As we close out one decade and move onto another, we find ourselves reflecting on the past 10 years. We live in a digital world, we work in a digital industry and we’re surrounded by technology. Over the past decade, technology has evolved at a rapid pace, making things that once seemed impossible now part of the modern conveniences people expect on a daily basis. From social media to smart homes, we’ve rounded up some of the gadgets and trends our employees have found to be the most useful and convenient over the last 10 years.
"Over the past 10 years, technology innovations have changed my life in numerous ways that all amount to immediacy and convenience - the list goes on and on. Here in 2019 we take these services for granted, but 10 years ago they were virtually unimaginable."
- E-Commerce & Online Shopping: Amazon will deliver packages to our doorsteps within 24-48 hours. Instacart allows us to avoid arduous and hectic trips to the grocery store.
- Facetime: First introduced in 2010, Facetime has ultimately changed relationships. Distance is no longer a reason to feel disconnected from our loved ones.
- 4G: A 5X improvement in speed and latency over 3G, making many of the cloud and mobile services we now rely on possible. It's no wonder there's so much enthusiasm about how 5G will shape the decade ahead.
- Smart Watches: First we were introduced to Fitbit which tracked our steps and led us to march around the house late in the evening to meet our goals. Then, in April 2015, Apple launched the Apple Watch which not only counts our steps and calories but yells at us when we need to stand or breathe. From tracking our daily movement to taking phone calls from our wrist, many people are now reliant upon these smart devices.
- Automotive Upgrades: The automobile has always been a hub for invention. As we look back at the last decade, we wonder how we ever drove in reverse without a camera. Now we rely on things that seem so simple such as the ability to link our cell phone to our car and talk with voice commands.
- Smart Homes: Did I forget to turn off the lights in the house? Did I turn up the heat when I left? There's no longer a need to turn the car around and run back home. Now we can control the thermostat, lighting and other things from the convenience of our phone. We can even ask Alexa to play our favorite songs and tell us if we should expect snow in the forecast.
- Ride Sharing Apps + Airbnb: Uber and Lyft provide an on-demand chauffeur and eliminate every negative aspect of using a taxi. Reserving an Airbnb means we get a cozy and well-furnished home when traveling instead of a stuffy hotel room.
- Social Media: Although social media existed prior to this decade, apps like Instagram and Pinterest have notably changed consumer culture and shaped the way we shop, store photos, catch up on the latest news trends and more.
- Streaming Services + Wireless Headphones: Music streaming apps like Spotify put all the world's music in our pocket and replace cumbersome binders of 500+ burned and bought CDs. Although it launched in the previous decade, Spotify has improved by leaps and bounds in this current decade. Additionally, from fitness routines to taking conference calls, wireless headphones such as AirPods make life easier.
- Mobile Money Transfers: Gone are the days of people carrying around checkbooks. Instead, we rely on apps like Venmo, Google Pay and PayPal to make purchases on the go and transfer money to others.
There's no arguing, the past decade has certainly changed the way we all live our lives. We now have access to limitless information anytime, anywhere. It will be interesting to embark on the next decade, knowing tech trends will only continue to emerge and evolve. What other trends and inventions have changed your life throughout the past 10 years?
