Will wonders never cease?

It’s always wise to keep an eye on Microsoft. The other day I saw a video (click here to see the video) that shows how technologies may change in the future. The Windows Phone 7 (or its next version) played a prominent role in showing how future technologies may progress to help people understand more and make better decisions.

The video shows how thin and small Windows Phones and tablets can get…in some cases paper thin. But while it’s great to fantasize about future technology, we also have to wonder how practical new technical tools can be…here are a couple of things to think about…

• I like that they see the phone as a continuing part of my technical tools. It is turning into a true communicator and it’s something I feel comfortable using.
• It’s good that they are imagining new features and functions that will fit into a phone (or glasses). I don’t think that we have even touched all the things we will be able to do with phones even five years in the future.
• But when is a phone too small? Are buttons still going to work in the future or will we talk to them and they will react like Siri on the Apple 4Gs?

So is this Science Fiction or near future? What would you like to see go from concept to reality? Before you answer that question, I want you to know that Microsoft is working on a phone that works in your pocket? Sounds far-fetched? Listen to this

Microsoft has filed a patent for the touchscreen of tomorrow, where you can actually touch what is being displayed. Well, sort of. The tactile touchscreen patent works by tricking you into thinking you are touching what you can see, rather than just touching the flat display area.

Using a similar, but more advanced, technique than the voltage frequency varying tech currently in development from the likes of Nokia and Disney Research, Microsoft’s method involves, “using a layer of shape-memory plastic placed above a large touchscreen to distort the surface of the screen when different wavelengths of ultraviolet light strike the pixels from beneath”.

Will wonders never cease?