Gadgets in 2012

Have you ever wondered what gadgets will be like in 5 years time? HP recently did and came up with a number of drawings and ideas as to what we might be using in 2012. The first is this HP laptop which can be seen above. It has virtual keys, is razor thin and is featherweight. Hopefully virtual keyboards will be easier to use in 5 years time as currently they suck.

Continue reading on for more cool gadgets from 2012.

Next in line is the Media Mat which is a roll up screen. Flexible screens are becoming available recently but tend to be in grey scale and do not have a fast refresh rate. The screen above is full colour and should be able to roll right up to be stored away when not in use.

Communication is key with current times. Devices need to be able to connect together to share information so that appointments are not missed and family are a button press away. This watch is what ties all these devices together. It is a wireless hub which communicates with the laptop, roll up screen and the other gadgets and allows you to see at a glance what is happening.

With the amount of credit cards available these days it is time to have your wallet updated. This wallet features a screen inside which actually makes it in to a digital wallet. The screen allows you to control your finances with in the wallet and to see exactly what comes in and goes out each day. Again, another great idea which links up to the watch to show your current balance.

Of course we all need a tablet PC while we are on the go taking notes in meetings etc... The HP tablet just like the laptop is razor thin and very light weight. As can be seen the design work is very modern and just right for what we might see in 2012. I do have to wonder though if all these devices need to be used in 5 years time or if a collection of them all converging together will be made making most obsolete.

The Shelf has to be one of my favorites. It is not an ordinary shelf, but a shelf in that when a device is placed on it, the device will charge automatically with out connecting wires. This is of course very useful for now, but I wonder what kind of battery charging we will need if fuel cells become more popular which can keep a laptop going for 10+ hours and be instantly charged by topping them up.

The smart pen is capable of writing on any surface and then storing what was just written in to its memory so you can download it later.

Overall I am impressed with the ideas put forward by HP although most, if not all is not new technology but rather a nice mixture of what we have now, shrunk down a little and made to look good. The idea of having all the devices together is good, but at the same time we are seeing a lot of devices being built together such as the Phone/MP3 and pocket computer in 1 device.