The speed of technological advancement in the past few years is remarkable, which is why a lot of people have a hard time predicting what may happen in 2022, 2023, and beyond.
Between optimised mobile gaming and the emergence of connectivity through video chats, 2020 and 2021 have already seen many changes in people’s lives as a result of technology.
That does not mean there is a period of stagnation coming, as tech advancements are coming thick and fast. Companies are investing billions into the products, services, and ideas they believe will shape the future.
Not every gadget, service, or innovation pans out. Some ideas plateau and do not become the phenomena that experts predicted. For every failure, there are several success stories in the tech sector.
Below are five technology trends that may surprise people in 2022 and beyond.
1. 5G Becomes a Home Network Option
Most people who buy brand-new smartphones in 2021 want devices that have 5G capability. If you live in a major city in the United States, you can already access 5G almost anywhere you go. The speeds are faster than 4G, and latency is lower, but there are still improvements to come.
Some experts believe that wireless service providers will work so hard on 5G in the coming year that the service may become a reliable home network option for a lot of people. Rather than investing in a separate home internet service, people could add another line to their smartphone package as data only and use that for home internet.
Speeds are never an issue for 5G, as people’s phones can already reach faster speeds than most basic home internet packages. The issue is capacity, as people use a lot more data at home than when they are on their phones.
2. Home Robots Gain Popularity
Amazon is the first company to bring a general-purpose robot to the mainstream market. While their robot does look a little gimmicky, experts already believe that other companies will follow suit with their versions in the near future.
If these devices are affordable, useful, and reliable, there is every chance that home robots will gain a lot of popularity in 2022. People already enjoy having smart devices in every room, while others like having robot vacuums clean up after them during the day.
A home robot can serve as an assistant on wheels, as it can go with you into every room, answer your questions, input information into your calendar, make and receive calls, and even answer your doorbell and see who is at the door.
3. Cloud Gaming Becomes a Mainstream Reality
Companies such as Google and Microsoft are pouring a lot of money into cloud gaming. Between Google Stadia and Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming service, gamers have some decent options for playing their favourite games through the cloud.
The advantage of cloud gaming is that gamers do not have to buy the latest console or gaming PC when they want to run a brand-new game. They connect to a server, where the game is hosted on a powerful computer, and then play the game through that connection.
Cloud gaming is very niche at present, with few early adopters when comparing the wider gaming population in the United States. However, the advent of 5G and the improvement of cloud services in terms of latency and reliability will eventually push people towards these facilities.
The convenience of being able to connect to a cloud platform and instantly play any game you own, or that is part of the service’s subscription package, is priceless.
4. Virtual Reality Becomes Mainstream
Virtual reality is in a similar place to cloud gaming at present. These are niche sectors within the gaming market, but they are still attracting a lot of attention. VR is slightly more mature and appealing than cloud gaming currently, which is why experts do believe that 2022 will be the year of virtual reality.
One of the companies pushing VR the most is Facebook or Meta, as the company is now known. Meta owns Oculus, and the latest Oculus Quest 2 is available for a very modest price at most retailers in the United States. Such low prices for quality VR headsets mean that mainstream adoption of the technology is very close.
The one area where VR is playing catch up to gaming consoles and computers is in the available content. A lot of VR games are not as polished as console or computer games, while they are also shorter than most AAA games. As VR games improve in the coming six to twelve months, expect the VR headset to become mainstream.
5. Chatbots Gain Universal Acceptance
Chatbots are already very popular among small businesses that want to establish an online presence. The problem is that, at present, people do not like interacting with these bots, as they find the process frustrating and not productive.
Experts believe, however, that with so much money being poured into machine learning and companies gathering billions of consumer requests as data, chatbots are set to improve greatly in 2022.
When people have positive interactions with quality chatbots, they may realise the advantage of companies having such a service on their websites. That is why many people believe that chatbots will be universally accepted in the coming 12 to 18 months.
Prepare for a Technological Revolution
Comparing a smartphone or tablet from 2012 to 2021 is like going from night to day. Even though these devices perform similar functions and share form factors, the 2021 versions are sleeker, faster, and longer-lasting than their 2012 counterparts.
The same is true for many areas of the technology sector and will be true for others in 2022 and beyond. Some people may find the above technology trends surprising, but these are the areas where we believe a significant change will take place in the coming 12 to 18 months.