Sunday, January 9, 2011

The iPad of Yesteryear

The other night I was at a party and someone went to change the music. Right as they went to hit "next track" the song advanced on its own. Was this magic? A new piece of technology? Something from the future? Nope. It was just my friend across the room using a remote control. Everyone turned their heads for a second, realized it was a remote control, and returned to normal conversation. But I couldn't. I felt like I was thrust back to some 1970's party, where the host was a super rich mogul who silenced the room with his magical remote control. All the guests stared at the host like he was a deity, waving his Jetsonian remote in the air. It was the iPad of yesteryear. I imagine it debuted at The World's Fair, and some sort of larger than life character captivated an entire audience. "Ladies and Gentlemen, what I'm about to show is going to change the way we control our appliances. It will allow you to change the channel from the couch, switch frequencies from your mattress, and impress countless women across the world. Allow me to introduce you to The Remote Control!" It's mind-boggling how something so revolutionary became so ordinary. The iPad is no different. When our children stumble across an iPad commercial in 2050, they're going to laugh, show their friends, and buy one off eBay to use as Halloween accessory. So next time you change the channel, remember you're holding the iPad of yesteryear.

No comments: