15 things you could not do 15 years ago

Hold the world in your hands

The best camera, they say, is the one you have with you. While smartphones have become ubiquitous, access to easy-to-use cameras has also evolved. It was not long before these tiny smartphone lenses were used instead of other inexpensive low-cost shots. As phones have become more popular and more expensive, cameras have improved to the point of becoming the choice of many professionals around the world.

Smartphone cameras may not perform as well as DSLRs, but they are more than adequate for the casual photographer. 2015 was a turning point, as Flickr revealed that the most popular camera maker on its site was Apple. Since then, low and medium camera sales have dropped, amateur and casual photographers trusting their phones. Wherever we go, we can capture what is happening with clarity and stunning detail.

Most phones are equipped with two cameras: one at the back for photographs and one at the front for photos of your face. There have always been selfies, of course; it's just that a front camera made them a lot easier. The selfie is so rooted nowadays that it's even an appropriate word in a proper dictionary. Of course, it's not without side effects, including body dysmorphism and the dreaded dick spike. And that anyone can take your picture, whether we agree or not.

Follow your movements effortlessly

Virtual reality has straddled the hype train more than once, and each time it ended unpleasantly. Anyone who remembers Virtuality or Forte VFX 1 will know how bad the commercial VR has been. In 2013, the revival of VR began, while Oculus VR began sending its first development kits to the first Kickstarter backers.

These first headsets quickly developed a passionate fan base, as people began to believe that virtual reality had arrived. A running train has formed and other companies have started producing their own virtual reality platforms. Facebook has spent $ 2 billion to acquire Oculus, which, he thought at the time, was the next major step in the computer.

Other people, including Sony, HTC / Valve and Microsoft, joined the game, all with their own rotations on a VR headset connected to a PC or console. Samsung and Google have adopted a different angle, using smartphones and rudimentary visors to offer lightweight and affordable options. Now, people had a whole series of ways to enter the virtual world and experience something new.

And there is also the advent of augmented reality, where people can use glasses to the head, or their smartphone, to project digital information into the real world. It is still in its infancy today, but give it another five years, and we may all live in a virtual space. Or this hype train will have landed on a bridge and we will all wait for the next big thing to run.

See, listen and play everything in seconds

Social media existed before the birth of Engadget – Friendster began in 2002 and MySpace in 2003 – but it was only in the last decade that they swallowed the world. Facebook started in 2004 as a platform reserved for colleges and opened to all others in 2006. Since then, the site has become a major source of information and (false) information, as well as 39, a nerve center of our lives. It was a place to stay in touch with family and friends, know the most important events and, of course, remember your friends' birthdays.

Twitter, which was launched a few months before Facebook opens its doors to the public, has materialized the same desire to be informed. The flow of short, easy-to-share messages from the platform became a way to keep an eye on what was happening in a much more immediate way. Twitter also allowed politicians and celebrities to control their own message in the media, and fans could also interact directly with their idols. More than that, Facebook and Twitter have also helped to help people build new relationships with like-minded people, create communities and even meet potential romantic interests.

The power of social media was known to all during the Arab Spring, when protesters used the platforms to protest against the oppressive regimes of the Middle East. Social media platforms have been an alternative to state-funded media and have proven useful in enabling citizens to disseminate information to their colleagues. At the time, we thought it was a positive force that helped everyone to embrace democracy and transparency.

In the years that followed, however, we saw the ugly side of social media, as studies revealed that this service was at the root of depression, dysmorphism, and loneliness. Users are often misled into thinking that everyone's life is better or cooler than theirs, especially on photo-centric networks like Instagram and Snapchat. It is also very easy to intimidate and harass vulnerable people, with sometimes tragic consequences.

There are also the disadvantages of what is described as "surveillance capitalism" because sharing our deepest thoughts at a price. Specifically, what we say to our friends, interests and photos can be monetized and presented to the highest bidder. What we have gained in connections around the world, we lost in privacy.

And, as we have learned in recent years, the systems have also been easily manipulated by those who wanted to destroy our democracy. Social media has gone from a way of connecting friends around the world to a means of spreading misinformation and sowing discord. Its goals may not be bad, but leaders need to redouble their efforts to keep people safe.

Create anything (provided it's small and plastic)

A long time ago, we had two options for the computer: use a desktop computer or a laptop. Tablet PCs, which existed before the iPad, were mainly used in unattractive and expensive industrial or educational environments. In 2010, this changed with the advent of the Apple iPad, designed for everyone and at a price of only $ 499, which was relatively affordable.

Samsung's Galaxy Tab, the Kindle Fire from Amazon and many others have followed in the same direction. These devices were designed for media consumption; this big screen means that videos, comics and magazines are more beautiful than ever. And they were much cheaper than laptops, making it a great way to get kids and seniors online.

Nowadays, the tablet has gone from a handyman toy to a "post-PC" device that people can try and use instead of a PC. Since 2012, even Microsoft has gone into action by selling its Surface devices to people eager to work tirelessly. Today, even normal Windows PCs without a touch screen are rare, which shows that tablets have had a lasting influence in the industry.

Take a thousand pounds on a plane

It has always been possible to have a house that Smart-er that most, you just needed a series of remote controls for it to work. It started to change when Philips launched Hue, a smart light bulb that can be controlled wirelessly. In 2015, Amazon launched Alexa with Echo, a voice assistant and a smart speaker combo. It is possible to talk to compatible systems in your home and let them do as you wish.

Now you can buy a number of smart products, from Nest's smart thermostat to Ring's video doorbell. Google has been quick to incorporate its own platform, called Assistant, into a variety of products, including Google Home smart speakers. Devices and integrations with smaller, cheaper third parties would follow, and it is now difficult to find a product that does not work with one or the other.

Users of iPhones or Microsoft products and Samsung Rocker also had their own voice assistant. Siri (2011), Cortana (2014) and Bixby (2017) have their own reasons to exist, although they have not had the mainstream success enjoyed by Amazon and Google products. In fact, Samsung's offer is so hated that the company had to allow people to remap the trigger of its mobile hardware for something else.

Ask the world for patronage, or support

The sharing economy is one where individuals can sell goods or services for a fee, managed by an online marketplace. One of the most obvious examples is carpooling, with applications like Uber and Lyft, launched in 2010 and 2012. Airbnb, launched in 2008, allowed users to do the same, allowing them to offer their own goods (or part of it) as a hotel room.

And being able to call a taxi from your phone and let it drive to your location is pretty amazing. And with automated service and payment, it's a lot easier than looking for cash at a drunken party. Not to mention that staying in someone's apartment is far more interesting than a generic hotel room when traveling.

These applications allowed just about anyone to become a taxi driver with his own car or hotel with his own home. Walks and stays were often cheaper than with an established business, and many people loved keeping up with taxi services and expensive hotels. In return, extensive training or background checks did not result in any cost. En revanche, il n’ya pas eu de formation approfondie ni de vérification des antécédents.

Uber, Lyft et Airbnb, entre autres, étaient heureux de ne pas avoir à entretenir le matériel loué. Mais l'absence de réglementation signifiait que les utilisateurs disposaient de peu de recours en cas de problème et que les travailleurs n'étaient pas traités comme des employés. Les chauffeurs pourraient refuser les camionnettes basées sur la race ou le handicap, tout comme les locataires d’Airbnb, qui violent tous les deux la loi fédérale. De plus, les entreprises de covoiturage échappent essentiellement à la législation du travail et ne versent pas d'avantages à leurs chauffeurs.

Voyager avec électricité

Malheureusement, la technologie n’est toujours pas aussi flexible que nous en avons besoin. That's likely to change now (literally) that we're a couple of months away from the launch of the first commercially available folding smartphone. By the end of the year, we're also expecting to see the first rollable TVs arrive (for the select few who can afford them). But the benefits of using a flexible display are clearly obvious, and are only likely to get better in future.

A smaller smartphone that folds out to a tablet when required could lighten the load in our pockets and make us more productive on the go. Flexible displays may redefine how we organize our homes if we no longer need to have unsightly TVs cluttering up the space. Not to mention that we can redesign things like cars and cockpits to have location and function-specific jobs.

The initial wave of devices might be a little clunky, but it points to a future in which we can all wave goodbye to rigidity. And with it, plenty of avenues for new ways to interact and engage with the future.

Written by Nicole Lee and Daniel Cooper.

[Image Credits: Chris Velazco, Evan Rodgers, Cherlynn Low, Brian Oh, Edgar Alvarez, Nathan Ingraham, Roberto Baldwin (Engadget). ViewApart via Getty (Social Media), NurPhoto via Getty (Google Maps), Tero Vesalainen via Getty (Streaming)]