Technology trends are advancing every day and innovations are being added to our life, molding our lifestyle. The race of technology has also revolutionized the mobile industry and there is a hype of adding innovations and modified features to the upcoming cellphones. Many eye-catching technologies surfaced in 2015 and now expectations are high towards 2016. Here is a review of some mind-blowing features that will be packed inside the cellphones in 2016.
Protection
Kill switch- The protector
Cellphone snatching and theft is no more a surprise! The first thing that alarms you is to secure your mobile from illegal access. Unfortunately, there is no proper security software with multiple remote access options. Kill Switch feature will enable the users to operate their lost cellphones on power down mode and access the phone remotely. Several mobile manufacturers including Apple, AT&T, Google, HTC, Huawei, Motorola, Microsoft, Nokia, Samsung, Sprint and T-Mobile have agreed to the provision of Kill switch feature in the upcoming cellphones. Kills switch feature restricts unauthorized access to your cellphone by providing following features:
• Provides remote access to wipe out the personal data of the owner.
• Enables pin or password locks to prevent any misuse of cellphone.
• Remains inactive until the permission of the authorized user/owner.
• The deleted personal data will be retrieved only when the owner indicates mobile recovery.
So it will enhance the security threads and surprisingly, the manufacturer will not cost you or the provision of Kill switch.
Improved Biometrics- Preserve your Identity
You might have seen thumbprint ID sensors in iPhone 5S, Galaxy S5 and iPods; though it is also included in the Android Marshmallow now. Even Windows Hello enables you to log into the Windows phone by face recognition phenomenon and it can even differentiate between two identical twins but that’s not the end. The IRIS scanners are being merged into the cellphones that will scan the retina of human eye to identify the user. This feature will surface this year and it is thought that by the end of 2016, logging in to your cellphone via retina recognition would be a commonplace, just like entering a pin to login is nothing very special. Some reports suggest that Galaxy S7 and LG G5 will be equipped with enhanced biometric scanning via retina scanners.
The retina scanning phenomenon scans your eyes, and picks the pattern of the blood vessels formed behind your eye ball. Just like fingerprints, these patterns are also unique and are much effective in preserving the identity. This feature will be much effective to support payment services like Apple and Samsung Pay, strengthening the firewalls.
Invisible Waterproofing- Give it a dump
You are very lucky if your cellphone still survives after diving in the bathtub. Sony Xperia series and Samsung Galaxy S6 bear the ability to remain in water for some duration, without being affected. The hardware is protected with waterproof material while the ports are shielded with plastic polymers. In 2016, we will see hydrophobic coating technology that will cover the electronics and internal circuitry by a microscopic water-repellant layer that will prevent the manufacturers from covering each and every port with plastic.
Shock Absorbing
This is one of the leading features that is specially designed for damage caused due to mishandling. This is a scheme of phone-landing that is designed to change the direction of cellphone, whenever it is dropped on a surface due to mishandling or slipping. This feature keeps your phone from hitting the surface at its screen or other fragile segments.
The same feature has already been introduced in some of the Apple laptops and now it will be launched in iPhones. The scheme is based on a dropping sensor that detects the direction in which the mobile falls. The sensor communicates with a small motor that shifts the entire weight of the mobile to the direction it has to land. The whole process will happen in a second and will protect your mobile phone from fracture.
Augmented Reality- Virtual Impact
The augmented reality AR or what we call virtual reality is a supplemented projection of virtual environment on our minds as if it’s happening really. It provides a composite view of the computer-generated image. The device combines computer data and reality, creating an effect of reality on the eyes.
Smartphones, being portable, are considered best for AR. You can simply use AR on your cellphone to search for different locations and places around you. Normally you have to search through internet, and for internet, you have to search for a Wi-Fi network. AR apps use the available GPS data to locate your position and show the nearest places around you. So get rid of Google Maps if you lack the internet connection and wait for AR to hit the cellphones in 2016.
Bending Phones- Fold you Cellphone
Of course these are not the flip ones! Samsung is going to include this innovative feature in its upcoming cellphone. A report by SAMMobiles revealed that Samsung is working on a cellphone with a flexible and bending screen. And it will be released in January probably. The project is named as Project Valley internally, and the idea was leaked almost four months ago. So we can expect that this project will be practically implemented this year.
You might remember that iPhone 6 bending feature was highly criticized in the start. Now this, so called manufacturing error, is going to be a permanent feature of smartphones but in a slightly different way. Several concept videos have surfaced that provide an overview of the upcoming feature. One of the video shows a wallet-type cellphone with triple folds and it opens up to view the entire screen. Another video revealed a cellphone that can be used in dual-modes. You can either flip the screen and use it in cellphone mode or open the screen to run it in tablet mode. We can hope that Samsung will kill the hype and impart this feature in 2016.
Force Touch- Advanced Sensing
Finger print sensors have already been incorporated in many mobile phones but now manufacturers are also heading towards Force Touch sensors that will become common this year. Force touch will provide better and easier access to the users so unique patterns will correspond to different shortcuts. Xiaomi Mi5 will include this feature, as announced by the company but the tag name for this technology is not confirmed yet. But Apple has announced that its upcoming operating system iOS 9 will pack Force Touch Technology inside. Not only for shortcuts, but Apple is also working to integrate the Force Touch tech with the apps. This feature will enable users to approach media players, Maps etc. effectively and you will also be able to change the force touch sensitivity. So now you don’t have to scroll through the pop-up menus or notification bar to approach the apps; force touch will be there to nail it.
Holograms- A step ahead 3D
3-D projections have already conquered the cellphones. But there is something more on its way. Holographic projections might come to the smartphones this year. This technology will also include the 3-D feature technology in the phenomenon. A report has revealed that MasterImage 3D has already given a clue of the holographic projections by showing a concept in Mobile World Congress MWC, last year. 3-D graphics and elements of movement are integrated to provide a powerful holographic projection. Like, you can squeeze or expand the photos on the screen by sliding your fingers on it. You can also drag and drop objects by grabbing them, just like your android home screen.
Projectors- Mini-cinemas
Initially mobile phones were just meant for calling and texting. Then internet and other functionalities were injected in it and then started the era of android that converted the so called cellphone into a smartphone. Smartphone has conquered the minds of the users with its marvelous features and now, you can turn your smartphone into a projector just like a magnifier that is placed behind a lens. The projector concept was revealed back in 2010 when Samsung launched its Galaxy Beam cellphone. This flagship is equipped with Digital Light Projection (DLP) WVGA projector that can throw the view onto a screen, up to 15 inches with an intensity of 15 lumens. This innovation turned the mobile phone into a mini-cinema and so was appreciated. It not very far when you will be able to see 3-D projections, in front of the mobile screen in the form of a hologram.
Ostendo, is a giant manufacturer in California and it has been working on Projectors that will rollout this year. The cost of this projector is estimated to be around $30. The CEO boasts that the first version of the lot will be able to project 2-D graphics but the next one will be able to project 3-D videos that will be furnished with holographic capabilities. He said that 3D version is in the pipeline but if there appeared any bug, then the fixes can cause the delay. The technology embedded inside the projector will combines an image processor with a wafer provided with radically miniaturized LEDs. These mini- projectors will transform the images on the larger screens when combined with smartphones and one will be able to see the 3D view without using 3D glasses. The brightness and picture size controls will be buried inside the chip and will be controlled from the projector’s panel. It is expected that Apple will include this technology in its upcoming iPhone 7 flagship.
Voice Mails and Voice Assistant
Siri gets modified with every next version lunched but it is expected that the iOS 10 version will include the virtual voice assistant that will take over more responsibilities this time.
Last year, a report by Business Insider depicted that Apple is working on Siri to handover more responsibilities to it, even answering the calls. If the user is not available to attend the call, Siri could listen to the call and deliver the message to the user when he is available, before delivering it to the iCloud. This would turn the calls into voice mails. While the New York Times says that this process is rather slow for the young people as it will require them to be very patient during the whole process, like listening to the entire message and then deleting them one by one from Siri. So it might be very impractical. But as a whole, the feature seems to be pretty cool for the people who are confined to their office and hardly find time for interaction.
Other features to Rock in 2016
Online with No Line
You can browse the internet by finding a nearby Wi-Fi network but you may lose it when you move away. Nothing could be more irritating other than fixing to a Wi-Fi terminal. But Passpoint Wi-Fi will provide you the opportunity to roam around and enjoy the services everywhere. Passpoint will create cellular based automatic Wi-Fi connections. So don’t worry to lose your speedy Wi-Fi, even if you are travelling on an international flight.
Mood Sensing
Manufacturers have been trying since long to do so; sensing our mood and creating the synchronized environment. But nothing has been brought on the surface yet. It is expected that 2016 will see this feature in the cellphones. The technology will integrate several sensors that will monitor your heart rate, expression, skin temperature etc. and will communicate with the cellphone that will manipulate your mood that whether you are sad or joyous and will probably play a song accordingly.
Modular Components
Modular components are the accessories that can upgrade your cellphone features like camera specs, battery life, sound quality etc. without detaching the entire assembly. This technology has been revealed in phones like Project Ara and the Fairphone 2 back in 2015 but 2016 will make this feature common. So you will be able to connect your favorite devices with your cellphone that will enhance your cellphone capabilities.
Better Transfer Modes
This feature has already been included in some cellphones but it is expected that TYPE-C USB port will become a standard this year. As the name suggests, it’s not only a USB cable but possesses multiple features. You can transfer data at a faster rate, charge your mobile in less time and can perform multi-tasking at a time. So you can connect your cellphone to a projector and charge it at the same time. The interesting thing is that the cable and sockets are reversible, so you can connect any side to the cellphone and other side to the laptop etc.
These features depict that 2016 is going to be rich in terms of mobile technologies. All we have to wait is for the companies to fulfil their claims and come up to the users’ expectations. It’s just the beginning of 2016 and there is still much more to roll over.