I was just thinking about all the types of items that I would regularly have
around me or carry on my person during my adult life, and how many of them I no
longer carry:
- iPad/Discman
- Run tracker (e.g. Nike Plus)
- Keyring LED light
- Gaming handheld (e.g. Nintendo DS)
- Guitar tuner
- Round timer
The functions of all of these are now provided by my smartphone, leaving me
with lighter pockets and fewer fade marks in the pockets of my jeans.
We’ve made a lot of progress, but there are still a few items whose demise I’m
gleefully anticipating:
- Keys – I still need three separate keys to get into my apartment.
- Cards (e.g. credit cards, library card) – Apple Pay?
- iPad Mini – We’ll need either much bigger phones or smaller tablets
before I stop using this device.
And conversely, other things that I want to see stay around:
- Mechanical watch – Apple will have to pry my Planet Ocean from my cold,
dead wrists to get me onto a “wearable”.
- Camera – I’ll be carrying good glass regardless of how many photo
filters Apple and Google add to their mobile OSes.
- Journal – Even the best note-taking apps are still a far shot from the
supreme usability of blank paper.
- Laptop – For the times when you want to create instead of consume.
Also, the most sophisticated virtual keyboard still can’t hold a candle to
the real thing.