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Tech that defined the decade
2020 is just around the corner, and another decade will soon come to an end. A lot has happened over the past ten years, and not all of it was pleasant: 3D television came and went, the headphone jack slowly died and the intersection of tech and politics frequently became front-page news. But amidst the downers, there was still plenty of groundbreaking tech that came about between 2010 and now that have made an impact in our lives. Here's a not-at-all-comprehensive list of a few of them.
In 2019 cameras got much better, but the market still crashed
For cameras and photographers, 2019 was another banner year... but for manufacturers? Not so much. Sales were down in all categories as of mid-year because everyone just uses their smartphones now. While that's pretty gloomy news, it's working out nicely for buyers, especially in the enthusiast and high-end categories. Companies like Sony, Nikon, Canon and Fujifilm are pulling out all the stops to create desirable models and are dropping prices, too. In a major milestone, mirrorless sales passed DSLRs for the first time ever. Some banner 2019 models include Panasonic's S1H, the first mirrorless camera approved for Netflix productions. In the enthusiast category, we saw the stellar Fujifilm X-T30, Canon's M6 Mark II, Sony's A6400 and the Nikon Z50. At the high end, Sony jolted the market with the 61-megapixel A7R IV. And on the weird side, Fujifilm unveiled the eccentric X-Pro3 with a display it wants you to not use. However, smartphone cameras keep improving with new AI tech, extreme high-res sensors and multiple lenses. To survive, manufacturers could try to get more creative by making it easier to snap and share photos -- or just accept that cameras have become a niche market and adjust their business plans accordingly. In any case, let's take a look at all the best models that came out in 2019.
The 10-year challenge: Video game edition
The 10-year challenge swept social media in January, with people posting images of themselves from 2009 and 2019, usually accompanied by a cute remark about things being the same yet totally different. It's a fun, heartwarming way to train machine learning algorithms in facial recognition.
The Pixel 3a was a turning point for affordable smartphones
When it comes to phones, there hasn't been a year like 2019 in a while. Between the introduction of the first foldables and the rollout of technologies like 5G, 2019 wasn't just another year of comfortable iteration for manufacturers. Instead, it saw the introduction of devices that are likely to define the space moving forward, but none more so than the modest Pixel 3a.
The next wave of electric vehicles will appear in 2020
Electric vehicles have been helping Americans get around for more than a hundred years. At the start of the 20th century, a third of the vehicles on the road were battery powered. Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the sports car company that still bears his name, was among the first to develop an electric vehicle, debuting the P1 in 1898. Even Henry Ford dabbled with the technology in the early 1900s. Then again, it was also his mass-produced Model T that decimated demand for EVs in the first place.
2019 wasn't the year of foldables we were promised
We weren't far into this year when the trend pieces arrived. "2019 is going to be the year of the bendy phone," one read. Another declared that "2019 is shaping up to be the year of the foldable smartphone," or, at least it did before someone quietly edited it within a few hours. Hell, I'm probably guilty of this too. In our defense, that was because for a while there, it really did seem like this was the year foldable phones would become devices worth splurging on.
The tech CEOs' year of reckoning
It wasn't so long ago that tech CEOs and their wares were changing the world. In fact, we heard that quite often: This or that "innovation" will make the planet a better place. Silicon Valley was clearly getting high on its own supply as it ramped up the hype that the earth was a wasteland until the titans of tech had graced us with an easier way to post a filtered photo or share our thoughts on the finale of Lost.
Apple spent 2019 giving us most of what we wanted
There's a quote by Henry Ford that's often wheeled out by Apple kremlinologists who claim to know the company well. It's the infamous line that Ford never asked people what they wanted because all they wanted was "faster horses." The implication is that Apple's designers, locked in their steel and glass monastery, are far better placed to know what we want than we do.
How Twitch started to lose its grip on video game streaming
For the longest time, Twitch was the undisputed champ of video game live streaming. The Amazon-owned platform has the highest number of 'broadcasters' and, more importantly, viewers watching, chatting and donating in real-time. For most full-time streamers, switching to any other platform felt like economic suicide. Then, on August 1st, the most popular and recognizable gamer in the West, Tyler "Ninja" Blevins, signed an exclusive streaming deal with Mixer, a rival platform owned by Microsoft. "I'm going to get back to the streaming roots," he said in a short video posted on Twitter. "That's what this is all about. I love you guys, and obviously [my] streams are just going to be the exact same. I'm looking forward to seeing you guys on the platform."
The worst tech of 2019
2019 was full of hype. From excitement over foldable phones and laptops to plenty of noise about 5G, the year was packed with news about promising new technology that had the potential to monumentally change the industry. But many of these were first-generation efforts, and what we ended up getting, instead of piles of functional new toys, were buckets of disappointment.
The best user reviews of 2019
Every week, we ask our readers to tell us their thoughts on a different product or device -- because no one knows better than the people who have purchased and used these things for weeks, months or even years. Last year we received 650 reviews and scores on everything from cars and robot vacuums to smartphones and graphics cards, detailing what you loved... and what you most certainly did not. Below, in no particular order, are excerpts from the best reviews our users posted in 2019:
To all the books we hit this year
Hitting the Books has been running for nearly two years now, so first off, thank you all so very much for continuing to read along. 2019 has seen some solid science and technology nonfiction titles. Unsurprisingly, one of the most popular excerpts this year ran on 4/20 yet, oddly, nobody seemed interested in slinging cats through interstellar space. Just look how cute he is, his spacesuit has footpads and everything.
The best of Engadget's Big Picture in 2019
I love doing The Big Picture series for Engadget, even though it can take a lot of hunting to find a striking photo with a tech angle. I believe in the idea that, by creating some emotion, dramatic images help us grasp heavy concepts in a way that words alone can't. Another is that I learn a lot of interesting stuff while researching them. That includes things about art, astronomy, science and even weaving. That information seems to stick in my head as it's indelibly associated with a powerful image. Many of this year's Big Picture images make interesting statements about the impact of technology on humanity. And although some of the images were created by accident or without artistic intention, they're often full of symbolism and irony like any other works of art. I think a great example of that is the first item on my list.
Streaming won't get easier or cheaper
After years of declining cable subscriptions, the bundle is back. Smaller bundles at slightly lower prices, sure, but still bundles. While Netflix had some competition from Amazon and Hulu when it came to one-price-fits-all streaming in the past, the last quarter of this year has been a whirlwind of launches with just Disney+ and Apple TV+ alone.
2020 is VR's make-or-break year
In the nearly four years since the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive hit retail shelves, VR has gone from being the most exciting new computing medium around -- something that could be as transformational as the internet itself -- to a niche accessory for gamers with too much money. New headsets have come and gone, cheap mobile VR was briefly popular (before going extinct) and standalone virtual reality devices have finally arrived. It'd be wrong to say there's been no progress in the world of VR, but it still feels as if we're waiting for it to truly take off as a medium. Where's the killer app? Where's the affordable hardware that everyone can buy (that doesn't deliver a dumbed down experience)? How, exactly, will developers make money without releasing yet another zombie game? There's still so much left up in the air for a medium that arrived amid a torrent of hype. Looking ahead to 2020, though, there are signs that things could shape up. Valve's upcoming Half-Life: Alyx is exactly the sort of VR exclusive that could push gamers to pick up a headset. There's already an uproar among Half-Life fans about the game being available only in VR, with no way to play it on a traditional monitor. Clearly, Valve is leaving money on the table by doing that, but it's also a sign that it's dedicated to the new medium. And if it's a success, Half-Life: Alyx will also prove to other developers that it's worth taking a risk on VR.
Our favorite games of 2019
The end of 2019 is nigh, which means it's time for us to take stock of this year's crop of games. And it's been quite a year -- not quite the heights of 2017, to be sure, but still more than we here at Engadget can reasonably play between all the gadgets we review and events we attend. So rather than declare a list of winners, we'll tell you about the titles that captured our hearts and minds this year, the games of 2019 that made our days just a little better and will stick in our memories as we round the corner into the next decade and beyond.
Spotify’s podcast power play
By February, 2019 was already a huge year for Spotify. As part of its earnings announcement, the company revealed that it had finally made a profit -- a benchmark that seemed somewhat unattainable given the service's expensive operating costs. In that same news drop, Spotify also proclaimed it was ready to become a power player in the world of podcasts. It spent big, locked down exclusive shows and introduced several new features for users. And the effort won't end as 2019 comes to a close.
The best gadgets of 2019
It's the end of the year, and everyone from Santa to Time is making lists. Engadget is no different. Each year, we take stock of the hits and misses from the past twelve months to inform us as we look ahead. But as we hurtle towards the close of a decade, our picks feel even more important and telling of how far we've come.
Welcome to Engadget's 2019 year in review
With 2020 fast approaching, it's time for our editors to look back on the year in tech. The first three articles of our year in review went live this morning, covering Spotify's big podcast push, the best games of the year and our favorite gadgets. Over the coming days we've got a lot more for you to read.
