Many believe that smartphone use has plateaued and mobile computing is about to enter the next era of mixer reality. Learn more about it in this article.
The ubiquity of smartphones can be considered an event that singlehandedly changed the technological, social, and economic landscapes of the world. With a computer at our fingertips at all times, people quickly adapted their world to center on this piece of technology. People saw their entire work life, social life, and economic opportunities shift to the smartphone. While its downsides can be debated, it shook up the entire world system in a significant way.
However, since the launch of the first iPhone in 2009, the mobile computing era can be seen to have hit a peak. A glorious peak, but as all progressions go, mobile computing has not had anything new to offer in years and interest in it seems to have plateaued. Most smartphone upgrades are a subtle improvement in hardware and technologically, it seems to have hit a dead end. The question then arises, what is next after the smartphone?
With people demanding more immersive experiences that do not involve a handheld screen, mixed reality is the best option to provide new technological avenues and experiences to consumers. This article makes a case for mixed reality and how it is the technology to reign supreme after the smartphone.
What is Mixed Reality?
Mixed reality (MR) is the merging of the digital world with the real, physical world. While the smartphone was limited due to its screen, MR allows users to experience technology using all of their senses other than sight. It is, however, important to differentiate MR from virtual reality (VR). VR completely replaces the real world with a virtual one, whereas, MR overlays virtual objects in the real world, allowing users to interact with them in real life.
MR has been around for a long time, and it is by no means a brand-new technology. However, it has only caught mainstream attention recently. The launch of the augmented-reality game Pokemon Go was hugely responsible for attracting the attention of people to the many uses and benefits of digital realities.
Since then, there has been a steady increase in new technological launches using mixed reality, including Microsoft’s HoloLens – an MR headset –and Magic Leap One, to provide immersive experiences to consumers.
Why is MR The Next Big Computing Platform?
Mobile computing has already transformed the way we interact with technology. But MR takes it to the next level, providing an even more immersive and engaging experience. With MR, users can interact with virtual objects more naturally and intuitively, using gestures and voice commands. This creates a more seamless experience and enables users to be more productive and efficient.
MR technology can also facilitate better collaboration between individuals and teams, regardless of their location. It enables users to work on the same virtual object simultaneously, even if they are in different parts of the world. This can be particularly useful for remote workers and teams working on complex projects.
Most importantly, MR takes away the element of getting trapped in a digital world, which is front and center in every tech dystopia. Instead, MR combines the physical and digital worlds seamlessly to eliminate the artificial feeling most people get using technology.
Final Thoughts
The overall concept of MR makes it highly intriguing and takes it one set above the current VR and AR technology available for use. If the technology landscape continues to progress like this, the future of computing is all about wearable using MR to help you throughout your day.
