Mobile World Congress 2013: Focus shift from the handset to the human condition

By , 27 February 2013 at 17:06
Mobile World Congress 2013: Focus shift from the handset to the human condition
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Mobile World Congress 2013: Focus shift from the handset to the human condition

By , 27 February 2013 at 17:06

Mobile World Congress this year looks set to be remembered for what didn’t happen as much as what did. What didn’t happen was the usual non-stop parade of new gadget launches. The show is packed as usual and the news keeps flowing. However the focus has shifted from the handset to the human condition.

Mobile was celebrated for how it could transform the worlds’ creaking energy grids, save billions by reducing inefficiencies in healthcare and help develop the city of the future.

The focus on the key themes of infrastructure tech, automaker apps, and handset austerity is analysed here.

Connecting all these themes is the fact that everything and everyone is becoming connected. How this connectivity is changing how we live is being made very clear at this year’s show. This video is a great roundup of how these themes are being tied together at Mobile World Congress.

Of course to bring these benefits to the entire world’s population, a number of hurdles need to be overcome. As this story highlights, the price of mobile devices and services will need to be addressed to connect the next billion people. The launch of the Firefox OS was a key milestone in achieving this goal and Sony is the latest manufacturer to pledge its support in Barcelona for the open web operating system.

Devices of course are hardly absent and tablets have made a big splash. This roundup of all the launches so far at Mobile World Congress makes the interesting point that increasing numbers offer the ability to make phone calls. Which makes it more likely the horrible term ‘phablet’ will gain even more traction…

(Note: Image courtesy Slashgear, original here)

 

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