IBM gazes at innovation crystal ball

IBM has outlined five innovations that will change our lives

IBM has unveiled a list of five innovations which it believes have the potential to change the way people work, live and play.

The Next Five in Five list is the third of its kind, and is based on studies of market and societal trends, as well as the firm's own emerging technologies.

IBM predicts that energy saving solar technology will soon be built into products such as pavements, paint, rooftops and windows. The cost of developing such solutions is coming down, the company said, and solar cells are now slim enough to be printed onto a wide variety of surfaces.

The internet, meanwhile, is likely to become even more social, as users gain the ability to surf web pages using just their voice.

"In the future, through the use of 'VoiceSites', people without access to a personal computer and the internet, or who are unable to read or write, will be able to take advantage of all the benefits and conveniences the web has to offer," said IBM.

"Imagine being within a phone call's reach of the ability to post, scan and respond to emails and instant messages without typing. You will be able to sort through the web verbally to find what you are looking for, and have the information read back to you as if you are having a conversation with the web."

Another innovation will take a lot of the effort out of our daily existence, according to IBM, which predicted that forgetting things could become a thing of the past.

"Details of everyday life will be recorded, stored, analysed and provided at the appropriate time and place by portable and stationary smart appliances. To help make this possible, microphones and video cameras will record conversations and activities," the company said.

"The information collected will be automatically stored and analysed on a personal computer. People can then be prompted to 'remember' what discussions they had, for example with their daughter or doctor, by telephone.

"Based on such conversations, smartphones equipped with global positioning technology might also remind them to pick up groceries or prescriptions if they pass a particular store at a particular time."

With so much leisure time we might find our health suffering, so it is lucky that IBM predicts that we will be able to buy a DNA-based health profile that can tell us exactly what is good and bad for us.

"Genetic mapping will radically transform healthcare over the next five years and allow you to take better care of yourself," the firm said.

With such a finely tuned body, help in dressing comes next on the agenda. IBM said that shoppers would soon be able to use in-store devices to share clothing ideas with friends, and access their own personal profiles. Rather than browse rails, shoppers will select items on a screen and have them delivered to a changing room by a store assistant.

"You will also be able to snap photos of yourself in different combinations and email or SMS them to your friends and family for the thumbs up - or the thumbs down," the company said.