Like a punch-drunk phoenix swaying awkwardly up from the ashes, one of the great highlights of historical Visions of the Future is making another go at the consumer market. This time, it's building off a couple already popularly accepted technologies.
The inspiration is telepresence, which uses high-definition video and audio, large screens and carefully structured interior design to make long-distance conversations feel like they're taking place in the same room. Environmental- and cost-conscious companies have been using it in recent years to cut down on the number of business flights their employees need to take.
The new consumer version that will be offered by several companies—including Skpye—is much less elaborate, basically allowing VOIP video systems to link up with standard hi-def TVs. But you can't underestimate the psychological improvement of talking to someone whose face is life-size vs. talking to a little box on your computer screen. I've seen corporate telepresence systems and it really does make a difference in how you feel about the conversation and the people on the other end of the line. Plus, home telepresence gets around problems with Futuristic Video Phone systems of the past, which usually required buying expensive new hardware that nobody you actually knew also had, thus making it useless. I'm curious to see whether this takes off.
Reuters: Cisco bringing high-end videoconferencing to homes
Pictured, Bell Labs' 1927 attempt at the video phone. Taken by Flickr user Marcin Wichary and used via CC
