The 10 Most Influential Gadgets of All Time
Technology is developed through companies absorbing and enhancing each other’s ideas. We have seen transformative technologies over the years, innovations that have had a life-changing impact throughout the world. The following are our picks for the most influential gadgets of all time, without the newest innovations that draw their inspiration from the old ones.
#1. Sony Walkman
1979 seems so far, but it was the time Sony launched a wonder in the Walkman. It transformed how we listened to music and took the experience a notch higher. Who would have thought you would have a personalized experience with music? It was a masterstroke, and new technologies will forever be indebted to Sony.
#2. Amazon Kindle
The Amazon Kindle is the home of eBooks that the first generation would never have imagined. Launched in 2007, the third generation had something to cheer. It began not only for e-readers but as a self-publishing hub that has grown from strength to strength, creating superstars after superstars.
#3. IBM Personal Computer 5150
See personal computers all around you? They were invented by IBM in 1981. They were made famous by Compaq, but all the credit goes to IBM. The technology was cloned by other top firms in the likes of HP, Dell, and Compaq, but the new designs and models of laptops, iMacs, and Ultrabooks have the original PC written all over them.
#4. Diamond Rio PMP300
The digital music revolution was started in 1998 by Diamond with the Rio PMP300. That was just under two decades of Sony’s first Walkman. It was so massive that they took over music and nearly labeled Sony’s masterstroke outdated.
#5. Sony PlayStation 2
Gaming consoles are not a new concept, but the Sony PS2 of 2000 reshaped gaming and made it what it is today. It included a DVD drive, which helped make the gadget a must-have in modern living rooms. It captured what people needed in one go.
#6. Motorola DynaTAC 8000X
How times have changed! The convenience of mobile banking, social media, and online casino games straight from your mobile phone was inspired by the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. It was bulky, but it was the first portable cell phone that you could move around without having to tie it to a transmitter.
#7. Kodak Digital Camera
We had cameras, but we did not have digital cameras until Steve Sasson invented one in 1975. Instead of using solid-state storage, it used a tape, with a picture resolution not going beyond 10,000 pixels. It was nothing compared to modern multi-megapixel cameras, but it opened up the world of photography.
#8. DJI Phantom
It is one of the oldest technologies, but the drone is a marvel. It is amazing how cool the drone captures stunning views of the ground from high up in the sky and all the things it can do from up there. The DJI Phantom drone was launched in 2013 and is the most popular today. It is projected that in a few years to come, drones will be capable of handling so much, from surveillance to shipping goods. Watch this space.