The Economist: Personal Technology

The Penguin Economist Special reports delve into the most pressing economic issues of the day: from national and global economies, to the impact of trade, industry and jobs. Written to be read on a long commute or in your lunch hour - be better informed in under an hour.

Twenty years ago one gigabyte of memory cost $200,000. Now, a terabyte (1000 gigabytes) costs a mere $100.

Technology permeates our everyday lives and never more so than with our portable, personal devices. Businesses are struggling to keep up with their employees' technological abilities and demands.

In Personal Technology, Martin Giles unpicks the changing landscape of technology, examining apps, new devices and their effect on world trade. In the following sections, he explains how technology and the economy are becoming inextricably linked and how this has resulted in the birth of the new, digital age.

Beyond the PC

Consumerisation: The power of many

Apps on tap

Personal technology at work: IT's Arab spring

Adapting personal IT for business: The consumer-industrial complex

Droid wars

Ubiquitous computing: Up close

Technology and society: Here comes anyware