Will the smartphone really be the only device you use to connect to the world around you? Or will objects like the Nike Fuelband, the TeleSound speaker or the Kindle also have a place in your device pantheon? Dave Merrill, the CEO of Sifteo (see disclosure) who spoke at the GigaOM internet of things meetup last week, thinks the “giant slab of glass” represented by the smartphone will be crucial, but it won’t be our only device.
For many of us this might be an obvious realization, even though the smartphone has mooted gizmos like digital recorders, personal navigation systems, music players, guitar tuners and even books. Yet Merrill attempts to define what kinds of characteristics our future devices must have to retain our attention (and get us to shell out the big bucks to buy them). Like the many specialty tools used by carpenters, our future gadgets will evolve to fill specialized needs and will connect us to what we are manipulating — digital bits. Watch the video below.
Watch this video for free on GigaOM
If you liked this talk, check out the others here or here, or come to our next Internet of Things meetup in Boulder, Colo. next week.
Disclosure: Sifteo is backed by True Ventures. True Ventures is an investor in the parent company of this blog, Giga Omni Media. Om Malik, founder of Giga Omni Media, is also a venture partner at True.
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