How to Stay Current with Tech Trends
Gadgets and online services continue to improve as time passes. It can be daunting to follow its pace, so older people may avoid learning them. Contrary to popular belief, you can keep up with future technology trends no matter your age.
Technology has become more intuitive for users so that it could benefit anyone regardless of age. Check your familiarity with tech trends by answering this tech age quiz. No matter the results, you will learn something new as you continue to read this article.
We will start by discussing the benefits we all receive from technology. After that, we will go through some of the latest technology trends, such as artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency. More importantly, we will elaborate on how to adapt to future trends.
Technology is for people of all ages.
The assumption that older adults do not follow tech trends is an outdated stereotype. According to 2020 research, 77% of people over 65 years old use the internet at home.
The same findings indicated that the number of women who are 75 years old and above and use technology regularly rose more than twice from 2011. The internet use for people aged 65 to 74 jumped from 52% to 83% in 2019.
What’s more, 28% of people aged 75 and higher use tablets, representing a 15% increase since 2015. This report also says that 21% of the same age range have social media accounts.
More people are starting to realize the numerous benefits of new technological trends. Here are some examples:
- You can now have anything delivered to your door thanks to the internet. Most of your favorite shops now have online sites where you can click on everything you want.
- Teleconferencing and social media apps allow you to talk to loved ones no matter where they are. You can share photos from your last trip and speak face-to-face through the screen.
- Now there are more ways to spend your days productively. For example, numerous online resources like websites and videos can teach you new skills. You may even speak to professionals worldwide if you need extra pointers.
- Furthermore, you could play simple games like crossword puzzles or solitaire for free. You can binge-watch thousands of TV series and movies online streaming services. If you want something more intellectual, you could play chess against people in remote areas.
- Various apps and websites can help you prepare for tax returns, bill payments, and bank records. They will crunch the numbers and organize the paperwork on your behalf.
The latest technology trends
We have only explored a slim portion of the latest technological trends. The internet is only the beginning since experts work hard to improve technology.
People in the past thought the internet was useless because it only had a few web pages with limited usage. Those websites contained textual information and a few images, but nothing more.
Old computers did not have that much functionality either. Nowadays, laptops are essential for everyone, from children to older adults. Kids use computers to participate in online learning. Adults use them to work from home, achieving a work-life balance.
Thanks to remote work, parents can spend less time at the office and more time with their children. Older people can use social media to speak with loved ones who live far away. They could also reconnect with friends they have not seen in years.
We continue to enjoy more technological marvels, but we will see more amazing things. Here are the growing trends in the digital world:
Health devices
You might be familiar with Apple Watches if you use Apple products. Similar devices like the FitBit allow users to keep track of specific vital signs, such as your heart rate and body temperature.
This feature can be a lifesaver for those with certain medical conditions. They could quickly adjust their behavior whenever a vital sign veers toward abnormal levels.
These fitness trackers help you monitor your performance during a workout. You could avoid reaching a blood pressure level when jogging. On the other hand, you could sustain a heart rate for weight loss.
These health monitoring devices have advanced significantly, so we now have WiFi-enabled nano-pills. A doctor may install it in a patient’s body to keep a close watch on their health.
Some hospitals use distributed ledger technology to improve patient access to their medical records. The Siloam Hospitals in Indonesia is a prime example. We will talk about that trending technology later.
Transportation
Cars that drive themselves used to be science fiction stories. Nowadays, you can get a vehicle like that from Tesla. You can find several videos of Tesla owners relaxing in the driver’s seat as the car traverses the freeway.
These automobiles detect road signs, pedestrians, and other vehicles to avoid accidents. Global positioning systems or GPS is now standard in these vehicles so they can basically take you anywhere you like.
What’s more, they could park themselves at a nearby spot. If you need to ride it again, you do not need to walk toward your vehicle.
Tesla cars have the “summon” feature that prompts these automobiles to drive themselves towards your location. What’s more, Teslas and similar cars are electric vehicles.
Battery technology has advanced significantly, so that modern cars do not rely heavily on crude oil. Some use batteries that you can charge at any power outlet.
Artificial intelligence (AI)
The term “AI” brings notions of fully-sentient computers and robots. However, real-life artificial intelligence refers to digital capabilities that allow machines to perform human tasks.
Voice assistants like Siri and Alexa are great examples. Your iPhone has a female voice that can understand and follow voice commands. AI also increases productivity for factories.
You can open a sample of AI right now. Search engines like Google use artificial intelligence to suggest content to users based on their preferences.
That is why search engines can show relevant sources whenever you input a query. AI also provides suitable advertisements for products and services you might like.
These facilities can rely on robotic process automation to perform repeated tasks multiple times without tiring. Still, humans need to prepare these systems and respond if they malfunction.
AI also helps with fraud detection for electronic records. It can detect patterns unique to genuine copies that people struggle to identify.
Cryptocurrency
Digital currency is one of the new technology trends that is trending worldwide. You might have noticed people buying stuff using their smartphones.
They have apps that store fiat currency to cover expenses in brick-and-mortar stores and online marketplaces. Nowadays, we will see another digital transformation of money.
We can buy things via online payments, but we still use fiat currency. The numbers on your online account merely represent the bills and coins of your country.
Soon, we will replace that physical money with a new digital form known as cryptocurrencies. They are digital assets that people use to purchase goods and services.
They operate on decentralized computer networks to become more resilient than regular networks. Disabling one of the computers in the networks will not compromise the entire system.
On the other hand, people can take down an ordinary network by targeting its central server. Blockchain technology makes cryptocurrency networks possible.
Crypto is one of the new technologies changing multiple facets of society. For example, it has sparked a new technology trend called decentralized autonomous organizations or DAOs.
They turn the traditional office hierarchy over its head by giving power to the employees. DAOs have a native cryptocurrency that members use to vote on the future actions of the entire organization.
Once they have reached a consensus, the leaders of the DAO will implement the final decision. Some modern companies now function as DAOs, and we may see this technology trend expand in the near future.
We could go on and on regarding the possibilities of cryptocurrency, but we have to discuss the other technology trends. It is one of the most exciting updates in the technology industry!
Virtual reality
As the name suggests, virtual reality (VR) lets people experience environments that closely simulate real life. It is prevalent in the gaming industry due to VR games.
People experience this technology with the help of VR headsets. The headgear allows users to inhabit their favorite game and interact with it in unique ways.
If you do not want to use VR accessories, you could experience virtual reality as augmented reality (AR). This technology lets you view virtual media in the real world.
For example, the mobile game Pokemon GO lets players find virtual pets in the real world. The app shows them nearby Pokemon that they can view from their phone screens.
VR is one of the new technology trends that want to expand its scope. The Ikea mobile app uses augmented reality to enable customers to view how furniture would look in their homes.
People may select an item from the Swedish furniture brand and then aim their camera where they would put that fixture. The app will show the thing as if it is in the person’s home.
As a result, Ikea makes it easier for shoppers to choose the correct item for their houses. Nowadays, more companies want to expand the use-cases of VR for workplaces.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is currently working on VR headsets for office workers. He named the upcoming VR headgear Project Cambria, and it will facilitate remote work.
He wants employees to collaborate on his VR platform, Horizon Workrooms, with the help of his upcoming accessory. Unfortunately, virtual reality can only upgrade with the help of other new technology trends.
5G mobile networks
VR experts want the technology to become an extended reality. In other words, they want people to enter VR as if it is a real-world location. That way, everyone can benefit from this technology trend.
These experts refer to it by another name: the Metaverse. Unfortunately, it will need faster internet speeds to make this possible. All online services require a lot of data shared among myriad computers worldwide.
This Metaverse requires an unprecedented level of detail to deliver its feature. That means it would need internet speeds that are not widely available.
Fortunately, emerging technologies will soon provide 5G worldwide. The term stands for “5th generation,” designed to connect everyone via their devices.
It delivers higher data speeds, better reliability, and broader network availability that we have never seen before. In other words, 5G provides fast internet wherever you are around the world 24/7,
According to Qualcomm, 5G could generate global economic output worth $13.1 trillion and provide 22.8 million new jobs. Also, the telecommunications firm said 5G can realize its full economic potential by 2035.
Fortunately, this is one of the technology trends that draws closer to reality, thanks to the NICT or the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology.
On May 30, 2022, the Japanese institute discovered how to transmit 1.02 petabits per second through an internet connection. A petabit or PiB is worth one million gigabits.
As a result, the NICT distributed data billions of times faster than current internet speeds. It used a standard optic fiber cable so that we may see wide use soon!
Keeping up with emerging technologies
That was a lot of technology trends! The most interesting part is that we only discussed a summary of each. If you want to learn more, you will have to check other sources.
It can be challenging to grasp all of this without an expert guiding you. Fortunately, you can find numerous seminars that elaborate on these trending technology trends.
A quick Google search can show such events in your area. If you are currently employed, perhaps your industry holds public conferences about these new trends.
Various sectors want to adapt to the new technology trend to improve their business processes. Attending related events may even help you earn a work promotion.
However, these often charge hundreds of dollars for admission. Fortunately, you can learn about the upcoming technologies for free with the help of the following:
- Follow online publications such as CoinDesk, Inquirer USA, and Yahoo Tech. They consistently share articles about the latest technologies for free.
- You could tune in to online influencers on social media. These regular people keep themselves in the loop with the latest technologies so that you can receive updates as soon as possible.
- Online classes can teach you about these technologies. Various companies such as Google provide them for free. Alternatively, you can take information technology courses from colleges and universities.
- You could watch many tech conferences on YouTube, such as TED Talks. They are free, and they provide fascinating insights into emerging technologies.
- If you are a busy person, you could just listen to podcasts. Let them play while you wait on the bus or finish late-night work.
Conclusion
Everyone can keep up-to-date with the latest tech trends, regardless of age. The internet provides a lot of free information and updates about the subject.
You will see the trends toward an overarching technology vision: Web 3.0. It goes by the name “decentralized web” or the “internet of things,” and it is the next evolution of the internet.
What’s more, you will discover various companies investing in Web3. They believe that this development will provide a more inclusive internet that offers more benefits to people.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I need to keep up with tech trends?
Emerging technologies are shifting our societies regardless of whether we learn about them. We should keep up to date with the trends to find out how we can improve our lives with them.
What are some examples of emerging technology trends?
Machine learning and cloud computing are changing how we process and store information. Meanwhile, quantum computers may accelerate the advancement further.
What are the benefits of technology?
Technology allows you to perform tasks easier and faster. As a result, you have more time to do more essential things in your life, such as socializing with friends.
What is artificial intelligence?
It is a technology that lets devices perform tasks usually performed by humans. They maintain high levels of productivity without stopping for breaks.
How do I keep up with technology?
You can start by reading online articles and videos on topics like edge computing and data protection laws. Then, see if there are seminars that teach tech trends in your area so that you can receive expert advice.
