The 2020s have been quite a wild ride. And I'm not even going to talk about everything going on in the world, just technological trends. During COVID, when we were banished to our online realms, we had the explosive growth of all things technology. But the central part that kept us all connected? The smartphone.
I feel like since the pandemic has ended, the tech world is trying everything in its power to find the new platform to replace the iPhone, and nothing is working. Since lockdowns, we have had a metaverse craze where it was thought we would totally convert our lives to being online. This would usher in a world of VR headsets. Facebook seemed so sure it renamed itself Meta... it didn't work out. Now AI has come out of nowhere, and people think that if they can just find the right device to put it in, the iPhone will no longer matter. The Humane Pin (now dead) and Rabbit R1 were launched to much attention and awe but really have had no adoption at all. Most of Humane Inc. (makers of the Humane Pin) was sold off to HP.
Now we are in the current phase of AR glasses/headsets that will use "AI" to help us live our lives. Sprinkle in the wearable health frenzy with things like Oura rings, Whoop bands, and even the Apple Watch; tech is trying to be everywhere except where it has been for almost 20 years: our pocket. Wearables are more of an accessory to the smartphone, even though some have tried to make it a replacement altogether.
Regardless, the iPhone (or the modern smartphone) just can't be killed. Every tech company wants to own the next iPhone killer. But the iPhone is almost too good. It's small, powerful, and it is quite accessible for most of the population to use. For instance, I can't really just pick up a pair of AR glasses because I wear glasses. I will need prescription lenses to use them without squinting the entire time I am using them. Considering prescription eyewear is quite common, I find this to be a bit of a problem. Also, the iPhone isn't strapped to your body. I can put my phone on a table and use it if need be. If I need to use it, I just pick it back up. I don't need to plug back into the device like I am in Ready Player One.
I will be honest though, I am ready for a new platform that isn't the iPhone, but I wonder if it's even anywhere close to happening. I am writing this on a laptop, acting as more of a desktop PC. Desktop computing has existed well before I was alive, but every workplace, gamer, and person who wants to get work done still uses it. The iPhone was just an extension of it that was mobile. So what will the next platform do differently? Will it replace the phone? Cause that is also quite an old technology...
I do hope that the next platform is something that isn't so toxic for people to be on all the time. Something that allows us to use technology less, not so much that screen time has become as important as counting calories. As 2025 closes out, we enter the next half of the decade, and with NFTs, metaverses, the crypto craze, and now AI all happening within the last 5 years, I would say this has been a busy decade. But when the dust settles in 2030, I think the iPhone will still be standing... at 23 years of age.