2014 was a killer year for innovative tech products - some of which represented improvements on existing technology, while others pointed ahead to whole new worlds. Here are the top X innovative tech products of 2014 - plus X to watch out for in the year ahead!
1: Virtual reality
If Oculus Crescent sounds like a transformer, that’s appropriate.
The ubiquity of mobile phone technology makes the idea that you could be holding your last ever phone seem slightly ridiculous. Barring catastrophes, why would we suddenly stop using a technology we so evidently love? Because we basically already have.
Could anything be more Zeitgeisty than a 3D printer that can produce things to fit into the Internet of Things?
The first generation of 3D printers are mostly used for producing small items. But Jennifer Lewis of Harvard University has helped create a new kind of 3D printer, one that can print electronics.
2014 saw an explosion of concern about cybersecurity, as more and more of life moves online - especially financial life. When big companies and even government agencies were hacked and millions of people’s details were leaked, we all sat up and took notice.
Sometimes it’s useful to store public-facing data in the cloud. When that’s necessary, it’s typically done inside the web application by the end user. They’ll upload their pictures, video or other content quite happily using the app.
In an interview with O'Reilly Radar writer Mac Slocum, Joshua Bixby, president of Strangeloop, said that the days in which consumers were happy to just be able to connect to the Web with their mobile devices are long gone. Today, the owners of smart phones and tablets demand that Web pages load quickly on their mobile devices and that these pages include all the bells and whistles of a full Web experience.
Your business already boasts its own interactive Web site. You run a busy blog promoting your company and its services. You Tweet your followers whenever your business is holding special sales or launches a new service or product. Your business's Facebook page is steadily adding followers.
We've all had this experience: We log onto our computers at work and something's not working. Maybe we aren't receiving our e-mail messages. Maybe our Web browser has slowed to a crawl. Maybe the computer crashes every 10 minutes.
Whatever the problem, it makes it impossible for you to complete your work.
Even the biggest tech powerhouses make the occasional business mistake. And one of the
most frequent? They let their competitors set their agendas.
Take Google. Google remains the undisputed search engine king. It's also one of the most
powerful companies in the world, but that hasn't stopped Google from trying unsuccessfully to
become the next Facebook.
Gmail, Google's e-mail system, is steadily growing in popularity. This isn't a surprise; Google hasn't developed too many products that prove unpopular with consumers.
But are you using Gmail to its fullest potential?
You aren't if you're not using these tips to get the most out of your Gmail account:
Label your messages: Is your e-mail inbox overflowing with messages from friends, co-workers, bosses, and family members? It can prove difficult to keep track of these messages.
