Review 2018 : Coolest Technologies & Gadgets of the Year
The year 2018 is considered to be the year of transitions. With the new launches and new tech trends that were introduced in this year, the tech people were forced to think if the year brought the technical revolution 4.0? The year was great for the online businesses and for many startups as well. The most promising technologies (monthly) that became really popular in 2018, includes the following:
January: The year had been incredible for Amazon, and it all started with the launch of Amazon’s first cashier less Amazon Go store in Seattle in January. The store definitely represented the upcoming future.
February: Following the lead of Google and Amazon, Apple also launched its digital home assistant, the Apple Home Pod, a premium speaker and a smart hub. It is a $349 gadget, which is compact, solid and stylish. It is an endlessly entertaining system, powered by Apple assistant Siri.
March: Samsung launched its latest Galaxy smartphone the Samsung Galaxy S9, that was predicted to be almost similar to the S8 smartphone, but by the end of the year it came out to be one of the best smartphones of 2018. The look, design, software and the hardware, the smartphone has won in all the aspects.
April: Microsoft released its first Linux product having its own Linux kernel: Azure Sphere. Although the company was never in favour of using Linux in its system, finally, it had to adopt the technology.
May: The Huawei Matebook X Pro became the best laptop of the year only within the week it launched. With the terrific battery life and performance, it won the hearts of all. The laptop has a sleek design and has a gorgeous bright display. It costs $1,499 for the 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD model.
June: Proof Wristband is an alcohol tracking wearable, that helps you to track your alcohol intake, and help you limit it to a certain amount so that you can enjoy your time with your friends, without getting any harm to your health. The device is the first of its kind, based on an advanced BAC tracking ability using the Cartridge System.
July: Powered by Google Assistant, Lenovo Smart Display is a $249 smart speaker having a sharp 10-inch display and a 5-MP camera, that enables you to make video calls. The speaker has been designed for doing almost all the things that a Google Home or Google Home Mini can do.
August: The 88-inch OLED TV, LG 8K TV, was launched at the IFA technology show in Berlin. The product became the most talked about device of the event. Having a resolution of 7640×4320, it is the first ever biggest TV till now.
September: In this month, Apple launched not one but three new iPhones including the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR. By far iPhone XS Max had become the most popular among them all, due to the lovely big screen, strong battery life and camera improvements. Though the smartphone is more expensive, it is still a great phone.
October: In October 2018, Microsoft launched its hybrid tablet the Surface Pro 6, having a sturdier keyboard and improved battery life. Its new type cover and the surface pen are massive improvements for it. The lightweight design of the tablet is not only attractive but also more easy to carry along. Another major launch of October 2018 is Google’s smartphone Google Pixel 3. The smartphone has incredible camera resolution, supporting the wider selfie photos. It renders excellent performance and beats its contemporaries in design as well.
November: The best smartphone from One Plus, the OnePlus 6T, comes with a larger display, bigger battery and new fingerprint technology. OnePlus 6T starts at $529 for the 6GB RAM/128GB model and runs on Android v9.0 (Pie) operating system.
December: Although there were a few major launches and announcements in the tech industries, the main headline of December 2018 was the launch of the first national security space mission rocket by SpaceX. The rocket lifted the first GPS III satellite from the US Air Force. Also, Amazon ended the year on the same note where it had started it. The company again launched another tiny version of its Amazon Go stores in Seattle (the eighth Amazon Go store) in December 2018. It clearly shows that Amazon has been successful in its experiment with the cashier-less stores.
Yashica is a Software Engineer turned Content Writer, who loves to write on social causes and expertise in writing technical stuff. She loves to watch movies and explore new places. She believes that you need to live once before you die. So experimenting with her life and career choices, she is trying to live her life to the fullest.