Tomorrow’s phones

Toys By Ding

Mobile phones have come a long way from the brick-sized monsters which people carried around. Now, they've transformed into lean mean entertainment machines, which keep people connected and productive on the move. Modern phones pack everything from high-quality digital cameras to voice recognition. They can tell you where you are, and directions to where you want to go.

These are all possible today thanks to the thinkers and designers of companies. A simple idea has to go through several long steps before it comes to actual production. Once a concept reaches production phase, then it's a constant process of research and development for product improvement.

Take camera phones for example. Sharp produced the J-SH04 which was released in Japan in November 2000, as the first production camera phone. It featured a 110,000 pixel image sensor – today's cameras feature high-end optics, complex controls and high-end image processors.

But what can we expect from tomorrow's phones? A glimpse of what awaits us in the near future can be obtained by looking at today's concept phones. And one of the most talked about concept phones out there, is the Black Box from BenQ-Siemens.

The Black Box featured a touch-screen user interface that does not have a fixed menu driven system. The fluid format of the screen changed the interface depending on what function was being performed. To make a phone call, for example, the screen would display the traditional numeric keypad, but would switch to a control-interface with various buttons when playing music files.

Mobile giant Nokia partnered with Cambridge Nanoscience Centre, to come up with a concept device that takes the touchscreen even further. Morph uses nano-technology to make its screen flexible, but capitalises on the recent advancements of the nanotechnology field to add other features as well. It showcased self cleaning systems that repel water and dust. Alongside, Nokia displayed a technology called Nanograss, which absorbs energy from sunlight and coverts it to power to be used by the phone.

But a host of other features are being researched and conceptualised, which are based on already existing technologies. Global Positioning Systems (GPS) giant Garmin is researching with image identification technology, to develop a system to let a user know their location, simply by taking a digital image of a landmark.

Web services provider Google provides localised services for mobiles equipped with GPS systems. Users can find local weather and traffic information, locations of banks and restaurants on their GPS enabled handsets.

With technologies which allow devices to "talk" to one – another, mobiles are also playing the role of being a link up to the rest of the world. Every single inch of the planet now has comprehensive satellite phone coverage, making it possible for people to stay connected with one another.

What else does the future hold? That would depend on what scientists dream of doing next. Another idea, another concept, putting it through the design phases, making a model, market research. Years after the idea has been tried, tested and tried again, it will come into the market. And then you will have what you always wanted: a mobile phone with an ice dispenser.