Mobility Without Accessibility is Nothing
Friday, January 29th, 2010
I put together a little bar graph to show the increase in size of Apple’s mobile devices over the last few years. That’s really not the point of this post, but it did get me thinking about other things, and where I think that mobile devices, and stationary devices alike are headed in the next few years.
With the release of the iPad this week, I started thinking about the way mobile devices have evolved over the last decade, and realized that somewhere over the last few years we stopped worrying so much about size, and more about what the device is actually for. The reason I bring this up, is because I remember Apple releasing a new/better/smaller iPod every year, or even twice a year. Now, although size does matter, we have other things to think about, like syncing, storage, and accessibility.
I think we’re approaching an interesting point in time where a separate device is needed for everything we do. Let me rephrase that, I don’t think we need a separate device for everything we do, but that seems to be the way that the need for mobility is playing out. There is a new device for everywhere we are and everything we do: we have a semi-stationary desktop or laptop that is our storage device and main syncing console, a cellphone for when we’re on the go… and now, with the iPad, a browsing/reading device for when we’re lounging around the house.
In my opinion, we’re seriously overlooking the need to store data and synchronize it with each device harmoniously and effortlessly. Now, the obvious answer is to store and sync everything online… essentially doing away with the need for personal physical storage devices, and I do believe that this is slowly coming into view. I guess, I’m just wondering when, and why it hasn’t happened yet.
Here’s my dream: I want all of my devices to sync themselves online at all times (in other words, I don’t want to have to think about it). That includes my music, photos, files and everything else that I could ever want to keep in digital form. I want to be able to purchase and access music from any device, and then listen to it in my car, my phone, and my house without having to worry about which computer it was on, or lugging around an external hard drive.
Is this too much to ask?
What do you think is the next step for computing? Do you agree with me? Disagree?