You probably didn’t think technology could become a bigger part of your life—and then 2020 happened.
In an unprecedented year that sees the world still grappling with a global pandemic, the always-connected embrace of tech grew stronger—and more necessary.
And there’s no sign of that letting up anytime soon.
Our predictions for 2021? Devices that were once esoteric will become ever more everyday in our lives. High-speed, high-bandwidth internet connections will grow increasingly essential and technology that tackles the most pressing issue of the day, sanitization, will become more prevalent.
In Every Home, a Streaming Studio:
Zoom Rooms, Hangout Holes, Skype-type Situations—whatever you call them, video conferencing setups have grown in importance over the past year as social distancing and working from home has made video streaming the primary form of communication for business and socializing.
With a full return to the office (or social outings) nowhere in sight, homeowners should consider investing in quality audio, lighting and camera equipment to look and sound their best as they pass their days talking directly into a computer.
Fortunately, a lot of the technology to create professional-appearing video calls already exists—thanks to TikTok stars, gaming streamers and YouTube personalities. This niche demo, which has been not-so-quietly broadcasting their every image and thought for years now, has created a market for at-home computer peripherals that offer Hollywood-level quality video and audio.
High-definition cameras that automatically adjust for lighting conditions, microphones that ignore surrounding noise, lighting systems you can control with your voice are all on offer. So users should expect new, mainstream, easier-to-use, plug-and-play equipment on the horizon as extended work-from-home orders make video conferencing essential.
Of course, not all video calls are for board meetings, sometimes you're just trying to talk to your friends and family, and while your office set-up would certainly suffice for this, there are even more user-friendly options for these informal online chats.
Smart speaker lines such as Google Nest, have incorporated video in recent years, making placing video calls as easy as saying a name. Facebook’s Portal is a dedicated intelligent video call system with multiple device options, including a screen that can follow you around the room and a peripheral that attaches to your TV, turning it into a large video conferencing screen.
Expect to see more iterations of these types of products, and for their popularity to increase, as video-based gatherings become more commonplace and users put a premium on ease-of-use.
As the song says “Video killed the texting star.”