The Future of User Interaction: Beyond Touchscreens
This infographic from Shop Smart discusses the future of user interfaces beyond the touchscreen. Perhaps the most advanced user interface I’m using today my Apple Watch. The combination of multi-touch, pressure, buttons, and dials is complicated. And with my big fingers, it’s not always a seamless experience. I’m excited about the future!
The Future User Interaction and Interfaces
Shop Smart itemizes some technologies that are on the verge of changing user interaction:
- Holographs – Microsoft is already shipping Hololens and have opened development interfaces. Elon Musk has demonstrated some examples of holographic interfaces as well.
- Organic Light-Emitting Diodes (OLED) – We currently have flat and moderately curved, but rigid, interfaces on tablets, laptops and screens. However, OLED technology can be used on flexible interfaces. Imagine a future where you smartphone is as powerful as any desktop computer, and you can sit down at the coffee shop and unroll and unfold your 30 inch screen. Or maybe it’s built directly into your clothing!
- Brain Wave Interaction – For years, medical research has been fine-tuning interaction with our nervous system. The newest prosthetic technology, enabled by powerful portable computing technology, responds at speeds that are suitable for mind to mechanical interaction. Newer devices, like Emotiv, utilize electroencephalography (EEG) detection to tap into actual brain waves to interface with external applications.
The only user interface or interaction that I believe the infographic misses is voice recognition. While it’s becoming mainstream already, the future of voice commands is going to be far superior in the near future.
And even today, our Amazon Echo is absolutely phenomenal at recognizing vocal commands and responding accurately. In my opinion, it’s far better than voice recognition like Apple’s Siri.