5 TRENDS IN MOBILE COMPUTING

Mobile Computing Trends

• Cloudy with a Chance of Mainframes
• Mobile Cybersecurity
• Small Businesses Developing Software Apps
• The Shadowy Boundaries of Device Blurring
• Location Based Functionality is a Big Deal

Ever since mobile computing overtook the use of the personal computer, more innovative trends have been manifesting first (if not entirely) on mobile platforms, with traditional devices being delegated to steadily smaller and less innovative roles. The small, portable nature of mobile devices makes for many practical applications, which wouldn't be nearly as functional with a traditional desktop PC, or even with a laptop. Thanks to the prevalence of pocket-sized, and even wearable technology, the mobile platform is poised to continue its rise to the top, eventually displacing traditional digital technology almost entirely.

Here are five trends in mobile computing which we've already seen, or which are just now appearing on the horizon, in 2017:

Cloudy with a Chance of Mainframes

Once upon a time, before personal computers with dedicated resources were a widespread phenomenon, IT professionals engaged in computing tasks using individual terminals that were connected to larger, mainframe computers, with partitioned resources divided between each connected terminal. This is, essentially, the model for today's cloud computing. By centralizing computer resources and running primary software remotely, individual end-user devices can run faster and more efficiently. Energy and processing power is saved, overall. This trend is continuing to expand, affecting more (and more varied) devices as time progresses.

Read: Top 8 Cheap Online Mobile Computing Degree Programs (Bachelor's)

Mobile Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity has been a hot topic for years. Today, cybersecurity experts are among the most highly employable IT specialists in existence. Traditional networks have always been vulnerable to malicious hackers, but the mobile market was initially immune to this particular problem. Unfortunately, the growth and expansion of the platform into new areas of functionality means that this is no longer the case. Cyber-crime has taken on new dimensions, with everything from acts of terror to petty vandalism now having equivalents in cyberspace. Mobile security measures represent one of the fastest growing specializations in app development.

Small Businesses Developing Software Apps

With the rise of the mobile app as today's dominant form of software, big multinational corporations have long since been developing their own. Brands ranging from Subway to Coca-Cola have developed their own software applications for customers, and have seen a tremendous amount of success arising from their dissemination. As 2017 progresses, more and more small businesses are predicted to get into app programming — one of the most accessible programming fields in existence — to produce their own apps for consumers.

The Shadowy Boundaries of Device Blurring

At this year's E3 gaming expo, several major studios announced redesigned versions of existing products for new software platforms. Software developers in other areas have been teaming up to bring their products to new devices, and the boundaries between devices (in terms of what each device is capable of providing to its users) is shrinking. Portable keyboards, cleverly designed to be unobtrusive in transportation, are one of the top-selling accessories for smartphones today; this kind of cross-functionality greatly reduces the number of tasks for which mobile users must rely on traditional desktop devices.

Location Based Functionality is a Big Deal

It's not without a certain amount of irony that the expansion of electronic networking into new frontiers has resulted in a new emphasis on end-user location. Google's organic local search results show up ahead of paid ads on mobile devices, and many software apps now allow businesses to target customers based on their location alone, offering geographically specific deals and services.

Most experts agree that mobile computing is the future of the internet, and of a substantial variety of industrial and technological fields as a result. Examples of fields which have migrated significantly onto online platforms include business administration, marketing, and information systems management. The use of small, mobile tech, including wearable devices, has only made this migration faster — as well as more convenient, from the perspective of the technologically savvy professional.