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Oct 14, 2009 9:10 pm US/Central
Dallas Company Working On Tomorrow's Technology
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
In 1993, few people had cell phones or internet access and the idea of a GPS system for your car was far from reality. It's all commonplace today. And a North Texas company is now working on new advances that will define the next generation.
You might remember the "you will" television commercials for AT&T. Tom Selleck was the voice for the 1993 ad campaign. What was only an idea 16 years ago, is reality now.
Today, hundreds of thousands of North Texans use electronic toll tags every single day. And people like Irene Wills of Southlake take their medical records with them everywhere they go. "My most recent lab tests, my most recent medications. I can keep it in my purse, or on my key ring," said Wills.
AT&T spokesperson Sarah Andreani says the Dallas based company has always looked forward, but no one really anticipated how quickly technology would advance. "I think that a decade ago people were not thinking that they would be communicating in the ways that we are right now."
The Garmin-Nuvi smart phone, just released in the last two weeks combines phone and navigation functions, but it also lets you navigate to a meeting directly from your calendar or contacts. And if you're headed to the airport, it will check flight times and display any delays. Andreani demonstrated the feature. "The 3:30 is on time, the 4:00 is on time, the 4:30 has a 40 minute delay, so if that's your flight, you know you've got a little extra time."
Andreani says distance is no longer a barrier to communication. Inside AT&T headquarters in downtown Dallas. AT&T is using Telepresence, which gives participants the feeling that they're actually meeting face to face. From his office in New Jersey, Chief Market Officer Bill Archer told CBS 11, "You can now communicate not only within your own company but to all your business partners and it's as easy as the push of a button. It brings alive the video and audio capabilities." Archer says Telepresence helps companies make decisions faster, without the time and expense of long distance travel.
So what will the next 16 years of advances include? Andreani told CBS 11, "If we were going to do that same commercial today the overall theme for innovation and communication technology is incorporating more of that human touch context that is missing from some of the communications that we use today."
The Garmin-Nuvi phone will cost about $200. You can learn about the phone and its capabilities here.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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