By 2015, you could see the 3-D image of a person calling you and might be able to plan in advance the shortest and less traffic-congested route to the office.
Not enough? Even “breathing” batteries and laptops powered by kinetic energy could be on the way over the next five years, according to the latest technology predictions from IBM.
The Armonk, N.Y.-based computer giant has released its annual “Next Five in Five” list of five innovations expected to hit the ground by 2015. The predictions are based on surveys conducted with more than 3,000 researchers at IBM’s Almaden research lab.
People could be able to interact with faraway friends in 3-D and even conduct videoconferencing through holographic cameras that fit into cell phones allowing video chat, IBM researchers said.
The company also expects that today’s lithium-ion batteries could be replaced by batteries using energy-dense metals that only need to interact with the air to recharge and that those kinds of batteries could last 10 times longer than the current battery technology.
“If successful, the result will be a lightweight, powerful, and rechargeable battery capable of powering everything from electric cars to consumer devices,” IBM said. (more…)
