The Modular Future

Building blocks. Lego. Minecraft. It seems that humans have an obsession with taking things apart and putting them back together.

Smartphones. Another obsession that is everywhere today. According to Business Insider, "One in every 5 people in the world own a smartphone". It is a huge market, and will grow explosively in the coming years.

Google, kingpin of just about every service on the web, is about to capitalize on both of these things with the Ara Modular Smartphone.

Several Ara Bases and Modules

Rather than let you get locked into a long smartphone contract with a wireless carrier, Google's Ara aims to let you upgrade the phone piece-by-piece through the use of Modules. The processor, wireless radios, and even screen are contained in swappable modules. Crack the screen? Swap it out. Faulty speaker? Swap it out? Need a better camera for your vacation to Aruba? You know what to do.

Swapping out modules is a fast and easy process with the Ara

Ara's concept of a modular phone solves 2 growing problems in the modern world:

• The outrageous prices you need to pay in order to keep up with the latest technology - It has been reported that "pricing is expected to be around $50 for the base device." (Android Guys). This will allow people in lower-income situations to break into the world of technology without bankrupting themselves
• Electronic waste. We live in a world where everything is replaced and disposed of at at alarming rate. "Electronic equipment and gadgets are the fastest growing waste stream in many countries." (e-Stewards).

E-Waste is a persistent problem in many parts of the world

Hopefully, this concept of modules and customizability will leak out into the mainstream, and the concept will be picked up by other smartphones and tablets. The low entry price and high upgradability means that the Ara will allow more and more people all over the world to connect. This, truly, is the future.

Google Announces Android Wear

A few weeks ago, I published a blog post about Wearable Technology and its Application in the Classroom. As of yesterday (March 18th), Wearable Technology is about to take a massive leap forward. Why? Google is pushing. Get ready to welcome Android Wear to the world, coming soon to a wrist near you.

As I mentioned in my last blog post on Wearable Tech, a multitude of companies have already released or have announced plans to release wearable technology. Samsung, HTC, Sony and Pebble are just a few of the many. Yesterday, Google announced a new standard for smartwatches called Android Wear. As of right now, current smartwatch software varies greatly in terms of quality, as every individual manufacturer has to develop their own OS for the watch to run. Google has done away with that problem with their new, intuitively-designed Android Wear. Now, smartwatch manufacturers will have a standardized OS, allowing them to spend more time on the hardware itself. It will be interesting to see how Wearable Technology will evolve over the next year. One day, Wearable Technology may become as big a part of our lives as our smartphones.

Ted Talk Review: You Don't Need an App For That

What does the word "innovation" mean? When you hear the word "innovation", you probably think of the new iPhone release with its "innovative" voice assistant, or maybe a car commercial touting its 'innovative' new features. Toby Shapshack, a South African "authoritative figure in technology and publishing", released a TED Talk today about what he defines as "innovation".

In the Talk, he says that real innovation is the innovation of necessity. The people of Africa do not innovate because they want something, they innovate because they need to have it. The M-Pesa, a mobile, SMS-based currency, accounts for 40% of Nairobi's GDP. It was invented by an African who needed innovation. Shapshak talks about this and several other true innovations of necessity that his fellow Africans have created. I have to agree with Shapshak's definition of innovation being the innovation of necessity, as these innovations solve a problem that needs to be solved. They don't fill a nonexistent void the way that Siri does. Innovations like these are necessary for us to move forward, and makes life easier for us not because we want it to but because we need it to.