Mobile Phone
Mobile phones burst onto the scene over 25 years ago starting out as car phones, due to the weight of the battery. Very few people could afford the expensive devices at first and many said that they were just a flash in the pan, but today there are more mobile phones in the UK than people.
The Internet
Starting as several individual communication networks created in the 70s and 80s, the Internet has revolutionised our lives. This global network of computers serves billions of users worldwide and allows us to communicate and access unlimited information at the click of a button.
Wi-Fi
Although the origins of Wi-Fi technology can be traced back to 1985, Wi-Fi wasn't launched commercially until the late 1990s. Today we use Wi-Fi to allow everything from computers and games consoles through to smartphones and even TVs to communicate 'wirelessly' giving us the freedom to connect electronic devices just about anywhere, even in areas cables cannot be run.
Wireless Power
Although not yet widely used, wireless power has been around for several years. As the name suggests Wireless Power delivers power to devices without the need for wires. At the moment the technology is only able transmit power over a very short range, but this technology is developing - and fast!
Blu-ray
Created in 2004, Blu-Ray is the next generation of DVD. Blu-ray discs have enough storage space to show high definition movies in their original aspect ratio and, unlike DVDs, have enough storage space to show movies of just about any length on a single disc including 3D.
Flat Screen TV/HDTV
Flat screen TVs were developed as an alternative to the original cathode ray tube sets. Plasma and LCD technology has meant that, not only do we now have TVs small enough and light enough to hang on the wall, the introduction of high definition means that TVs now offer substantially higher resolution than traditional systems.
Video Games Consoles
Although the first home video games console was released as early as 1972, it wasn't until 1980, and the introduction of Space Invaders on the Atari 2600, that the home console industry really took off. Today motion controlled, wireless consoles, such as Nintendo’s Wii rule the world with one in three UK households owning one.
Self-Parking Car
First unveiled by Lexus in 2006 at the Detroit North American International Auto Show, the first self-parking car was somewhat of a novelty. Now several manufacturers including Ford, Lexus, BMW and Toyota all have cars in their range which self-park. Imagine if you'd seen a car doing that when you were a kid, it would have blown your mind!
Sky+
Introduced in 2001 Sky+ has changed the way we watch TV forever. Sky+ allows users to rewind record and pause live TV using an internal hard drive inside a set top box. Now with the introduction of Sky+ HD and Anytime+ viewers can watch what they want, when they want to, and all in stunning high definition.
SatNav
When we were kids we were lucky if our Dad had an up to date map. These days new cars come ready equipped with SatNav, a satellite navigation system telling us where we are, where we are going and how to get there. With millions relying on satellite navigation, it’s hard to believe that it has been around since 1994.
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