2010 has been a vintage year for innovation. R&D teams across the globe have gone into overdrive, with the main focus on going green and the intuitive exchange of information and ideas.
The usual suspects have been prevalent in their innovation; Apple, Google, Facebook, Sony and Panasonic all deserving of special praise. Below we’ve compiled a list of, what we feel are, the best emerging innovations of 2010. These are the innovations and technologies we feel will shape the future of their relevant sectors over the coming year and be the inspiration for many a copycat. They might not have always been the very first in their field, but they sure did it well. Take a look and be suitably inspired:
1. Apple iPad
A giant iPhone, a bit of a gimmick, too expensive. All these claims have been levelled at the iPad, but there’s no doubt it has changed the face of portable computing. A little flawed with its lack of USB and micro SD slots, its lack of Flash compatibility and, hell, coming back to it, the price. But there is no doubt that the iPad has captivated the public and challenged the notion of what a portable computer should be. Far more than just being a big iPhone, the concept of the iPad and the technologies it contains will be the future of portable computing. We are predicting that the tablet market will overtake the laptop market over the coming years, and we have the iPad to thank for starting that trend. Not to mention the strength of the growing app market, which could potentially change the way we view the internet forever. Forget the competition, the iPad is the tablet of choice and will only get better in the face of such vast competition.
2. Google TV
Google has always been at the front end of the queue to showcase internet innovation. Sony have always a leader in home entertainment. So Google and Sony came together to bring us Google TV back in May 2010. The Internet/TV link up isn’t new, but this development has really set the bench mark for Internet TV and we can see this type of technology in every home by the end of the decade or sooner.
3. Nissan all-electric car
The Nissan Leaf is the first mass-produced, fully electric vehicle out there. It was named ‘2011 European Car of the Year’ before it was even scheduled for release. The World has been crying out for an electric car that isn’t, well…rubbish. Previous efforts have been extremely flawed, but this attempt by Nissan has the brightest of energy efficient glowing endorsments from the motor industry. We may finally now have a real alternative to the petrol car. In a green new World, the potential of the this and similar subsequent cars is huge.
4. Apple iAds
Apple were at it again with iAd, a new advertising platform to go with the No.1 innovation on our list, the iPad and iPhone. The number of users of both of these platforms is huge – and rising fast, so iAd is looking like being a very big deal. Not to mention the fact it is actually pretty amazing! Read more about the potential future of advertising here.
5. 3D TV
23/12/10
