Last year saw a treasure trove of new gadgets finding their way into the shelves and then our hearts. We think it's possible to predict what an industry so brilliantly dynamic might have in store for us in 2012, though we also hope to find some pleasant surprises along the way. These might be some of the gizmos that will rock the year ahead.
LYTRO CAMERAS
Entry-levels, SLRs, DSLRs, digicams, Micro Four Thirds – there's a lot of hullaballoo around the fancy cameras out there, but there might just be one device that could put an end to it all – the Lytro.
This small rectangular camera is made of anodised aluminium, making it lightweight yet sturdy. The USP of Lytro is the fact that it lets you change the focus of the picture after you click it.
And you can do this days, weeks or even years after they were shot. There is no conventional delay caused by the lens auto-focusing when you press the shutter button. The Lytro's compact design is driven by its 8x optical zoom lens, which features a constant f/2 aperture.
By using all of the available light in a scene, the Lytro performs well in lowlight environments without the use of a flash. And who wouldn't want this camera in their backpack when it weighs just about 220grams.
The Lytro is available in both 8GB and 16GB models, storing 350 and 750 pictures respectively.
NINTENDO WII U
You might already know what you want from Santa next Christmas - the next from the Nintendo stable is the ‘Wii U'.
This will be the first gaming console from Nintendo to deliver 1080p high-def graphics. The controller boasts a 6.2-inch touchscreen and a stylus to work on it.
The display on the controller will not support multi-touch, however, there are a host of sensors installed in it such as a gyroscope and accelerometer. The unit also has a built-in microphone, speakers, and a camera.
The console uses SD cards and flash memory to load and save games and doesn't come with a hard drive.
A preliminary list of games compatible with the Wii U is already out and includes some exciting names - Super Mario, the Legend of Zelda – Skyward Sword, Luigi's Mansion 2 and Kid Icarus: Uprising.
SMART GARMENTS
The concept of smartphones getting ‘smarter' sounds a little overdone. How about your shirt getting a new brain or two? Companies like Ultra Armor, that specialises in sports gear and clothing, has an ace up its sleeve. It has produced the Ultra Armor E39, a shirt that can track your athletic abilities.
The E39 tracks your biometric signals and transfers it to the ‘heart' of the shirt. The ‘heart' is a Physiological Status Monitor (PSM) technology, which the US Special Forces and connected health enthusiasts have already signed up for.
WINDOWS 8
By now, we've all seen the numerous screen grabs from the developer's version of Windows 8.
Not only does it look bright and enticing, it already has a couple of OEMs swearing by the Windows 8 experience. The Metro-style app, tiled on the homescreen make for an interesting interface and gives you updates on almost anything you want, right on the homescreen.
You'll have an exclusive Windows Store where you can download these Metro-style apps from. A major plus is the freedom to sign in through one's Windows Live account and not just a localised user profile. This means you will still have the same personalised settings and files on multiple devices running on the Windows 8 OS.
The latest buzzword around Windows 8 is ‘Picture Passwords'. The official blog says the interactive picture password will work in two ways. One, you get to choose a picture you like and a preset gesture on it. So if I have a picture of my pup, I can draw a circle or a heart around his face to unlock my Windows 8 tablet. How cute is that!
APPLE IPAD 3
The first Apple iPad was a gamechanger and the second just about a better version of its predecessor. What does the third have in store? Well, if rumours are to be trusted, we might just see not one but two new iPads – a higher-end version and a ‘budget' version.
The costlier one might ship with a 8-meg camera while the cheaper one might just sport a 5-megger. Both are rumoured to feature 9.7-inch screens but with an advanced retina display. Apple also filed a patent for facial recognition recently. This could result in a software that lets you use the front camera to log in to your profile, to use your chosen apps and settings on the iPad.
What's better, the higher end iPad might have a battery double the capacity of a regular one now. The regular ones are usually around 6,000 mAh. This could means days and days of unbarred tab usage!
SAMSUNG GALAXY S3
In 2011, the Samsung Galaxy S II was the ultimate phone of the year. Something that good absolutely deserves a quick successor considering how quickly things change in techland.
Not only is there talk about Samsung including its stunning Super AMOLED Plus display, quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM in the device but also a 3D display to gain an edge over the Apple iPhone. It might go a notch higher and have a 10-megger as its primary clicker. The handset will incorporate Google's Ice Cream Sandwich as the user interface.
It's not clear if the 3D version will only be a variant of the third Galaxy S iteration. But, if you go by the quality and success of 3D smartphones already in the market, Samsung might want to keep its options open.
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