Imagine you’re at a party twenty years ago and someone says, “In the future, folks will be listening to music on their refrigerators.” You would have thought that guy was nuts, or just stupid. I mean why would anyone listen to music on their refrigerator? The idea doesn’t even make sense, right?
Well, my mother just bought a Samsung “Family Hub” refrigerator with a 21.5-inch screen built into a door and – oh yes – music plays from Pandora internet radio. That’s right, my mother’s refrigerator is connected wirelessly to the internet, and that’s not the half of it.
Above: The Samsung Family Hub refrigerator
Mom’s new refrigerator shows family photos in rotation (including yours truly), has a family calendar app, shopping list app, and will even mirror what’s playing on television in the next room.
As I attempted to wrap my head around the idea that my mother had chosen to listen to music on an ice box, she said, “It has cameras inside so you can see what’s in your refrigerator when you’re at the store.”
Ladies and gentlemen, the future is here and it’s completely nuts. Next thing you know we’ll all be talking to computers in our pockets, and they’ll answer us, in English. Oh wait…
You’re at a rally, and you meet this guy. He looks at your truck camper and says, “In the future, folks will be riding around in self-driving all-electric campers, no trucks necessary.” That guy is nuts, or just stupid, right? Why would anyone give up their truck? It doesn’t even make sense. No way.
Xiao Xue’s walking truck camper sculpture points to some big questions about the future of trucks, campers, and our beloved hobby. It’s no secret that self-driving technology is rapidly deploying. And if you haven’t seen an all-electric Tesla driving down the road, you’re not looking. They’re everywhere, and almost every one of them has a high-level of sensors, artificial intelligence, and autonomy built-in. This is all right here, and right now folks.
That doesn’t mean these new technologies will take over. As humans, we still have a say (for now) in how this all works out. Want to kill the self-driving electric truck? Don’t buy one. If enough people follow suit, we’ll have steering wheels for a couple more decades. The question is, where do we as truck campers stand on these big questions?
Click here to take our Truck Camping Into the Future poll.
