CONNECT Our Top 20 Tech FROM THE PAST 20 YEARS!
FROM THE TOMTOM TO THE OCULUS RIFT, LUCY HEDGES LOOKS BACK AT THE BEST GADGETS AND INNOVATIONS THAT HAVE HELPED SHAPE OUR WORLD OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES
REMEMBER when Nokia’s N95 was considered the best camera phone around, the iPod was Apple’s most important product and cars didn’t drive themselves? With technology evolving at breakneck speed, it’s hard to imagine a time when smartphones weren’t considered a fifth appendage, when no one gave audible instructions to artificially intelligent gadgets, and we were able to function without apps like Uber and Airbnb from the burgeoning ondemand economy. The technological advances of the past two decades have been many. Read on to find out our pick of the best, in no particular order…
AMAZON A KINDLE 1
2007
In 2007, Amazon pulled back k the th curtain on the Kindle, igniting the digital book revolution, and has since faced increasing competition from cheaper and more versatile e-readers. While some people prefer the feel of a real book, being able to cram hundreds of tomes into your own portable library is nothing short of genius.
YOUTUBE Y 2005 2
B Back in the day, theth challenges and d costs t associated with distributing video were enormous. All that changed when YouTube made internet video free for everyone.
NOKIA N95 2007 3
Nokia’s pocket-friendly powerhouse po was a multimedia i computer with a list of functionality never before packed into one small device. With its 5-megapixel camera, slide-out multimedia controls and integrated GPS, it had seven million sales under its belt by its first birthday.
FLIP A2 VIDEO ULTRA 4 2007 2
BBefore sophisticated cameras were crammed into smartphones, this rechargeable pocket cam allowed users to effortlessly shoot quality video on its tiny 2in display, while its plug-’n’play nature meant videos were easy to transfer and edit, sticking two fingers up to the traditional camcorder in the process.
5 AMAZON A ECHO 2014 5
Once O upon a time, barking commands c at a device would have h been considered a sign of lunacy. But after the introduction of this cylindrical speaker and its virtual assistant, asking a bit of tech to play your favourite tunes, switch on the lights or order you a pizza is now as normal as turning on the telly.
APPLE IPOD 2001 6
It might seem archaic now, and many MP3 players l existed before it, but it was Apple’s blockbuster device that
convinced many to ditch their CD players, and meant for the first time that music lovers could carry their entire music collection with them wherever they went.
BLACKBERRY B CURVE 7 8 8300 2007
There T was a time when people couldn’t get enough of banging out missives via BBM on BlackBerry’s QWERTY keyboard, which helped cement its cult status until it stopped making devices in 2016. The Curve was one of the most sought-after at the time.
GOOGLE G 8 CHROMECAST C
2013
Before B Chromecast you had h dt to tether your smartphone/laptop to your telly or adopt some kind of convoluted set-up just to beam content on to the big screen. This cheap streaming dongle delivered a new generation of cord cutting, abandoning the concept of traditional TV while providing an affordable way of getting Netflix, YouTube and other web-based content on your gogglebox.
SONY PLAYSTATION 9 VITA 2011
Sure, S smartphones might have h ventured t into the gaming market, but with its joysticks, buttons, a six-axis motion-sensing system, a rear touchpad, quad-core processor and large 5in touchscreen, this portable powerhouse showed smartphones how it should be done when it comes to playing graphic heavy games.
NEST N LEARNING 11 T THERMOSTAT
2011 With W this hockey puck-shaped device, Nest N took something inherently boring – a thermostat that typically hides on the wall in a hallway – and turned it into a statement piece that piqued people’s interest in the smart home and saved them moolah in the process.
XBOX X KINECT 2010 12
T The ambitious all-seeing eye of o the Xbox’s Kinect sensor was a game-changer for those who liked to play in the digital world. Its controller-free, camera and motionbased nature encouraged sofa-based gamers to get off their backside and into a new kind of gameplay that often involved breaking a sweat.
iPHONE 4 2010 13
F For many, the smartphone re revolution didn’t start t t until ti Steve Jobs revealed the first iPhone in 2007. But it wasn’t until the 4 came along, with its redesigned overcoat, Retina
Display, front-facing camera and multitasking, that it really made its mark.
A year later, the incremental ‘S’ upgrade introduced Siri, and thus begun the voice assistant craze.
OCULUS RIFT 2012 14
Until U this VR headset h stepped on t to the th scene, VR headsets conjured up images of clunky and expensive machines from the 1980s. Then along came Palmer Luckey, who was the first to rake in millions of dollars via Kickstarter, thrusting the crowdsourcing site into the spotlight while bringing
VR into the mainstream.
BEATS B BY DRE 15 2008
When everyone’s favourite f it hip-hop quack joined forces with audio brand Monster to out a pair of colourful, bass-heavy cans, it set a new standard for stylish ‘look at me’ headphone design and kick-started the celebrity-supported
’phones revolution, with everyone from 50 Cent to the Marley family giving it a go.
TOMTOM GO 2004 16
Before B satnavs, the A-Z and pages p of internet directions were the th go-to way to get around. TomToms have continually been declared the smartest on the road thanks to high-quality maps and an abundance of road assistance. Sure, they occasionally sent lorries down country lanes, but it’s hard to imagine life without them.
SONY S ERICSSON 17 MBW-200 M BLUETOOTH B WATCH WAT 2008
Before the smartwatch tsunami, Sony Ericsson was innovating by releasing a trifecta of smartwatches. They weren’t as sophisticated as today’s techie timepieces, only being able to skip tracks, adjust volume, reject calls and notify with an envelope on a text arrival, but they helped pave the way for what’s doable today.
RING VIDEO 19 DOORBELL
2014 20
It started d out as a failed product on Shark Tank (think Dragons’ Den) before kickstarting the smart doorbell revolution, paving the way for us to see who’s at our front door without having to get out of our PJs. It’s now owned by Amazon. Take that, Sharks.
SAMSUNG FAMILY 20 H HUB FRIDGE
2016
With W artificially tifi i ll intelligent appliances all the rage, it makes sense to transform a refrigerator into a touchscreentoting interactive hub. With Bixby voice control, an internal camera and SmartThings integration to control anything from smart lights to thermostats, it’s the most sophisticated fridge we’ve ever seen.