The Internet Isn't Just for Computers Anymore

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas this year, thousands of companies demoed countless devices.  Some of them brought 3D into your living room, while others miniaturized the computing experience to the tablet format.

While 3D may have garnered most of the buzz and headlines at the show this year, there was a far more prevalent trend that could affect business and society for decades to come: the permeation of the web beyond the computer.

The web’s rapid evolution over the last decade has simply been incredible.  Just a few years ago we were loading up badly-designed web pages through our AOL dial-up.  YouTube, Facebook, Gmail, iTunes, Skype and all of the other innovations that we now enjoy simply didn’t exist. 

One thing that hasn’t changed in the last decade though has been that all of these great web apps have run primarily from the desktop.  We’re still chained to our laptops and desktops, but a new wave of innovation is changing that status quo rapidly.  In ten years, the computer will just be one of many ways we are connected to the web.

Our pocket devices have already begun to break our dependency on the computer for the web.  It started with the iPhone and its rich touchscreen interface, but a new wave of phones, including the Google Nexus One, are making it easier to surf the web, check your email, and upload video right from your home. 

The phones will only get better and come with more features.  Several projector phones were on display at CES this year, while new Android phones from Dell and others are in the works.  And of course, Apple is expected to announce new iPhone software in the next week.

Don’t forget about tablet computers.  Apple is expected to reveal its much-anticipated tablet, which some believe will contain 3G connectivity.  A slate of other tablet computers revealed at CES from HP, Dell, and others could also make us less dependent on our laptops.

The home is about to experience the same effect.  A company at CES, Touch Revolution, put their touchscreen washers and tablets on display, complete with Google Android as its OS.  Even more impressive was the vast amount of solutions unveiled for bringing Internet to the TV, including the Boxee Box and Yahoo Connected TV.  Now there’s even an app store for HDTVs.

The car is also getting the same treatment.  Ford’s SYNC system, the MyFord Touch, helps turn your car into a Wi-Fi hotspot, supports iTunes tagging, and even helps read your tweets to you while you drive.  Not only that, but you can stream Pandora radio from your car and plug in your USB drives to transfer files.

All of these examples of web access outside of the computer were on full display at CES, and they reveal a promising trend: that we will no longer have to depend on our laptops and PCs for our Internet.  We’ll be able to access our documents, tweets, and friends no matter where we are.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, enot-poloskun