Smartphones will end up existing until the end of next year. Will smartphones die soon? How is it possible that we will not use smartphones anymore? Those questions arrive in everyone's mind, as most of us are not able to imagine our life without a cell phone, even for an hour. Even though, experts are sure that its life is limited up to several years. Let’s review a few points regarding this statement, and find out if it is really going to happen.

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There are a lot of people who cannot live if they do not check the smartphone at least once per hour. In 2016 they said, that smartphone will be replaced with smaller and compact ones, which will not be taken out of the pocket. Of course, that is much easier to check messages, change music while running and answer the calls on the smartwatch, instead of taking the heavy smartphone out of the pocket. Is it a big deal to take the phone out of the pocket, or to carry it for all day long? Probably not, but people are used to rapid development of technologies, so it’s obvious that after 10 years of smartphones, there should be something new.

There always will be two type of people, who say that smartphones will never die and the others say that era of mobile phones is over. Anyway, we need to know what to expect and which devices can replace it. There is a thought that they will be replaced with wearables, is it going to be like that – let’s investigate it.

Bluetooth headset with smartwatch and body camera?

Yes, the mix of a remote headset and a smartwatch can be a good replacement for a smartphone. Watch shows all the notifications, you may even type messages(probably your fingers should be extra thin for that action), it is easy to answer the call, listen to music and communicate with help of voice messages. The only action which cannot be performed with those devices, except gaming and more complicated ones, is taking photos, but here body cameras can help. Of course, those were designed for security and police guards, but technologies develop rapidly, so in future, those can easily replace the smartphone ones.

Image - Remote headset and a smartwatch

Virtual Reality Glasses

VR glasses can be a great sidekick for smartphones, as they can stand alone as a shortcut to the Web at its purest. Some producers claim that smart glasses can(or will do in future) to show the facebook newsfeed, answer the phone calls, chat in messages and anything else. As every technology on its early stage of development, it sounds very promising but only time can show to which stage of development will it drive and how will it influence our daily life.Virtual Reality Glasses

If not wearables, then what?

As we see, wearables cannot completely replace the smartphone, as it was created as a single device which should replace all existed ones (mp3 players, phones, cameras, voice recording devices, etc.). In order to replace a smartphone, there will be a need to use multiple devices again, but it does not make any sense. But still, we can replace cell phones with in-body computers.

In the S01E03 from the “Black Mirror,” an alternative future is shown. They say that in future every person will have a build in a chip, which records all actions, memories, event, and person can show it on the screen. Also, those chips monitor health status and can be used for communication among people.

Today only implementation of this technology can remove phones from our daily life. BUT! Are you ready to live in this kind of world? Do you want to lose your personality and make every step available for other people? Do you want to become a robot? I don’t think so, by the way, at the end of “Black Mirror” episode, the main character removes a chip from his head.

And One More

This discussion is very popular on the forums, there is an idea of 5 stages of such replacement:

  • 2017-2018, that is what happening right now, AR and VR are becoming more popular, and soon will become an aspect of a smartphone application, like navigation and tracking;
  • 2018-2020, the form of smartphones is going to become foldable;
  • 2020-2025, multiple factors would change the form and the phone will totally different from what we know today. Smart glasses, watches and even VR devices will become ubiquitous;
  • 2025-2035, a phone will become an accessory for wearable devices, it will be mostly used to project holograms;
  • 2035-2050, By this time, wearable devices should replace phones completely and will be equipped with Artificial General Intelligence (AGI extended AI).
Image - Replacement technologies of smartphones

Summing Up

Technologies are developing rapidly, a years ago it was impossible to imagine work together with people from all around the world. The world became too digital, and smartphone is one of the evidence, and thanks to it you may stay accessible wherever you are. Despite all the facts, interpretations and thoughts, a cell phone will not die up for at least several years.