Well here we are at the end of 2013.
It’s been a very interesting year in technology, lets see how did my predictions come out?
Android will continue to dominate in devices shipped, but will suffer with lack of revenue
Well, with a global marketshare of over 80% that’s a good call (Source).
(That’s more devices, doesn’t mean they make the money iOS devices do.)
Apple will have their 80 billionth app download
As of October, they were at 60 Billion downloads. There’s still a few days left, so if you got a new iOS device, get downloading please!
(FYI, there are now over 1 Million apps in the Apple app store.)
Samsung will ride high all the way to Q4. Blood will be in the water and the sharks will come
They are still riding high, despite the dreadful launch event for the S4 range and the very badly received Galaxy Gear.
The sharks are ZTE and Huawei. As Samsung watched and copied Apple, ZTE and Huawei are watching and copying Samsung
Not paying attention to the Android manufactures from Korea and China? Well you should! Xiaomi hired Hugo Barra, the former head of Product for Android at Google. The offerings from ZTE, Huawei and the like are running with the same or better specs than Samsung and are arguably better built.
Microsoft will buy Nokia. They are doing a stellar job of lowering Nokia’s share price to make the acquisition easier
I CALLED IT! I bloody called it! The signs of this happening had been there for years and now with the impeding departure of Steve Balmer, the purchase has happened.
This year, we get a new iPhone. It will be an iPhone 5S – Summer / Autumn
Correct here. iPhone 5s, check. Autumn launch, yep!
The 5c was a surprise though this year. The two handset approach from Apple will have to be monitored now to see how they use it to fill the middle ground with customers.
This year the iPad will get a refresh to match the industrial design of iPad Mini. – Autumn / Holidays
Boom! Called it too. We got a Retina iPad Mini too.
Google will bring out the next big version of Android, 4.3 or more likely 5 called Key Lime Pie – Summer
Damn! Google decided to switch from their standard naming system, to being associated with a real candy product and just made it a point upgrade. Lastly, it came out in late October. Damn.
Wearable computing will move main stream. I’m waiting to get my Pebble watch. There will be more examples of similar products. Apple’s entry will be a game changer
I got my Pebble. It’s changed my life. Samsung raced in to being in the game and made a mess of it. Apple seem to be pumping huge amounts of cash and staff at theirs. That bodes well.
4G Mobile data in the UK will have a slow start, as the cost for entry in to the super speed party will be high
Well the roll out has taken some time. EE have over 1 Million 4G customers (I’m one) and it is quite high cost but the speeds and coverage are worth it. The other UK carriers will have to catch up quickly.
You will actually be able to buy an OLED TV
You can! You can even buy a curved one, if you’re so inclined (and rich).
The next Xbox and Playstation will be announced. The Playstation will support 4K (Ultra HD) resolution. The Xbox may not
There’s no official word from Sony, but they have announced a streaming service and theoretically it would seem 4K is possible. Interesting considering Microsoft couldn’t even get the Xbox One to work properly with UK TVs (see: 50/60MHz issues)
Pundits will keep talking about the non-existent Apple Television
And talking and talking and talking. There have been no firm details but some good concepts.
So then, out of the 13 predictions, I make that 10 solid wins. Not bad at all.
2013 has been a very eventful year in technology, with some changes and advancements that may seem niche at the moment, but will in the next few years become common place (think Apple’s Touch ID and of course, the Pebble and wearable technologies).
