Digital technology has modified nearly every aspect of modern life. Travel, work, shopping, entertainment, and communications are just some of the areas that have been transformed in recent decades. It’s now rare to find an electronic device or piece of machinery that doesn’t consolidate digital technology in some way.
Digital technology means that devices can be more compact, faster, lighter, and more versatile. Huge amounts of knowledge can be stored locally or remotely and moved around virtually immediately. Even the term “information” has expanded to include media such as photos, audio, and video, and no longer refers to just words and numbers.
1. Social Connectivity
Digital technology makes it easy to stay in touch with friends, family, and work remotely, even if you are in another part of the world. You can express through words, video, audio, and exchange other media. Websites, apps, and software have all been designed to help users to socialize. With social media, messaging, texting, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones, nobody needs to feel isolated in the digital world. News and local events renew users regularly.
2. Communication Speeds
Internet speeds have developed exponentially since the early days of dial-up. Ever faster broadband facilitates the transfer of large amounts of information across the web almost instantaneously, making it possible to gush video and audio in real-time, send large data files, and access data from virtually anywhere in the world. Traditional media generally takes much continued.
3. Versatile Working
The nature of work has been transformed by digital technology. Increased connectivity options mean that many people now have far more opportunities for working from home, as remote working becomes increasingly common. Many jobs can now be done from hundreds, or even thousands of miles away without difficulty. Without the need for all workers to be present in the same building, many other flexible working practices are now possible.
4. Learning Opportunities
Anybody with access to the internet instantly has access to a huge proportion of the world’s knowledge over the web. Lessons and courses can now be delivered virtually online. Communication advances mean that you can now easily interact with most of the world’s population and learn directly from sources, for example, if you are trying to register foreign events, or learning a new language. Digital technology can also be easier to use for people with disabilities and often give them regular access.
5. Automation
Digital technology is increasingly going machines smarter. In some cases, the machines no longer need humans to operate them, freeing up workers from often boring tasks for more interesting pursuits. In other cases, smarter devices mean better standards of safety or a better experience for the user. Products and services drop in price as the technology develops and becomes more common. Many tasks can now be done directly by customers, rather than having to be done within another person acting as an intermediary, for instance, booking a holiday.
6. Information Storage
Digital technology enables the storage of massive amounts of information in relatively small spaces. Large amounts of media, such as photos, music, videos, contact knowledge, and other reports can be carried around on small devices like mobile phones. As well as physical locations, data can also be stored online, enabling it to be obtained from any device which has internet access.
7. Editing
One of the great advantages of digital technology over established media is that the information can be easier to edit or manipulate. Word processing has brought about a revolution in the editing of text. Video editing, which used to require costly studios and equipment, can now be done on a laptop in a bedroom. All sorts of photographic impressions are now available, as well as the ability to creatively alter images.