The Future of Selfies: Rollercoasters, retail, and robotics

Taking selfies is a cultural phenomenon. Some users spend endless hours each day to perfect the art, while others have managed to carve out a career from the simple forward facing snap. Sony recently uncovered what’s next for selfies and whether there is more to them than just bagging a few likes and checking for any leftover lunch in your teeth.

Camera technology is taking great leaps and making it easier than ever to capture the perfect moment. Several smartphones including the Xperia XZ deliver quality images time after time. With this quality, the possibilities of the common selfie start to become more interesting.

Sony teamed up with leading futurologist and member of World Academy of Art and Science, Dr Ian Pearson to understand the possibilities of taking selfies. The report called ‘The Future of Selfies,’ took a look into various sectors likely to incorporate smartphone photography and selfies as a technological function in the future. Dr Pearson used his expertise to identify the ways he believes selfies could evolve over the next five years. His predictions (backed-up with a study of 6,500 people from across Europe) include:

MEDICAL – Forget watching the clock in a stuffy waiting room. Over a quarter of us would prefer to see our doctor via a selfie.

BANKING – Nearly half of 25 to 34-year-olds would feel more secure accessing their bank through a “selfie password”.

LEISURE – Around half of thrill seekers would like to try a “selfie-coaster” — a rollercoaster that puts you in control of capturing your experience whilst on the ride.

RETAIL – By using your smartphone camera to try on different outfits suited to your body shape, at the touch of a button, trips to the changing room could become a thing of the past.

ROBOTICS – Thrill seekers could use smartphones to control drones or robots to take selfies in extreme locations.

Dr. Pearson also added: “Through this report, it has been fascinating to chart the evolution of selfies and smartphone photography with the team at Sony Mobile. But even more encouraging has been the response from consumers, who have shown they are open to the range of future uses for selfies and video calls.”

“The results clearly show that selfies are well on their way to transitioning from frivolous fad to technological phenomenon, and provide food for thought to a number of industries. The potential is huge, and it will be exciting to watch this unfold over the coming years.”