There’s a future out there

There's a revolution going on, a virtual invasion of consumer electronics products, spawned by the evolution of smart devices — and it's changing the way we live, Sophie He reports.迷利倉 Living in the 21stCentury, we already have witnessed the vanguard of the "consumer electronics revolution" that's only just begun. Changes in consumer electronics will see the emergence, in the not too distant future, of computers that will become personal managers, computers that know who we are. Already visible electronic consumer products to safeguard our health, monitor our heart rates, alert us to vital changes. There are devices to help locate lost luggage; send remote commands to TVs, air conditioners, even hot tubs. We can find friends and family at large within an impressively broad radius and ere long, we will be able to play and explore in virtual environments of our own devising. Hello T-Rex! Heck all of this is nothing! Only a couple of months ago, Steven Hawking, the world renowned physicist, predicted that our brains will be capable of being transferred to the digital environment, one day, endowing us all with a kind of electronic immortality. The growth of the consumer electronics industry has been fueled by "smart" devices, said Tommy Wong, president of Global Sources Exhibitions, a company that facilitates trade in the Greater China region by organizing trade shows and exhibitions. E-pocket market Wong, at a media briefing, noted that only 10 years ago, the most popular consumer electronics products at the company's exhibitions probably were MP3 devices. Soon after, came flash drives, digital photo frames and an explosion of GPS devices. "The industry embraced its major turning point in 2008, when the innovation giant in the technology industry — Apple made its entry into the smartphone market with its first iPhone. After that, the industry was boosted by the rising demand for iPhone accessories, and accessories for smartphones and tablets," said Wong. We've already seen Google Glass and Smart watches. Pretty soon wearable computers will know everything about us, physical health; peak performance levels, our shopping lists, buying habits, personal habits, contacts, where we've been, and will act as an e-pocket to make carrying cash obsolete. "In the future the telecom operators will compete with commercial banks for this e-pocket market," Bennie Hui, general manager for the Electronics Group at China Sourcing Fairs, told China Daily. Hui hastens to add however, a lot of work needs to be done to ensure that telecoms are not permitted to run amok gouging customers with service charges for day-to-day transactions, the way banks have done in the past. As consumer electronics grow smaller, cheaper, faster, and are powered by low-cost, Blue Tooth Low Energy technology the market will grow at a rate limited only by the human imagination. "I believe there will be great demand for blue-tooth products as well as products related to 4G (the fourth generation of mobile phone mobile communication technology) on the mainland," Hui said. He predicts that the consumer electronics product industry will continue to evolve rapidly largely based on demand for products in China. Hui also projects that more and more consumer electronics products will find their way to becoming connected to smart-devices. People may be able to control their TV screens, or their ovens … or any or all of the electronic devices they have in their homes, with their smartphones. Accessories for smart phones and tablets already are amassing sales in the multi-billion range. In 2003, retail sales of consumer electronics amounted only to $102.6 billion, according to CEA. In 2013, global retail sales of consumer electronics p迷你倉oducts are projected to reach more than $1.11 trillion. That's a 4 percent increase over 2012. Sales in emerging economies are expected to grow by 9 percent this year, according to The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). Global Sources predicts, the market for smartphones and tablets will maintain robust growth in the near future. The global shipment of smartphones in 2014 is expected to increase 17 percent over 2013, to over 1 billion sets. Sales of tablets are projected to jump 23 percent to 236 million next year. Hui said that since it sees rising demand for mobile and wireless products, Global Source has decided to organize sourcing fairs just for mobile and wireless products starting in the spring of 2014. "Around 90 percent of exhibition booths for the spring fair have been sold out, which shows that the market is very strong." Global Sources annual China Sourcing Fair: Electronics & Components, in Hong Kong was held October 12 to 15. Many exhibitors featured advanced, creative products based on new smartphone technologies. Hui cited telephone cases of numerous types, blue-tooth speakers, portable mobile phone chargers, even wireless chargers, like small plates that need only for the phone to be left on top to start recharging. He noted there were 4,100 exhibition booths, making it the largest fair of its kind in Asia. A substantial number of booths, 585 were solely for the presentation of smart products. Adaptation price tag The fair also boasted the largest number of booths for computer peripherals and networking products. Hui said 81 percent of exhibitors were Chinese companies, the majority based in Shenzhen. The fair drew 39,600 buyers from 136 countries and regions over four days said Hui. That's ten percent over last year. Buyers from the mainland increased 20 percent over last year. Hui noted the changes in the electronics industry have eclipsed many products like MP3 players, but led to the closure of many small firms. Hui suggests that small to medium sized Chinese companies in the consumer electronics industry invest more resources into research and design, and pay close attention to market trends. "Chinese manufacturers used to believe that lower price is their competitive advance, but they are no longer able to afford this kind of price war, due to rising labor costs and raw material prices," he said, adding that Chinese manufacturers have to enhance the quality of has their products as well as produce more value-added products if they want to survive in the rapidly changing industry. There is a price tag for adapting all these innovations however — they come at the cost of privacy. In 1968, artist Andy Warhol, foretold the future of technology when he remarked, "in the future, everyone will be famous for 15 minutes." Warhol's was thinking about the popularity of television in that era, and the anarchic and ever evolving influence of pop culture but perhaps not even he foresaw the kind of life in a fishbowl environment that was to unfold at the onset of the 21st Century. Contact the writer at Sophie@chinadailyhk.com Chinese manufacturers used to believe that lower price is their competitive advance, but they are no longer able to afford this kind of price war, due to rising labor costs and raw material prices." Bennie hui General manager, electronics group at china sourcing fairs We've already seen Google Glass and Smart watches. Pretty soon wearable computers will know everything about us, physical health; peak performance levels, our shopping lists, buying habits, personal habits, contacts, where we've been, and will act as an e-pocket to make carrying cash obsolete." Bennie Hu general manager for the Electronics Group at china sourcing fairs 自存倉