Will it trend: Lifelogging? Will we soon all be wearing the equivalent of dash cams around our heads?

KEY MOBILE TRENDS: wearable computing, lifelogging, ODLs, privacy.
EVENT HORIZON: four years.


Robert Scoble's interesting take on Google Glass includes this key observation: "I will never live a day of my life from now on without it (or a competitor). It's that significant."

So, are we really seeing a technology shift in front of our eyes which will change our lives forever? The next passenger jet? The next internet? A technology which will become so pervasive, so embedded, we will soon wonder how we ever lived without it? Another so-called paradigm shift for better, or for worse?

Devices like Google Glass enable users to capture and store the most ordinary events of everyday life. And there are more where Glass came from. Memento, a Sweden-based start-up, is developing a miniscule wearable connected camera to help users seamlessly capture moment after moment. A day in the life of the user.

The technology-enablers are no longer the issue. Components are getting small enough and cheap enough so that items like Glass could become just another household purchase. Another creature comfort for the 21st century. The real question about disruptions is rarely the technology, but rather, consumer acceptance. How will individuals and society's norms adjust to ubiquitous recording? And how will privacy laws react to a 24X7, capture-capable society?

Will life-logging devices crash and burn, or lead us into the future? Let's take a look ahead.

The ubiquitous Russian dash cam. Are we headed in this direction?

Momento, the lifelogging camera. Imagine capturing every minute of your life:

AT&T's Mobile-Home Connection. Operators look to secure revenue streams.

KEY MOBILE TRENDS: mobile home, security, internet of things, internet of things, services.
EVENT HORIZON: two years.

Back in the year 2000, I started working in the business development group of a unit of Nokia called Nokia Home Communications. There were lots of talented people working on stuff just like this, well ahead of their time. They had great vision, but the timing was off a bit.

AT&T is looking to expand their services with home monitoring and security by outfitting homes with cameras and sensors and charging a monthly fee. Prices start at $30 per month with an installation fee of $150.

As margins in handsets and tablets start to thin, it's a good time for device manufacturers to look into new hardware possibilities. And perhaps even getting directly in services. And for wireless operators who are dealing with penetration rates of 100% and declining ARPU, it's time to add some security to your future.

AT&T Digital Life Automated Home Security:

Lookout! Should we face the fact that privacy is dead?

STORY >>

Cool or ghoulish?

Let's face it: maintaining your privacy is an uphill battle. You name it, they know it. The where, the when. The how, the why.

So what's the next step? Is it to accept? Or except?

NOTE: An advertisement might precede the video below.
I'm not sure how targeted said ad will be.

Google Wallet. The cards are in it.

Back in the year 2000, I saw a great presentation about the potential of the mobile wallet. The presenter was working with the world's largest handset maker at the time, and he gave a convincing mobile finance pitch: he pulled out his wallet and began pulling out one plastic card after another after another after another. The use case was clear: this mess would be cleaned up with an electronic wallet embedded in our handsets. The presenter assured the audience that within a few years, this would be the case.

So, here we are, almost a dozen years later, and such concepts of convenience haven't gotten very far. At least until today. Google has just rolled out its "Google Wallet" service together with U.S. operator Sprint via the Nexus S smartphone. The Nexus S is a vanilla Android phone, but Google did have the foresight to NFC enable the device, thus making it a good technology demo machine for mobile finance.

Eventually, a MasterCard, Visa, American Express and/or Discover card could be embedded in your device as well as many loyalty cards to be used at payWave- or PayPass-enabled point-of-sale terminals.

Will Google Wallet succeed? One thing is for sure: Google's timing is very good: the cost of NFC has come down considerably, and we can expect most mid- to high-end smartphones coming out over the next few years to be NFC enabled. And Android's critical mass could be the key driver: around 50% of new smartphones shipped run Android. But success is a double-edged sword, and the other major U.S. operators aren't so keen to give up this business development opportunity. Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile have their own mobile payment partnership project, ISIS. And Apple will likely give Google and the operators a run for their money with the iPhone 5.

So who will spark the mobile finance market for real? My money is on Google. They have the global reach, critical mass, adjacent services, and name recognition to pull this thing off. It's in the cards.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsaJMhcLm_A