A little bit about technology first
The fascination for technology has gripped even common men nowadays. They’re no longer restricted to mad scientists who know how to get glass and metal together to create a device that can voice out directions to a car driver. Nor is it interesting for rich, flamboyant Tony Stark admirers who have a lot of money to invest in gadgets of the future. It can be found in varying degrees in all spheres of life – transportation, accommodation, shopping, medical treatments, entertainment, laundry, banking, and even cooking!
Examples of technological advancements:
Proof of technology being so important can be found in several instances.
• India switched to demonetization and cashless payment options swiftly enough thanks to the surprise move on the part of our PM, Narendra Modi. He wanted to ensure Indians embrace the world of technology and is known to be quite active on social media platforms himself in order to encourage the youth to follow his steps.
• There are several celebrities who have their own line of emojis to select from. So, what’s common between Ellen DeGeneres and Kim Kardashian? They’ve been immortalized via emojis, of course!
• Ask a bunch of friends what their next holiday destination is, and you’ll likely hear them mention a place about 300-400ksms away. Then ask them how they are planning to and from there? A long drive would be most likely be suggested by them. And then ask them if they know the route to the destination well enough to manage the drive, and you’ll be reminded of smart apps like GPS, Google Maps, and artificial intelligence aids such as Siri and Cortana!
• There are several brands that have taken initiatives to support the women of the country in their fight against sexual abuse. One such brand in Sonata, the maker of some of the finest watches in India, and belong to the Titan Group. The technology in the watch is such that upon pressing one of the buttons on the side of its rim twice, a silent alarm is sent to the 10 contacts which would have been pre-filled by the watch owner. The SOS would be accompanied by a message and an indication of the location of the lady, so the contacts can reach her as quickly as possible and offer her help.
The very smart phones
Gone are the days when you had to root through your wallet or purse and find money to buy even small things such as paan and food items. With the help of e-Wallets such as Paytm and MobiQwik, one can make these payments using a smartphone. This has proven to be a real boon in these days of demonetization and scarcity of money in banks and ATMs. Smartphones are no longer just devices that can take good quality pictures, which can be used to answer and make phone calls, to send text messages, and to set your morning alarm. There is so much more to do with them. Which is perhaps why all smartphone manufacturing companies are in a fierce competition amongst themselves to find the latest innovation they can to make their phones the best in the market.
Forget the size of the screen and sound quality. People now want their phones to be able to multi-task flawlessly, handle a number of functions at any given time, and have a decent battery life. In this world of cut-throat competition, Apple Inc. has managed to retain its niche position, although it’s had its shares of a few downs in the recent past.
The iPhone hype
iPhone is, undoubtedly, one of the steeply priced phones you can find in the market. Many rival companies have seen their price tags and used them as benchmarks to price their own products, although they may not have cost that much to manufacture. But iPhones have a special edge to them and command such a high price even today, although the market is flooded with cheaper phones loaded with several features.
• iPhones look sleek and smart, right from its initially launched model. Even the other products of Apple (tabs, iPods, and accessories) have a polished look about them.
• There are several technologies invented by the Apple family in its formative years. They were known to design phones that looked not only great but also performed seamlessly a number of functions that could only be imagined by a number of competitor brands.
• It was one of the first phones that efficiently helped people have a fully functional internet based device in their hand which could be used for anything – iTunes, emails, photographs, sharing videos and photos, and much, much more.
• iPhones come with a number of apps that can be used for several purposes, all available in the App Store. But what most don’t know is that Apple introduced the App Store concept, which was later copied by non-Apple based phones. Now, no matter what the OS (operating system) of the phone may be, there is a collection of apps to select from (PlayStore, for example).
• While it is true that Apple charges its customers a fee for the applications it had copyrights to, it helps customers keep away from virus attacks, spam, and malware very effectively. Most of the apps available are nominally charged and have some of the best performance ratings. For example – iTunes.
• iPhones are known to have some of the best speaker and picture qualities.
• Innovation has been the mantra at Apple for many years now. Many people agree that the company played it safe with the iPhone 7 and 7s release, which basically a slightly modified version of iPhone 6 and 6s. One of the most notable features of this phone is the absence of the headphone jack. Instead, Apple introduced AirPods that can transmit sounds from the device to a person wirelessly. One of the most important reasons for getting rid of the headphone jack was because Apple is currently working hard to make it phone sleeker and packed with more features.
So why not the iPhone 7?
By now, you would have realized that Apple and its devices hold a fascination for me. So, why did I choose to give the iPhone 7 and its sibling 7s a miss? The reason is simple – iPhone 8. After reading some of the facts made available in the market about it already, you’d probably agree with me.
1. It will incorporate the OLED display that has already taken the world by storm and now, Apple is ready to thrill their customers even more with it.
2. It will have a faster A11 processor.
3. It most likely will have a curve-edged, super cool glass body, WITHOUT a home button.
4. Forget about the bezels (rims that you find at the edge of many devices which have a display panel, such as watches and of course, smartphones). Apple has plans to instead integrate the camera and Touch ID technology in the display screen.
5. Get ready to experience quicker and wireless charging.
6. Improved biometric recognition software, such as iris and/or face scanning.
7. The screen size is probably going to be 5.8”, but given the popularity iPhone SE enjoyed, there may be smaller 4.5” – 4.7” screens that may also be released along with the bigger screen version.
8. This being the 10th year since iPhones were launched in the markets on one fine, September evening, the one released this year has been touted to be an innovation-stocked phone that will probably be priced at around $849.
All of the details given about pertinent to the upcoming iPhone this year are speculations. But they seem extremely promising. So, here’s to a new year, and a brand-new technology-rich iPhone to all of us!
