It’s amazing how technology grows. Gadgets and gizmos that were once used in movies and television shows to thrust views into a high-tech and unimaginable future are now, only a few decades later, a reality. Many products around your home would have seemed like science fiction to your parents and grandparents generations. Below is a fun list of products that have gone from futuristic to must-haves!
- Back to The Future – Many products in the BTTF franchise have been produced and some are even common in today’s society. TV video phones and conferences were featured, as were holographic tvs. Companies around the world regularly use video conferencing and Skype is quickly catching on with people around the world. IMAX and 3D movies are common and available in most areas. Even Marty’s self-lacing sneakers are now being produced (Nike Hyperdunks)!
- The Jetsons – The Jetsons are one of the best examples of tv foreshadowing modern technology. The Jetson’s home of the future is quickly becoming the home of today. Fake tanning was introduced on the show almost a decade before the first tanning bed was invented. A wealthy business man tans in his luxurious bed with artificial sun options that include “Miami, Honolulu, and Riviera”. Robotic vacuum cleaners were frequently featured on the show and are now widely available as hands-free options to traditional house work. Other once futuristic fantasies around the home, such as motorized window shades that rise and lower at the touch of a button and robotic lawn mowers that take the work out of lawn maintenance, are Jetson-esque.
- Jet Packs – Featured in The Jetson’s, The Rocketeer, and several other movies and tv programs, a jet pack that allows a person to fly through the air is slowly becoming a reality. Several companies and individuals around the world are working to produce an efficient jet pack. While the technology is still in its infancy, it is happening and jet packs are working around the world.
What products or technologies have you seen in recent film and television that you look forward to seeing in the future?