Tech trends for 2016 and the benefits to Australian mobile phone users

Intro – 60 second guide

Here are our findings on the recent news discussing the latest trends in technology and where advances should lead consumers towards in 2016. There are more key details in the following article below.

  • Users of tablets and smartphones are the drivers of new technologies and their increased popularity is what determines which direction advancing tech will head in 2016.
  • Messenger apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger are changing the way in which we communicate, with 2016 heading towards less reliance on traditional texting and calling.
  • Google and Facebook are two large tech companies at the cutting edge of next generation technologies, all of which will allow them to increase market share and convert more of their users to other parts of their ecosystem.

Where to next in Tech 2016?

With 2015 over and 2016 powering on, digital advancements in smartphone and tablet devices are charging forwards this year. From the increase in messaging applications and mobile e-commerce taking off in Australia, 2016 will be a year of game-changing progress and changes.

The following article contains a few of our predictions here at What phone and where we see smartphone technology and usage heading in 2016.

Smartphone use and a demand from consumers are paving the way for change, long overdue in the telecom industry, a fact no doubt that the major carriers are finally waking up to understand.

Consumers and increased competition, especially in the MVNO sector are what drives change, just as the introduction of new technologies from the big tech companies, Google, Facebook and Apple does.

Voice-activated searches through Google apps are enabling consumers to find information and service providers at their fingertips, be they at home looking for a local service or driving in their cars trying to find an address.

Along with the rise of smart wristwatches, just like the Apple watch and the Samsung Gear S2

Australian telcos need to be ready and understand that the changing needs of their users are too changing with the rise of new technologies.

3D touch screen technology

3D touch is an interesting technology which is sure to increase in popularity this coming year as it’s the tech trend everyone is talking about.

Apple and Samsung are leading the way with their smartwatches, the Apple watch and the Samsung Gear S2. The big tech companies are speeding up their development of wrist watches and introducing soft SIM technologies.

3D touch screen technology will enable users to flip through a virtual book and feel the “physical pages” so to speak, as their fingers glide over the books pages.

This will no doubt add all new elements to the digital experience. With technology such as this being introduced to smart watches and the next generation handheld devices, 2016 will be an interesting year in the advancements of 3D tech.

Increased battery life and charging technologies

While smartphones keep getting larger screens and our increased usage of apps, means battery life has to last longer to power our devices.

Display resolutions have for the most part reached a point where their won’t be much advancement on what we currently have, so in the next generation of phones, the focus will now be on how to squeeze juice out of an already overused battery.

Alternative battery materials and components are also something which the smartphone manufacturers will be looking at this year, we may even see this new tech in the upcoming Apple 7 and Samsung Galaxy S7. With battery capacities increasing to 4000 and 5000 mAh.

The increasing popularity of messenger apps

Smartphone messenger apps used to be just a novelty which not many people worried about or used that often, nowadays though you would be hard pressed to find users which don’t regularly check on their messages, by using one of the popular apps such as Facebook chat, WhatsApp, Skype, Line or Weixin (WeChat).

Messenger apps while popular with chatting between friends and family in real time, sending both text and audio messages, businesses are turning to messenger apps as well, increasing their workflow and allowing real-time collaboration to take place.

Applications such as Slack and Trello are paving the way for businesses to work in real time while improving their workflow and creative collaborations.

WeChat a highly popular messenger app which originated in China and has now spread to the rest of the world is changing the way in which all competitor apps such as Skype and WhatsApp operate.

The WeChat app allows users to load a debit or bank card into their account and in real time pay for goods and services, such as ordering taxis (similar to Uber), booking movie tickets, train and flights, hotel rooms and even online shopping.

While most of the best features are currently only available to users in China, due to this app’s popularity most features are in the process of being enabled for international users.

In Summary

The recent rise in messenger applications becoming the standard way in which users make calls to their friends and family and sending texts is replacing how traditional SMS and calls used to be made.

The major telcos Telstra, Optus and Vodafone Australia are aware of this and are changing their SIM only and prepaid plan offerings to allow users to use more data.

With the emerging MVNO market, now has never been a better time to be heavy users of messenger apps, allowing users to save money, as communicating over WiFi is free and large mobile data allowances on SIM only plans are fairly inexpensive.

Large tech companies such as Google and Facebook are investing heavily in technologies which can increase their market share by introducing new tech to their existing user base and disrupting existing industries such as Telco, with their Soft SIM functionality.