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1.4 How Technology Has Transformed the Way We Live
Smart Devices Perform Multiple Functions
Gone are the days when mobile phones were used only for telephone conversations. We now
check our smart devices for e-mails and text messages, as well as run various applications on
them. We can also search for web content, listen to music, watch videos, and do work. For
many people, that small computer in their pocket or purse is a lifeline to a dynamic and ever-
changing world. We have become accustomed to using smartphones for everything from pay-
ing bills and conducting business transactions to buying movie tickets, making dinner reser-
vations, shopping, and booking weekend leisure activities. Figure 1.3 shows the evolution of
the mobile phone into the smart device it is today.
Figure 1.3: Evolution of mobile phones
The evolution of the mobile phone is illustrated here and shows very distinct changes from the early
1980s to 2014. Before the advent of the smartphone, mobile phones were used solely to place and
receive phone calls. However, the smartphone allows individuals to perform many tasks on one device.
Adapted from “Evolution of Cell Phones,” by A. Ranjan, 2014 (http://www.techtricksworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06
/evolution-of-cellphones.jpg).
Smartphones are not the only smart devices these days. In the past, consumers bought dif-
ferent electronic devices for each function they wanted to perform. A telephone was used to
make calls; a camcorder created videos; a camera took pictures; an iPod played music; a tele-
vision picked up live broadcast signals; and to watch movies, you had to visit a local theater
or movie rental store. Today the trend is toward combining as many functions as possible on
one device. Most devices have Internet connectivity and provide functions for information,
communications, and entertainment. Tablets, eReaders, notebooks or laptops, and 2-in-1
convertible computers (which we will discuss in Module 2) are some of the other multifunc-
tion devices that are becoming more rapidly available.
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