지난 20년간 영향을 미친 기술제품 12개

1. 뉴튼 메시지패드 (1993)

- 손글씨를 완전히 인식하지 못하는 등 비아냥의 대상이 될 정도로 실패한 상품이지만, 인공지능의 선례를 보여준 제품.

2. 넷스케이프 내비게이터 (1994)

- 이후 IE에 의해 망하지만 수백만의 사람에게 웹을 보급시킨 것은 매우 중요함.

3. Windows 95 (1995)

- GUI와 마우스를 컴퓨터 사용법으로 정책시킴. 이전에도 윈도우나 매킨토시가 있었지만 95가 더욱 다듬어졌고 맥보다 널리 보급됨.

4. 팜 파일럿 (1997)

- 첫 성공적인 PDA. 첫 스마트폰인 Treo를 만들었으며 현재의 앱스토어에 선행하는 서드파티 앱 개발자를 끌어들임.

5. 구글 검색 (1998)

- 구글의 정확하고 빠른 검색능력은 지금까지도 중요성을 더욱 강조할 수 없음.

6. 아이팟 (2001)

- 카트 한 세트 크기에 1천개의 노래를 넣을 수 있는 첫 메인스트림 디지털 미디어 플레이어. 애플을 새로운 단계로 올려놓고 성공적인 iTunes 스토어와 모바일 디바이스를 제작하도록 이끔.

7. 페이스북 (2004)

- 네스케이프가 웹의 문을 연 것처럼 페이스북은 인터넷을 사회적 수단으로 만듦.

8. 트위터 (2006)

- 페이스북과 비교되지만 트위터는 다른 종류의, 일종의 세계적 실시간 메신저.

9. 아이폰 (2007)

- 아이팟, 인터넷 커뮤니케이터, 전화를 하나로 합침. 멀티터치 UI는 PC의 GUI를 대체하고 있음.

10. 안드로이드 (2008)

- 구글도 빠르게 모바일 시장에 참가했고 아이폰보다 훨씬 저렴한 가격을 제시하며 시장 지배적 위치를 차지하고 있음.

11. 맥북 에어 (2008)

- HDD를 버리고 SSD를 사용했으며 이제는 회사 책상에서부터 커피숍까지 어디서든 볼 수 있음. 윈도우 시장에서 울트라북 바람을 일으켰으며, 여태 나온 노트북 중 최고라고 생각함.

12. 아이패드 (2010)

- 오랫동안 고민거리였던 타블렛 시장의 해법을 찾아냄.

 

 

1. Newton MessagePad (1993)

Newton MessagePad foreshadowed some of today's most cutting-edge technology. SSPL via Getty Images

This hand-held computer from Apple was a failure, even a joke, mainly because the company promised it could flawlessly recognize handwriting. It didn't. But it had one feature that foreshadowed some of today's most cutting-edge technology: an early form of artificial intelligence. You could scrawl "lunch with Linda Jones on Thursday" and it would create a calendar entry for the right time with the right person.

2. Netscape Navigator (1994)

The first successful consumer Web browser, it was later crushed by Microsoft's Internet Explorer. But it made the Web a reality for millions and its influence has been incalculable. Every time you go to a Web page, you are seeing the legacy of Netscape in action.

3. Windows 95 (1995)

Enlarge Image

Windows 95 made the mouse a mainstay for computer users. Associated Press

This was the Microsoft operating system that cemented the graphical user interface and the mouse as the way to operate a computer. While Apple's Macintosh had been using the system for a decade and cruder versions of Windows had followed, Windows 95 was much more refined and spread to a vastly larger audience than the Mac did.

4. The Palm Pilot (1997)

Enlarge Image

The Palm Pilot led to one of the first smartphones, the Treo. SSPL via Getty Images

The first successful personal digital assistant, the Pilot was also the first hand-held computer to be widely adopted. It led to one of the first smartphones, the Treo, and attracted a library of third-party apps, foreshadowing today's giant app stores.

5. Google GOOG +1.33% Google Inc. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^$1100.62 +14.40 +1.33% Dec. 20, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 3.09M AFTER HOURS ^$1100.40 -0.22 -0.02% Dec. 20, 2013 7:59 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 176,534 P/E Ratio 31.21 Market Cap $367.70 Billion Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee $1,059,710 111011001090108010a12p2p4p6p 12/20/13 Corrections & Amplifications 12/20/13 Amazon vs. Google: It's A War ... 12/20/13 Google's Antitrust Proposals A... More quote details and news » GOOG in Your Value Your Change Short position Search (1998)

Enlarge Image

From the start, Google was faster than its predecessors. Getty Images

The minute I used Google, it was obvious it was much faster and more accurate than previous search engines. It's impossible to overstate its importance, even today. In many ways, Google search propelled the entire Web.

6. The iPod (2001)

Apple's iPod was the first mainstream digital media player. Apple

Apple's iPod was the first mainstream digital media player, able to hold 1,000 songs in a device the size of a deck of playing cards. It lifted the struggling computer maker to a new level and led to the wildly successful iTunes store and a line of popular mobile devices. (Apple Brings Design Flair To Its Digital Music Player 11/1/2001)

7. Facebook FB +0.13% Facebook Inc. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^$55.12 +0.07 +0.13% Dec. 20, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 155.81M AFTER HOURS ^$55.08 -0.04 -0.07% Dec. 20, 2013 7:59 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 84.02M P/E Ratio 128.19 Market Cap $135.31 Billion Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee $1,487,770 55.5055.0054.5054.0010a12p2p4p6p 12/20/13 Test Your Prediction Skills 12/20/13 Facebook and Insiders Sell Sto... 12/20/13 Facebook and Insiders Sell Sto... More quote details and news » FB in Your Value Your Change Short position (2004)

Just as Netscape opened the Web, Facebook made the Internet into a social medium. There were some earlier social networks. But Facebook became the social network of choice, a place where you could share everything from a photo of a sunset to the news of a birth or death with a few friends, or with hundreds of thousands. Today, over a billion people use it and it has changed the entire concept of the Internet.

8. Twitter (2006)

Enlarge Image

Like Facebook, Twitter changed the way people live digitally. AFP/Getty Images

Often seen as Facebook's chief competitor, Twitter is really something different—a sort of global instant-messaging system. It is used every second to alert huge audiences to everything from revolutions to interesting Web posts, or just to offer opinions on almost anything—as long as they fit in 140 characters. Like Facebook, it has changed the way people live digitally.

9. The iPhone (2007)

Enlarge Image

The iPhone was the first truly smart smartphone. AFP/Getty Images

Apple electrified the tech world with this device—the first truly smart smartphone. It is an iPod, an Internet device and a phone combined in one small gadget. Its revolutionary multi-touch user interface is gradually replacing the PC's graphical user interface on many devices.

A year after it was introduced, it was joined by the App Store, which allowed third-party developers to sell programs, or apps, for the phone. They now number about a million. It has spawned many competitors that have collectively moved the Internet from a PC-centric system to a mobile-centric one. (BlackJack Beats Out Palm 750, but iPhone May Well Top Both 1/11/2007)

10. Android (2008)

Google quickly jumped into the mobile world the iPhone created with this operating system that has spread to hundreds of devices using the same type of multi-touch interface. Android is now the dominant smartphone platform, with its own huge selection of apps.

While iPhones have remained relatively pricey, Android is powering much less costly phones. (Google Answers the iPhone 10/16/2008)

11. The MacBook Air (2008)

The late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs introduced this iconic slim, light laptop by pulling it out of a standard manila envelope. It was one of the first computers to ditch the hard disk for solid-state storage and now can be seen all over—on office desks, on campuses and at coffee shops. It spawned a raft of Windows-based light laptops called Ultrabooks. I consider it the best laptop ever made.(Apple's MacBook Air Is Beautiful and Thin, But Omits Features 1/24/2008)

12. The iPad (2010)

With this 10-inch tablet, Apple finally cracked the code on the long-languishing tablet category. Along with other tablets, it is gradually replacing the laptop for many uses and is popular with everyone from kids to CEOs. Developers have created nearly 500,000 apps for the iPad, far more than for any other tablet. (Laptop Killer? Pretty Close 4/1/2010)

***

As I sign off from this column, I want to thank The Wall Street Journal for giving me the freedom to write these reviews all these years. And I especially owe great thanks to the readers who have followed my work. I am not retiring—I will still be doing reviews on a new online site. And the Journal will continue to offer tech reviews, penned by talented successors, which will continue to guide readers as consumer technology evolves.