Fast forward to the future [New Straits Time (Malaysia)]

(New Straits Time (Malaysia) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The Tech Team looks at some tech trends which are likely to make it big this year.

CARS that don't pollute the environment, televisions with fantastic picture quality, tablets to suit individual preferences, traffic navigation by a machine which sounds like Mom, social media for work.

These are things that may have been merely visualised before but with advancement in technology, these could become a reality this year.

Technologies that have been portrayed in science fiction are coming to fruition and 2013 holds promise of them becoming de rigueur in our lives.

ELECTRIC CARS These are expected to gain popularity as a sustainable alternative to petrol and diesel vehicles offer much better energy economy simply because electricity is cheaper.

Generally, you'd save 70 to 80 per cent compared to petrol cars.

In terms of emission, electric cars carry very low or negligible emissions and don't emit carbon dioxide.

Besides that, maintenance costs are much lower. A petrol/diesel- based car has a more complex engine system that require much more effort and money, such as regular oil changes and air filters, to be maintained.

On the other hand, electric cars simply run on the power of a battery that only need change after a few years. There are newer electric cars which claim that the battery is guaranteed to last the entire life of the car.

As of last month, highway-capable models available in some countries include the Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi MiEV, Ford Focus Electric, BMW ActiveE and Honda Fit EV.

In Malaysia, an initial initiative to bring in electric cars started last year when Nissan brought in the Leaf model; Mitsibishi brought in the MiEV model. The universal charger for these cars has also been developed by Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Advanced Informatics School in Kuala Lumpur.

MICROSOFT SURFACE TABLET Microsoft is expected to bring its version of tablets called Surface this year in Malaysia.

News of the tablet was announced in June last year, and comes in two versions: One with Windows RT and another with Windows 8 Pro.

The Windows RT model uses an ARM CPU, while the Windows 8 Pro model uses an Intel CPU.

Both models are able to install new applications via the Windows Store. However, only the Windows 8 Pro model allows the installation of traditional third-party desktop programs.

Surface and Surface Pro have 10.6-inch screens with a 16:9 aspect ratio. Both tablets use Microsoft's ClearType HD display technology and support an ultra-wide viewing angle and auto-adjusting screen intensity.

HUMAN-LIKE GPS NAVIGATION Listening to a GPS navigation voice is like listening to a robot. Although human voice is used, route directions sound machine-like.

However, a leading GPS company and phone maker are collaborating on instructions given on the route.

Instead of instructions like "in 100m turn left", one will get directions such as "in 100m when you see a yellow building, turn left".

Efforts are being made to include prominent buildings, places, icons and signs.

SOCIAL MEDIA Last year saw social media playing instrumental roles in the success of the London Olympics and emergence of the Arab spring, particularly through applications like Facebook and twitter.

This year, social media is expected to continue to evolve and transform popular culture and media consumption habits further. From a primarily social tool, a social media strategy will be a priority for the business organisation with improved social technologies, innovative ad models, and an expanded user base around the globe.

Using new-wave social media command centres capable of tracking multiple social stats in real-time, companies will be able to radically improve customer service and predict future buying patterns, not to mention streamline internal communication and increase productivity. This kind of social data is already being used by Nestle and GE.

WAIT FOR APPLE SMART TV CONTINUES It's not that we doubt Apple's capability to introduce, market and see people queue to get it, but after years of rumours, we're beginning to see that the problem lies in content availability and rights issues. Unless Apple wants to work with Vimeo and other content creators or start its own content portal, we don't see its smart television product becoming a reality in 2013. Even if it does, Malaysians will still have to wait as the country never made it in on Apple's initial release list. Meantime, the third- generation Apple TV digital media receiver is as close as you can get if you want an Apple hardware in your living room.

SECURITY With more devices accessing and tapping on applications residing on the Internet, for example smartphones, tablet PCs and even smartTVs, and users putting more personal information in the cloud, there are more chances of security breaches.

Many anti-virus companies are predicting that mobile devices will be the new target for cross-platform threats, facilitated by Web- based cross platform exploits. Attacks will also continue to increasingly use social engineering lures to capture user credentials on mobile devices. Other than malware, there is mobile adware, or madware, which disrupts user experience and can potentially expose location details, contact information and device identifiers to cybercriminals.

Ransomware is also on the rise. It is a virtual form of hijacking of the mobile phone by a new worm that can hack into personal data. Celebrities like Scarlett Johansson, Olivia Munn, Christina Hendricks and Rihanna were victims of Ransomware when their their phones were hacked.

BLACKBERRY FIGHTS ON With BlackBerry 10 scheduled for release in multiple countries around the world on Jan 30, it's time for Research In Motion to go big. Two smartphones are expected to be unveiled during the CES Show, eight more will be released throughout the year.

BlackBerry's strong points include enterprise-grade features, BBM apps as well as great QWERTY formfactor, but the manufacturer and developers have to offer more to entice consumers. Based on its latest Press releases, there will be a slew of apps pertaining to games and published content, which hopefully will add more charm to the upcoming devices.

4K TVs If you feel the current full HD TV 1080p resolution is not fine enough for your viewing pleasure, TVs with four times higher resolution, known as 4K TV, will surely meet your needs.

The term 4K refers to a resolution that is four times the high definition resolution of 1080p, which is one of the main consumer high definition resolution standards.

Images appear at higher details and depth. Viewers also enjoy greatly improved video display image for larger screen applications. They will not see visible pixel structure on the screen, unless they look extremely close.

Major TV manufacturers like LG and Sony have designated their 4K TVs as ULtra HD or Ultra High Definition.

Other players such as Samsung and Toshiba are expected to unveil their 4K TVs this year at the CES Show in Las Vegas.

ANDROID CAMERA TO ADDRESS NICHE MARKET After Samsung and Nikon debuted their Android-enabled camera, expect more players to come onboard. One on the list is Polaroid, which will be showing off its Android-powered camera at CES 2013.

While pioneering devices within this category did not impress reviewers (inferior image quality, backdated platform), the product category might still attract millenials and digital natives who grew up with social networking.

ANDROID TO RELEASE NEW PLATFORM Over the Android realm, a major update is typically released every six to nine months. Since the last update was announced in October, it will not be a surprise if a new version is released within the first half of 2013.

More gesture support will likely be added as well as even faster performance. As for the name, we predict Google will pick up on rumours of Key Lime Pie to go with version 4.3. However, taking into consideration the exotic Eclair, we believe Kulolo (pudding type of dessert common to Hawaiians) might stand a chance. If it is not too much to ask, Android Karipap sounds good too! TOUCH AND GESTURE ON MORE DEVICES Apart from smartphones and tablets, ultrabooks, notebooks and even desktops of 2013 will likely havetouchscreens to suit the new Windows 8 operating system. "The year 2013 will be one that consumer experience touch ramping as a mainstream feature in notebooks and all-in-one PCs. Voice and gesture technologies will also build momentum and be sought after as new ways to interact with computing devices including PCs," says Intel Southeast Asia managing director Uday Marty. Some manufacturers which have already released or announced their touch-enabled machines include Lenovo, Dell and Acer and Fujitsu.

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