Tech hot takes for 2024, from takeovers to colonising Mars
30/12/2023
Translation: Megan Cornish
It’s time to go out on a limb and make bold predictions for the next year, from «could maybe happen» to pure wishful thinking.
Apple made my hot take obsolete back in November: support for the RCS protocol in iMessage is coming. But there are still enough ideas left, listed below in order of probability. Sources of inspiration include looks into the past, rumours, patents – and even a comic.
Cool: Apple’s takeover of Disney Frore Systems
Who is Apple’s latest acquisition? You don’t need to know Frore Systems. The small company produces cooling chips called «AirJet» that don’t require a fan. Frore has demonstrated with the MacBook Air how much cooling can increase the performance of notebooks, for example. It came very close to the MacBook Pro with active cooling.
Apple rarely takes over large companies, but in the past, it has often bought smaller start-ups and integrated them into its own product world. Such a takeover would not be entirely unlikely. And since something like this is usually negotiated discreetly behind the scenes, there are rarely any rumours about it.
By acquiring Frore, Apple would also own their technology. So instead of buying them, Apple could offer them to others – or keep them for itself.
The latter would be a shame. I don’t just want Apple products to benefit from Frore’s technology. Especially since the company not only wants to offer AirJets for notebooks and PCs; it’s also working on versions for handheld consoles, SSDs, webcams and LED lights.
BlackBerry’s umpteenth comeback
BlackBerry is still around. The company no longer makes phones, focusing on software instead. BlackBerry still holds the naming rights for smartphones. However, its last cooperation partner in this field dropped out in February 2022.
Since things aren’t going well in the software business, the management could work on finding a new partner. The licence fees for BlackBerry smartphones would at least generate income and require little internal effort. However, it’s unlikely that the legendary BlackBerry keyboards will return on the new phones. Unfortunately, the chance of mediocre Android models that no one needs is very high.
But before that, BlackBerry would have to convince an interested party. In addition to the necessary investment, they’d also need faith in the brand. That’s not impossible, but very unlikely.
AirPods with display and storage space
This could be another «Apple don’t invent it, but end up doing it better than the competition» moment. There’s a patent for an AirPod case with a display. The small touchscreen not only provides you with information about the battery status and the current track; it also allows you to control music playback. But Apple doesn’t have exclusive rights to this idea. JBL has already launched headphones with a display on its charging case.
However, the JBL Tour Pro 2 didn’t impress my colleague Livia in her test:
There’s clearly still potential for improvement. That’s why I’ll add that the new AirPods have storage space on top of a display in their case. They’re almost iPod AirPods. Apple Music then automatically saves your favourite songs and latest podcast episodes on the headphones. This can provide some entertainment while you’re waiting in a no-signal area after making an emergency satellite call.
Galaxy Mario: the gaming smartphone from Nintendo and Samsung
Gaming smartphones are still a niche, but it seems to be big enough to keep them going. The success of numerous handheld consoles also shows the potential for gaming on small displays.
Who better to bring gaming smartphones out of their niche than the console manufacturer that hasn’t yet had its fingers burned by smartphones? Nintendo also brings an extensive catalogue of games that doesn’t rely on large screens. The cooperation should of course ensure that there are enough of them running on the smartphone.
Samsung is the perfect partner for Nintendo. The South Koreans have been proving for years that they can successfully bring smartphones to the people. With their existing expertise, it should be easy to add a control pad and A/B buttons to the Galaxy Mario. There should also be enough money for the licence deal available in Suwon.
Source: Juan Lee / Behance
In his free time, a Samsung product designer has already designed something suitable using the icon controller. However, there are no further indications of a possible collaboration.
Elon and Jeff’s move to Mars
After an extensive ayahuasca trip, Elon Musk decides to make a comic strip a reality. In the Känguru comics (in German) by Marc-Uwe Kling and Bernd Kissel, he lives in a shared apartment on Mars with Jeff Bezos.
As you’d expect, there’s a lot on the agenda for 2024. Blue Origin and SpaceX are joining forces and work on the Mars rocket will be intensified in order to start their journey in the next available time window.
In order to get used to life on the red planet, Elon and Jeff also move into Biosphere 2, which of course is then called Biosphere X. The two of them have enough money to buy and renovate the test site.
Source: Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock.com
But there’s another important event coming up: the cage fight between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. After all, Mars isn’t big enough for three billionaires.
Header image: Juan Lee / Behance
As a primary school pupil, I used to sit in a friend's living room with many of my classmates to play the Super NES. Now I get my hands on the latest technology and test it for you. In recent years at Curved, Computer Bild and Netzwelt, now at Digitec and Galaxus.
