Our phones are bigger and more powerful than ever, and as we look forward to confirmed and yet to be designed future releases we can see that trend continue – and it’s all in the name of the way we consume our content. A decade ago, our mobile devices were glorified PDA’s, we’d use them to check our email or to send texts with our keyboard-styled keypads, for many the thought that we’d start using these devices to watch movies or streams as our primary form of entertainment may have seemed a little crazy, but that’s exactly what happened – bigger screens, bigger batteries, and a new user interface that moved away from the tactile button pressing and into the touchscreen era we’re part of – but as we move forward with this new folding screen tech and the rest that is yet to be revealed to us, how will the way we consume our content change?
- Video Streaming – It has been true for some time now that the primary way people watch video streamed content is through their smartphones – the interface of apps like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon’s Prime video all lend themselves to scrolling through the libraries with the use of a touchscreen – faster data transfer with 4G and now 5G mean that we can access this content wherever we are in the world, untethered from our fixed wifi connection. A huge surge in popularity for livestreaming on services such as Twitch has also taken hold – millions of viewer hours streamed each year take our favourite internet personalities away from fixed length videos on YouTube to 8-hour long sessions on a livestream, sometimes even through a live vlogging event, from a mobile device too. The way our devices have evolved with larger screens with more clarity have a huge part to play in this.
- Mobile Gaming – Seemingly coming from nowhere, mobile gaming has exploded into the giant it is today – easily accessible, and available in a wide range of variety. From the more complex games that have been ported from PC such as Fortnite, to simple puzzle games and the growing popularity of betting and casino services such as these casinos that aren’t blocked by Gamstop – numbers suggest that this area will continue to find growth and as our technology develops to allow hardware to be pushed further in mobile devices, we’ll start to see developers push the limits of what can run on them.
- Everyday Utility – Of course the familiarity with email and SMS hasn’t changed since we first started using our mobile devices, but we’re seeing more and more daily utility that changes the way to use our phones – FaceTime has allowed us connectivity across the world at all times, internet banking giving us growing convenience – we’re even using our phones as car keys for modern cars. The increased connectivity opens doors for streamlining many facets of our day to day, and our apps are getting smarter and many will remain excited to see the next big development – 5G is the next big step in what will be possible as we are able to transmit more data and faster, and as it quickly becomes the norm