What Is Technological Convergence?
Search Data Center, Thursday, May 9th, 2024
Technological convergence is a term that describes bringing previously unrelated technologies together, often in a single device. Smartphones might be the best possible example of such a convergence.
Prior to the widespread adoption of smartphones, consumers generally relied on a collection of single-purpose devices. These devices included telephones, wristwatches, digital cameras and global positioning system (GPS) navigators. Today, even low-end smartphones combine the functionality of all these separate devices, easily replacing them in a single device.
Technological convergence consists of the integration, merging or the blending together of different technologies to create a new product or offering. It's a broad concept that covers a wide range of technologies. Converged technologies can replace single-function technologies but might also provide an alternative product offering. For example, smartphones have for the most part replaced GPSes, but graphing calculators are still a popular single-function technology.