReChild’s Advanced Task Killer (http://rechild.mobi/) will let you stop any running apps and free up memory.
Try a new look
A key feature of Android is that you’re not stuck with the look and feel of your phone; you can change practically everything. So if you don’t like what the manufacturer has done with the home screen, then get another. Apps such as LauncherPro (www.launcherpro.com) and Home++ (http://hpp.intuitit.mobi) allow you to create multiple alternative layouts.
About the author: Marcus Austin is a mobile internet consultant. He created The Guardian’s mobile website, m.guardian.co.uk.
App of the month
Keep your life in sync. My first law of IT states that the file you need the most is always on the device you haven’t got with you. That law is now smashed with Dropbox.
Dropbox is a cloud-based service that allows you to share and access files wherever you may roam. Dropbox automatically synchronises your data across multiple connected devices and works on your PC/Mac desktop and on iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry devices.
To get the service running, all you need to do is to download the free Dropbox desktop software and create a web-based folder to hold all your files. Then, whenever a file is updated or changed, Dropbox relays the changes to all other devices approved for access to those files.
The only drawback currently is that the smartphone versions only allow you to view your photos, videos, documents and presentations. However, there are already many third-party applications that use the Dropbox service to provide additional features, such as the ability to edit and print documents from
your smartphone.
RRP: The first 2Gb of storage is free, 50Gb is $9.99 a month, 100Gb is $19.99 a month
Visit: www.dropbox.com