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Predictions in Tech for 2018

Tech
Jan 16, 2018

Predictions in Tech for 2018

BY : BENJAMIN "BENJI" KARMIS

Predictions in Tech for 2018

We're excited.

From robot citizens, $1000+ smartphones, and Instagram getting its own version of Snapchat’s stories, 2017 gave us quite a few memorable highlights in the tech world. But that’s all last year’s news – we’ve got a whole new year filled with surprises. Here are a few notable ones to expect.

WEARABLES

Don’t get us wrong – smartwatches are pretty nifty. But what if your actual phone could also transform into your watch? Samsung has announced plans to release a smartphone that can wrap around your wrist by the end of this year, making it even harder to lose your phone, ever. Your dreams of getting a real-life Pip-Boy may be closer than you think.

But let’s not stop at wrist tech – smart glasses are making a comeback as well. Following its ill-fated launch, Google announced the comeback of Project Glass to be aimed at businesses mid-last year. This sparked Google’s competitor Amazon to pair with smart glasses manufacturer Vizux to announce their Alexa-powered frames earlier this month. Besides connecting your messaging, camera, navigation, and heart rate monitors to your lenses, you’ll also be able to ask Alexa what you’re looking at. This year’s coolest improvements to augmented reality could literally take place right before your very eyes.

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SMART DEVICES

Your glasses won’t be the only devices getting smarter. The home appliances, vehicles, and other items embedded with smart technology, called the Internet of Things, is already aimed to connect with more than 11 billion devices by the end of this year, and that’s not counting computers or smartphones. Think of telling Alexa to wake you up in the morning with a freshly cooked piece of toast from your smart toaster being just the tip of the iceberg. As AI gets smarter and smarter (which it definitely will), more and more common appliances will be connected with universal technology that is designed to make both your day-to-day life and businesses more efficient. Plus, if all smart devices will be protected through the anonymous nature of blockchain technology, as IBM executives predict, then they’ll be safe from hackers too.

 

CRYPTOCURRENCIES

Speaking of blockchain technology, this 2017 favorite isn’t going away this year. Like many experts in the past, even we can’t tell you which cryptocurrencies are going to fair better or worse this year. But if there’s one thing it’s safe to say about them, it’s that their values are not going to stay the same, and we should expect to continue seeing their names in the headlines throughout the year. We’re also likely to see more big-name integration with select cryptos, depending on who they each see as a viable currency as time goes on. Only time will tell with these wild cards.

GAMING

It breaks our heart as a community to see games plagued by a pay-to-win structure, but unfortunately, this isn’t something we’re likely to see change with AAA companies. Despite the community’s backlash, EA has been doing pretty good after their blunder with Star Wars: Battlefront 2. While the masses will still inevitably flood towards these big-box titles, 2018 is likely to see the rise of smaller studios with ambitious changes to traditional gameplay, such the battle royale game mode by PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds helped it become the most-played computer game of all time. Games offering a fresh perspective are likely to thrive this year, so keep a lookout for the surprisingly large splashes from lesser-known studios.

THE INTERNET

Unfortunately for us, the final net neutrality repeal order that will damage our internet experience was just released. Fortunately for us, changes are likely to be small and hardly noticeable at first. Even more so, companies with a power behind them have already pledged to sue the FCC over the changes. Plus, there’s something we can do, too – like recreational marijuana, states can vote to preserve net neutrality. Another pro for us is the state elections coming up later this year. So let’s do what we can, and even though 2018 may begin on a bad note for the internet, there’s some promising hope that it’ll at least end on a good one.