Timeline

The world is about to get four billion more nurses. With the help of add-on apps and gadgets, cellphones can become medical helpers that track and transmit your vitals to physicians. These mobile aides will help catch diseases early, save ER visits, and cut health-care costs. And as future implants let phones trigger drug release, your favorite gadget may even save your life.

You never know when the creative impulse will strike. New phones put the tools of an artist in your pocket, using smaller camera sensors and novel materials. So create expert photos or music, and get your agent on the line.

Samsung i8910 HD:  Courtesy Samsung

Now: Shoot Movies

Many ordinary FM and AM stations transmit small amounts of digital data, such as song titles. And nearly 1,800 channels are entirely digital. Radio manufacturers are starting to take advantage of this extra information, creating gadgets that can not only play music, but also take notes, help you shop, or even save your life.

Identity theft used to involve someone rifling through your garbage. But now more than half a million laptops—full of tax returns and love letters—are stolen every year, estimates computer insurer Safeware. And even if your computer never leaves your sight, hackers can weasel into it over the Internet. Here are three technologies that will safeguard your digital data, whether it's on an office desktop or a stolen laptop.