The end of 2019 also marks the end of the decade that began in 2010. The opportunity to take stock of the high-tech objects that have marked each year, and the entire industry.

In a world where the news travels faster and faster on the information highways, it is sometimes good to sit down and take the time to look in the rear view mirror. The end of a decade is the perfect time for that.

Frandroid's editorial staff has selected the most outstanding tech product for each year. A product that has shaken up the industry and met with great success.

2010: Apple iPad

With the iPad, Apple did not create the touch pad, but the brand defined its modern codes and popularized the concept, before monopolizing it.

Steve Jobs presenting the iPad (2010) after the iPhone (2007) and the iPod (2001).

Recipe ? In 2010, Apple took an iPod Touch (an iOS device that doesn't call) and enlarged the screen, arousing the mockery of many observers who only saw a giant iPod Touch. The brand's tablet is now available in a wide range, and Apple does not hesitate to compare it to a real personal and professional computer.

The iPad can now replace a PC for certain uses.

The iPad has managed to find its place and we can consider that today it is one of the best devices produced by Apple, and above all one of the devices with the best quality/price ratio, a fact rare when talking about the apple brand.

2011: Samsung Galaxy Note

Samsung was one of the first smartphone manufacturers to offer Android devices, first with its Samsung Galaxy in 2009, then with the Galaxy S a year later. But it was really a year later, in 2011, that the Korean manufacturer innovated with its very first Galaxy Note. It was then a massive smartphone with an extraordinary size. Do you realize, he was offering a slab of… 5.3 inches diagonally.

With the Galaxy Note, Samsung has made the large format smartphone the norm

Admittedly, this format has something to smile about today where most devices have screens over 6 inches, but it was a daring bet for the time, when most smartphones on the market had diagonals between 3.5 and 4 inches. If many people made fun of this 14.7 cm high smartphone at the start, it is clear that the rest of the industry ended up following the Korean manufacturer as this format finally became popular with all manufacturers.

To go furtherSamsung Galaxy Note 10: retrospective on 8 years of phablets

And that's without even mentioning the sacrosanct S-Pen stylus from the Galaxy Note range. A stylus that may have been mocked by some for whom the finger was more than enough, but which is now found on many Samsung, Huawei, Microsoft and even Apple tablets. Above all, Samsung now seems on the verge of further democratizing what made the Note range special by integrating an S-Pen on other smartphones. Definitely, the first Galaxy Note of the name was truly a precursor.

2012: Philips Hue

Home automation has always existed in tech, but has long been the domain of architects and wealthy people. The available solutions were not only expensive, but also difficult to integrate into a coherent and functional form.

The Philips Hue connection bridge

Philips had its “Eureka” moment in 2012 when it created the Hue range. The concept is simple: make home automation accessible by first touching the simplest but most important consumable in the house: the light bulb. A simple product, a simple shape, and maximum openness to all platforms.

To go furtherPhilips Hue: the guide to getting started, from installation to advanced use of connected bulbs

Philips Hue bulbs were born, and gave life to many competitors and a galaxy of objects. The general public has been able to accept the appearance of connected objects in their homes thanks to the familiarity of the product as well as its simplicity of installation. From then on, the market could be created and flourish to become what we know today.

2013: Microsoft Surface Pro

In 2013, Microsoft faced a dilemma. The software giant was concerned that PC makers weren't offering machines that took full advantage of Windows 8, its new operating system.

Microsoft has democratized the 2-in-1 tablet

The firm then decided to launch into the manufacture and sale of laptop computers and took the opportunity to popularize a concept: that of the 2-in-1 tablet. Thus were born the Surface PCs and its flagship, the Surface Pro, presented to everyone's surprise. This is an important event, because for the first time, Microsoft will compete with its manufacturing partners.

Microsoft offers a whole range of Surface products today

If the first generations were not very successful, Microsoft was able to persevere and the Surface division now brings in more than a billion dollars in sales each quarter. It is also, but not only, with Surface products that Microsoft has been able to restore its image, previously associated with a nerdy company.

Microsoft has created a market interesting enough to force Apple to attack it with the iPad Pro.

2014: Amazon Echo

When artificial intelligence hit the market, it made a lot of noise…often for little. The concept is after all complicated to digest for the general public as well as connoisseurs, and its application is often nebulous.

With Echo, Amazon was the forerunner of the connected speaker market

There is one product that has however managed to make it tangible and useful: the Amazon Echo. The connected and intelligent speaker capable of answering your questions while controlling the home automation products in your home. Home automation products? Yes. The popular success of the Amazon Echo successfully launched this entire industry.

At least… popular American success. Around the world, the observation is not necessarily the same: the Google Home, for example, is often more popular in France, simply by virtue of the fact that the brand is better known and respected here. In any case, connected and smart speakers have only experienced stable and sustainable growth in recent years, as have the connected objects that surround them, and we owe it without a shadow of a doubt to the American giant.

2015: Apple Watch

A watch must have a round screen! That's what many people thought when the Apple Watch was launched in 2015. It's clear that Apple's vision was the right one, as it has been so successful since then.

As with the iPad, Apple managed to create a real market buzz for smartwatches when it released the Apple Watch. Sales of the connected watch quickly became very important for the brand. Moreover, Apple far exceeds the competition's sales in the market, with almost half of the market share for the Apple Watch.

The Apple Watch is both a watch and a connected health device

Beyond this commercial success, the Apple Watch marked the decade for another reason. This series of devices also represents the new interest of brands for the health of users. With each new version of the Apple Watch, Apple incorporates new functions to protect users, especially older ones.

We could mention Google's efforts with Google Fit, or more generally with its Verily division dedicated to health. We can also mention the work of the French Withings which is developing a series of connected health objects.

However, none of these devices seem to be on par with what Apple offers in terms of integration and ease of use. We always have a watch with us, so it's a very good device for monitoring health in real time.

2016: Apple AirPods

We can never repeat it enough: Apple AirPods are not the first earphones qualified as true wireless on the market. The title actually goes to Bragi's Dash headphones launched two years earlier, in 2014. It's hard to deny, however, that it was Apple's headphones that popularized the principle of headphones that are not connected to each other by a single cable.

The design of the AirPods hit the mark

It was really after Apple's AirPods in 2016 that we saw the entire industry gradually switch from neckband Bluetooth headphones to completely wireless headphones. Whether consumer brands like Samsung or Sony, more audio-oriented manufacturers like Sennheiser, Bose or Jabra, or clearly Hi-Fi oriented manufacturers like Bang & Olufsen, all have followed Apple and its AirPods .

As often, Apple did not invent a truly innovative product. However, he was able to perfect the technology to make it as accessible as possible and popularize it in the market. There is no doubt that without the AirPods we would not benefit today from the Sony WF-1000XM3, the Jabra Elite 75T or the Samsung Galaxy Buds. Not to mention other models with a design that we would call much more inspired, such as those from Xiaomi, Huawei or Realme.

2017: Nintendo Switch

When it comes to video game consoles, it's hard not to think of the PS4 in recent years. However, it is still a console that has really innovated and whose success has launched a trend on the tech market as much as it completely destroyed its competitor's hopes of a fight.

The Nintendo Switch is the first home console that you can carry in your pocket

This is obviously the Nintendo Switch. With its product halfway between a home console and a portable console, the Japanese manufacturer has succeeded in fulfilling a dream that many players have had for years. And by adding the unmistakable Nintendo touch to it, plus great support from third-party publishers and independent developers, it has created one of the most enjoyable consoles to use.

Today, the console continues to follow the success of the Nintendo Wii and has created an unprecedented movement with all gamers clamoring for a Switch version with every game announcement. The Nintendo Switch Lite makes the console more accessible to children and adults. more limited budgets, when the biggest players dream of a more powerful Pro version. Nintendo has created a phenomenon, once again, whose repercussions are undeniable.

2018: Xbox Adaptive Controller

Inclusion issues have been one of the guiding threads of this decade. Microsoft is one of the companies that has made inclusivity its priority.

Xbox Adaptive Controller represents industry focus on inclusivity

Behind what might seem like a simple communication campaign, there are real projects, and one of the best representatives of this policy is the Xbox Adaptive Controller.

Designed in partnership with specialists, this controller is actually a hub ready to receive dozens of accessories suitable for people with disabilities.

Gears 5 supports the Adaptive Controller, and has been applauded for its many accessibility options. Credit: Can I Play That

The system is developed by Microsoft for Windows and the Xbox, but is intended to be an open platform, which has allowed Logitech to create its own selection of compatible accessories.

2019: Samsung Galaxy Fold

Some might object to the presence of this last product among those that marked the decade. In a way, these people will be right, because the debut of the Samsung Galaxy Fold was not as bright as its manufacturer had hoped. Delayed due to bugs encountered by some testers, the first real foldable smartphone – more convincing than the Royole FlexPai at least – did not turn out to be the long-awaited revolution… At least, for the moment. Let's say instead that the Samsung Galaxy Fold will, in the future, prove to be the long-awaited revolution.

Admittedly, the first model is largely perfectible, but it already opens the way to a multitude of possibilities and uses that will have to be explored and exploited in the years to come. Many manufacturers are already working on their own foldable smartphones to follow in the footsteps of the Galaxy Fold and some have already been implemented, such as the Huawei Mate X or the Motorla Razr.

The Galaxy Fold is the result of years of engineering and huge investments that are intended to make it a pioneer in the smartphone transformation that awaits us. And when, over the next ten years, we have become accustomed to the refined and more accessible foldable smartphones available on the market, we must remember that this new paradigm has its roots in the decade that is soon ending.

This marks the end of our selection. Do not hesitate to tell us in the comments which are the tech devices that have marked you the most during this decade!

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