Top 10 technology highlights of 2009

The world went app mad, Twitter and Android went mainstream and the video-on-demand market exploded in the UK.

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1. The world goes app mad

Since Apple launched its App Store in July 2008, iPhone and iPod touch users have downloaded more than two billion applications, including games, city guides, language dictionaries, travel planners, music services and productivity tools. The world, it seems, can’t get enough of mobile apps, and dozens of other handset makers have followed Apple’s lead. Google’s Android Marketplace is building a sizeable library of decent apps, while Orange, Nokia, Samsung and BlackBerry have all launched their own application stores, with varying degrees of success. Claudine Beaumont

2. Twitter goes mainstream

The cognoscenti have been on Twitter for years now. Stephen Fry, the web service’s patron saint – in Britain at least, joined in 2008. However, it wasn’t until early 2009, somewhere around the time that Fry tweeted while stuck in a lift, that the service went truly mainstream. Mentions of Twitter, usually involving celebrities, could be found in newspapers and on breakfast television. For those not blinded by the celebs or driven to write indignant columns about the horrid triviality of it all, Twitter has become very useful, enabling them to discuss their hobbies and passions, connect with friends and colleagues or simply have a chat. Shane Richmond

3. Real-time search revolution

The rise of Twitter’s popularity and importance didn’t go unnoticed by Google or Microsoft. Suddenly both search companies’ engines looked very slow without a real-time element. Both companies duly signed deals with Twitter, Facebook and MySpace which will see ‘real-time’ results be integrated into both Google’s and Bing’s search indexes. Emma Barnett

4. Microsoft gets its mojo back

Microsoft has enjoyed something of a renaissance this year. The software company is once again leading from the front; Project Natal, its potentially game-changing controller-free, motion-sensing gaming system, was one of the most exciting product demos seen this year. A much-needed overhaul of its mobile operating system has stopped Windows Mobile dropping too far behind Android and the iPhone, while it has refreshed its search offering, with the launch of Bing in the US and UK and real-time search deals with Facebook and Twitter. And with the successful launch of Windows 7, Vista seems like a distant nightmare. CB

5. Windows 7 goes…..somewhere

Although the replacement for the much maligned Windows Vista operating system had been in public beta testing for what seemed like years, it finally launched in October, literally to queues of adoring (or desperate) fans at PC World. Matt Warman

6. Spotify drives streaming music boom

There have been streaming music services for some time but Spotify has captured the imagination of the music and technology industries alike. The depth of the catalogue, the availability of the mobile application and the simplicity of the interface have introduced the idea of having a music collection in the cloud. Whether people will be happy to completely give up the idea of owning music, rather than renting it, remains to be seen but Spotify has proved that the two options can coexist. SR

7. Android goes mainstream

Google’s operating system for mobile phones took a little while to get off the ground: T-Mobile’s clunky G1 phone was the first to run it, but there was nothing aspirational about the brick-like handset. Then along came the Magic and Hero models, and suddenly it became obvious the the iPhone wasn’t the only cool handset with built in music and usable internet. Crucially, too, the Android app market has expanded massively: now Google’s phones can do almost anything you need, from tracking train times to reading Office documents. MW

8. Rise of VOD

The UK video-on-demand market has exploded this year – with every British broadcaster, BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five all upping their own web TV game as well beginning to sign aggregation deals. Channel 4 became the first broadcaster around the world to sign full-length content deal with YouTube, and a similar deal then ensued with Five. A UK version of Hulu is still rumoured to launch, with an ITV deal in the offing, and will face increased competition from MSN Video, Arqiva’s SeeSaw and Blinkbox. EB

9. Netbook sales continue to climb

Nearly a quarter of all PC sales in Europe is now made up of these tiny sub-laptop boxes with their mini screens, fiddly keyboards and Linux or Windows XP running gear. Newer models include built-in mobile internet access. Subsidies from network operators have kept purchase prices low, making the netbook very attractive to those who do not wish to spend any more than they have to on their computing or enjoy carrying something more versatile than a mobile phone without putting their backs out. Ian Douglas

10. Satellite navigation comes to the mobile phone

Apple have strict controls on turn-by-turn navigation apps, limiting iPhone users to expensive options form TomTom or CoPilot, but Android users need never be lost again. The latest version of Google’s mobile OS includes the same functionality as the GPS unit you got for Christmas a couple of years ago which can now be safely consigned to the obsolete gadgets drawer, never to be seen again. ID

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