Interview: Putting consumer tech fears in perspective.

As technology — not just pop culture, sports and politics — drives conversation, the latest iteration of Apple’s iPhone stirred consumer passion earlier this month: Would wireless headphone technology be expensive and inconvenient? To put consumer fears and frustrations into perspective, as the pace of technological change unfolds, the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board turned to Juan Gilbert of the University of Florida, the chairman of the department of computer and information sciences and engineering in the College of Engineering. A full transcript can be found at OrlandoSentinel.com/Opinion. Q: Steve Jobs always maintained that Apple’s job was to tell customers what they wanted, not the other way around. Is the iPhone 7 a continuation of that legacy? A: It’s hard to say. The iPhone 7 is an extension of iPhone 6. One can argue that it’s following that theme or you could argue that it’s just the next step. Personally, I see it as the next step. Q: Has the iPhone peaked in terms of how much Apple can improve new versions? Is this indicative of the market for smartphones in general? A: It has far from peaked. There’s much more to come with mobile devices. Every time there’s a release of a new phone, this question is asked, but there’s still more to come. Stay tuned. Q: Does the move away from the headphone jack indicate that people really don’t care about the quality of music any longer? Or will the quality be better with the new connection? A: Bluetooth has arrived. It’s mature, and the quality is really good. I can’t speak for Apple, but I doubt the reason for getting rid of the headphone jack was about people ignoring quality. It’s most likely about the proliferation of Bluetooth and the quality it delivers. Going wireless was the next logical step. Q: Beyond the iPhone specifically, can consumers who use smartphones ever be safe from hackers? A: Great question. Yes, you can be safe from hackers using a smartphone, but it depends on how far you want to go to protect your data and privacy. For example, you can disable location, never use the web browser, etc. and only use your smartphone as a phone. This is old school, but it would certainly protect you. Q: Is it realistic to think consumers can keep our personal information away from data brokers? A: This is very challenging. I don’t know if there’s a good answer without federal government involvement. As long as it’s acceptable to acquire this information, then this will happen. I heard a crazy statistic that if we read all of the privacy agreements we get on our phone, they would amount to some crazy number of days. So, I don’t see a solution on the horizon anytime soon. Q: Beyond consumer issues related to smartphones, you have championed efforts to increase the number of minorities in the computing disciplines. How do your efforts at the University of Florida compare with those nationally? A: There are approximately 150 black/African-American computing sciences doctoral students in the United States. The University of Florida has 17. We have the nation’s largest group of black/African-American computer-science doctoral students in the nation. We have a new doctorate degree in human-centered computing that is majority female, majority minority and majority U.S citizen. The UF cares about diversity.