Smartphone handsets are so, well, 2016 . . .
Sony looks to ’projected’ tech to outwit mobile competitors
IF Sony’s senior executives have their way, the smartphone as we know it may not exist a decade from now. New technology recently launched by the Japanese electronics giant, and its current research and development, point to a future where physical handsets may be redundant.
With the smartphone war having developed, for now, into a two-horse race between Samsung and Apple, Sony is looking to move beyond the handset to restore its pre-eminent position in consumer technology.
“Today we are dependent on our phones but, as the paradigm shifts to new forms of communication, we want to be at the forefront of new ideas,” Sony president and CEO Kazuo Hirai said in Tokyo this week.
Speaking at a media briefing, Hirai emphasised his vision of a company that would focus on building greater intelligence into devices and services, rather than focusing exclusively on the hardware.
In this way, the vast technical expertise of the group across numerous categories of consumer electronics could be leveraged to meet the changing needs of the market.
“I fundamentally believe that at Sony we have a lot of different technology and a lot of great products that push the boundaries of communication intelligently, providing the platforms, products and services through all the assets we have,” he said.
Sony recently made waves at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where Hirai presided over the launch of new products in five major categories. These included a new generation of Xperia X smartphones; a voice-controlled earpiece, the Ear, for interacting with a phone without having it in the hand; a continual-capture mini-camera called the Eye; a voice assistant called the Agent; and the Xperia Projector, which projects an interactive display onto any surface, in effect turning the surface into a computer or smartphone.
Hirai told Business Times in Tokyo that his favourite technology launched in Barcelona was the Ear, because of what it represented in terms of the user not being focused on the smartphone screen.
“But, as we move forward, there will be many other exciting products.”
A clue to the direction of some of these products lies in a new Sony slogan, “Look up”, which emphasises a focus on the world around you rather than what is happening on a smartphone or smartwatch.
The Ear, along with the Xperia projector, suggests a near future when the handset itself is replaced by gadgets that project the smartphone interface onto any working surface, with gesture and voice controls replacing finger taps.
Miniaturised projectors displaying interactive phones or
‘Look up’ puts the focus on the world around you rather than your phone screen
computers could be built into any object, from a necklace to a watch.
While Hirai did not reveal what Sony had in mind beyond the current range of devices, Sony unveiled a new initiative dubbed IoT BIZ.
It is focused on the Internet of Things, the buzz phrase for networked devices and objects — such as fridges — that automatically send and receive data.
The initial focus of the Sony division will be on healthcare and smart home solutions, using technology such as the image-recognition and voiceassistance capabilities of devices like the Agent.
Smart light bulbs, which can be used for anything from Wi-Fi to audio, have also been given as an example of how Sony could integrate interior design with communication and security technology.
That the initiative is still relatively unformed is encapsulated in its slogan: “Craft the something”. However, it would be a key element of future initiatives in mobile devices, said Hiroki Totoki, president and CEO of Sony Mobile Communications.
A Sony veteran of three decades, Totoki used to be senior vice-president in charge of business strategy, and was tasked in 2014 with turning around the mobile business.
He said on Wednesday that the division was set to meet its targets for the past financial year, to be announced on April 28.
“We have financial strength coming back. Last year, we made our biggest transformation yet as a company, reducing head count by 28%.
“From 2016, this company will make a profit, and from 2017, we will have growth with smart products, including smartphones and the Internet of Things.”
While Totoki was brutally frank in fleshing out Hirai’s vision, and acknowledged that the smartphone was no longer a segment in which Sony expected to grow market share, he did not go as far as to suggest it would be phased out.
Rather, he said, the division would focus on bundling products and services, and the smartphone would remain central to this strategy.