Best of 2008, Future Technologies

Best of 2008 in Future Technologies – Morph

By Mike on 29 December 2008

GLOBAL – Morph managed to capture the imaginations of so many us when it was first unveiled as a concept device back in March 2008, showcased at the The Museum of Modern Art “Design and The Elastic Mind” exhibition. By boldly waving a red rag of future mobile possibilities in front of our eyes and we collectively rushed towards it intensely intrigued.

It was a glimpse at a future, and not necessarily the future, nonetheless, looking forward inspired reaction, contemplation and an air of positivity and promise.

Something we reckon that is worth championing.

The concept emerged through a collaboration between Nokia Research Center and Cambridge University Nanoscience Center in the UK.

Perhaps the aspect that most fiercely tapped that nerve of excitement was the sheer nature of how untypical a future vision Morph really is – defying conventional routes of perceived evolution of mobile technology, and presenting a scenario that is barely tangible and verging on sci-fi. Regardless of the out-there-ness of the concept, it succeeded in sparking debate, fresh thinking and an openness to alternative approaches – as voiced by people such as Olga Kharif and his exploration of biomaterial research for devices in a special report he wrote for Business Week inspired by Morph.

Here’s an in-depth video that Reuters posted back when it was first announced.

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CHAPLINofcourse is CarloS Says:
January 5th, 2009 at 12:28 pm

Well I think that this kind of technology will come out even before than what they think. If not by their hands, it will be by others hands.

ARJWright Says:
January 7th, 2009 at 7:28 pm

I have to agree. The Morph challenges and breaks a whole lot of conceptions that people have about mobile devices. And for a good reason too. We “need” concepts like this to push us out of the rut of normal use and see what else is possible.

To a large degree, I do think that this is one of several futures that are possible with mobile devices and services. However, I don’t see this as the only one, nor as a necessarily global one. The other pieces that Morph integrates with also need work (network backhaul, policy and privacy, etc.). But this opens the conversations, and that part is great.

Personally, it was the Morph that made me want to do what I am trying to do now with mobile devices. If I could program a context-aware Active Standby screen, it would pretty much natch a lot of that right now.