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Things have felt stale in the technology we carry around with us every day for a while now. Smartphones are now all the same, both to look at and to use, and the same goes for other products such as earphones or Smartwatches. In recent months, however, we have seen a creative leap that is bringing new air and, above all, new interesting ways of interacting and experiencing the technology that is closest to us.
Let’s start with the new smartphone concept presented by Motorola. Known only as “bendable”, in the sense of flexible, the experiment turns the smartphone into a bracelet thanks to a high-quality Oled screen that can follow the lines of the wrist or change its shape to be placed on a table. Its uses are very limited by a concept that is still not very developable: it is too bulky, clumsy and offers few benefits compared to a smartphone kept in your pocket, but if someone started looking at it as a simple screen instead of as a complete device, the scenarios could expand.
Much more interesting is AI Pin, a personal assistant based on artificial intelligence that is worn like a pin. It is definitely larger than the “average” pin and, undoubtedly, less stylish, but it allows us to ask ChatGPT’s opinion in an instant on anything we need on the fly. He understands what you are saying and is equipped with a camera that can be used to take photos to show friends or as a starting point for a question. So, in addition to being able to ask him to tell us the history of the monument we are visiting, we can show him a flower and ask him what it is called or if the fruit we have in our hand is compatible with our diet. It’s not perfect: it is applied with a magnetic clip and therefore it is relatively easy to both lose it and have it stolen, but it shows well how our relationship with technology can evolve, going beyond smartphones. One touch and we can be taken to our destination, one touch and we can ask if the monument we are looking at is the right one, a double touch with two fingers and we take a photo. Furthermore, by opening our hand in front of it, our palm becomes a screen on which AI Pin projects the requested information, including a handy clock or the text messages we have received. Still an experiment, but one that paves the way for further evolutions in the way technology infiltrates more deeply into everyday life.
Another paradigm shift is the one that characterizes the Huawei Free Clip. After years spent designing earphones that should disappear from sight, hidden as much as possible in the wearer’s ear, Huawei has reversed the flow and made them a fashion accessory, exploiting their design to make them more comfortable. Very light, but noticeable due to their double bubble shape, they should be shown off like a pair of earrings, with the advantage that they remain much more stable on the ears. They are open ear, so they do not completely isolate the wearer, but the external part that counterbalances the internal one makes them difficult to remove accidentally, making them very interesting for those who play sports or those with an ear shape that does not adapt well to traditional earphones.
And while we’re talking about sport, we can’t help but mention Amazfit’s Helios Ring. Elegant and refined smart ring available in two colours, it is a device designed to help athletes plan their training. Worn at night, thanks to the number of sensors it incorporates, it can record vital parameters, leading to a complete analysis of the quality of sleep and the muscular and mental situation, suggesting upon waking whether to move towards an intense workout or a cool-down. During training, however, it collects the parameters that allow performance to be analysed, such as aerobic capacity and pace.
Finally, a trend highlighted by the Xiaomi Watch S3 certainly deserves a mention: mechanical customization and battery life. The new smartwatch from the Chinese company, in fact, allows you to buy matching rings and straps to customize the device beyond the simple digital dial and, despite mounting a large number of sensors, reaches two weeks of autonomy, freeing us from the slavery of continuous charging.