Sunday, April 6, 2008
A Peek Into the Near Future of Electronics Technology
How long do you think DVDs have around? 20 years? 10 years? Actually, they have only been around for about seven years, but it seems like they have been around much longer. Many of us can hardly remember life before DVDs. That can be attributed to how rapidly we can become acclimated to some innovations in electronics technology. I believe there are other electronics technologies, either just getting ready to take off, not widely available yet, or just around the corner, that are going to become adopted just as quickly in the near future.
Once such item is Voice over Internet Protocol, also known as VoIP. This innovation renders the whole concept of long distance virtually obsolete. It bypasses the traditional telephone company infrastructure and delivers phone service over a broadband internet connection to a regular phone. Similar to cell phones, this service is purchased based on a fixed and/or unlimited number of minutes.
Another such technology is Broadband over Power Line, or BPL. Already in wide use in many other countries and currently being tested in the U.S., BPL is the delivery of broadband internet service over traditional power lines. A computer is connected to a special modem which is simply plugged into an electrical outlet. This kind of service could prove useful for those who cannot get traditional broadband services like cable modem or Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), as almost everyone has access to electricity now
While we’re on the subject of broadband internet services, several technologies just around the corner are going to make them much faster than they are today. The typical download speeds for broadband ranges from 1.5 to 10 megabits per second (mbps) today. Within the next year, speeds of 15-20 mbps will be available to the average consumer. Then, shortly thereafter, speeds of up to 25, 50, 75, and even 100 mbps will be available in some places. In the not-so-distant future, speeds of 25-100 mbps is will be quite common
Another technology item that you’ve probably heard a lot about recently is digital television. Digital TV uses a different wavelength than traditional analog TV and has a much wider bandwidth. It also has a picture that never gets “snowy” or “fuzzy.” If the signal is not strong enough, you get no picture at all, rather than the fuzzy picture you sometimes get with analog. In order to receive digital signals over the airwaves, you must have a digital TV set (one with a digital tuner inside) or an analog TV with a set-top converter
High Definition Television (HDTV) is one possible use of digital signals. HDTV uses the entire digital bandwidth and is the crystal clear format you’ve probably seen on TVs in electronics stores. It has no visible lines on the screen. Keep in mind that all HDTV is digital, but not all digital is HDTV. Along those same lines, not all digital TVs are HDTVs
TV recording and playback technology is changing as well. DVD recorders, which debuted about four years ago, have now become affordable to the average family. A couple of years ago, they were priced above $1000, but now you can get them for around $250, in many cases
On the other hand, digital video recorders (DVRs) and personal video recorders (PVRs), just two names for something that is really the same thing, seem to be gaining quickly in popularity.
DVRs/PVRs are becoming so popular that cable and satellite TV providers have begun including them as add-ons to their receivers, either at no extra cost or for a small additional monthly fee.
Flat screen and flat panel TV technology is also starting to boom. Many people are confused about the difference between flat screen TVs and flat panel TVs. Flat screen TVs use the old cathode ray tube (CRT) technology for their picture tubes and are therefore bulky like traditional TV sets. However, they are different from traditional TV sets in that they have a flat screen
“Entertainment PCs” will be another item to watch because of their tremendous potential to revolutionize home entertainment. The concept of “entertainment PCs” is being hailed right now by both Microsoft and Intel. In fact, Microsoft has developed a special operating system for them
Obviously, not all of the cutting edge electronics technologies mentioned above will meet with great success. Some of them might actually go the way of Betamax, digital audio tape (DAT), and DIVX. However, many of them are sure to catch fire and become such an intricate part of our everyday lives that we’ll wonder how we ever got along without them. Which ones will they be? Only time will tell.
More from here
Once such item is Voice over Internet Protocol, also known as VoIP. This innovation renders the whole concept of long distance virtually obsolete. It bypasses the traditional telephone company infrastructure and delivers phone service over a broadband internet connection to a regular phone. Similar to cell phones, this service is purchased based on a fixed and/or unlimited number of minutes.
Another such technology is Broadband over Power Line, or BPL. Already in wide use in many other countries and currently being tested in the U.S., BPL is the delivery of broadband internet service over traditional power lines. A computer is connected to a special modem which is simply plugged into an electrical outlet. This kind of service could prove useful for those who cannot get traditional broadband services like cable modem or Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), as almost everyone has access to electricity now
While we’re on the subject of broadband internet services, several technologies just around the corner are going to make them much faster than they are today. The typical download speeds for broadband ranges from 1.5 to 10 megabits per second (mbps) today. Within the next year, speeds of 15-20 mbps will be available to the average consumer. Then, shortly thereafter, speeds of up to 25, 50, 75, and even 100 mbps will be available in some places. In the not-so-distant future, speeds of 25-100 mbps is will be quite common
Another technology item that you’ve probably heard a lot about recently is digital television. Digital TV uses a different wavelength than traditional analog TV and has a much wider bandwidth. It also has a picture that never gets “snowy” or “fuzzy.” If the signal is not strong enough, you get no picture at all, rather than the fuzzy picture you sometimes get with analog. In order to receive digital signals over the airwaves, you must have a digital TV set (one with a digital tuner inside) or an analog TV with a set-top converter
High Definition Television (HDTV) is one possible use of digital signals. HDTV uses the entire digital bandwidth and is the crystal clear format you’ve probably seen on TVs in electronics stores. It has no visible lines on the screen. Keep in mind that all HDTV is digital, but not all digital is HDTV. Along those same lines, not all digital TVs are HDTVs
TV recording and playback technology is changing as well. DVD recorders, which debuted about four years ago, have now become affordable to the average family. A couple of years ago, they were priced above $1000, but now you can get them for around $250, in many cases
On the other hand, digital video recorders (DVRs) and personal video recorders (PVRs), just two names for something that is really the same thing, seem to be gaining quickly in popularity.
DVRs/PVRs are becoming so popular that cable and satellite TV providers have begun including them as add-ons to their receivers, either at no extra cost or for a small additional monthly fee.
Flat screen and flat panel TV technology is also starting to boom. Many people are confused about the difference between flat screen TVs and flat panel TVs. Flat screen TVs use the old cathode ray tube (CRT) technology for their picture tubes and are therefore bulky like traditional TV sets. However, they are different from traditional TV sets in that they have a flat screen
“Entertainment PCs” will be another item to watch because of their tremendous potential to revolutionize home entertainment. The concept of “entertainment PCs” is being hailed right now by both Microsoft and Intel. In fact, Microsoft has developed a special operating system for them
Obviously, not all of the cutting edge electronics technologies mentioned above will meet with great success. Some of them might actually go the way of Betamax, digital audio tape (DAT), and DIVX. However, many of them are sure to catch fire and become such an intricate part of our everyday lives that we’ll wonder how we ever got along without them. Which ones will they be? Only time will tell.
More from here
Labels: Electronics-Communications-Engineering
PermaLink - A Peek Into the Near Future of Electronics Technology posted by Ecacofonix : 10:39 PM
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