Every few years, a new product or idea comes out that revolutionizes the industry. The word processor came out and made the typewriter obsolete. The telephone changed communications. The airplane made the world much smaller. The Internet made newspapers a thing of the past. With the anticipation of the next iPhone coming out, and all the news of other competing devices like the Motorola Droid, Google Nexus One, and so one, let’s take a moment to remember when the iPhone first came out.
This device changed the playing field. Phones were no longer considered simply a tool for making voice calls. It brought the Internet into a small handheld device, hundreds of thousands of applications available with a flick of a finger, integrate email, calendar, contacts, and so on. It also played music, movies, and television shows.
Several generations later, this phone continues to evolve. Soon, it will not be known as a phone but a truly integrated device that handles everything.
I’ll simply end this with a simple question that I have not yet been able to answer: why do we still have fax machines?