I have worked hard for more than 10 years to earn the title of early gadget adopter and now I wear the badge with pride. It's not an easy reputation to establish and the path is often littered with bad purchasing decisions. I still cringe when I think of the color Pronto (touch screen remote control), the Palm VII, or the 38" HD DirecTV tube TV! I'd like to think those just help build character.

But the key to being considered an early gadget adopter is reputation. You have to show a sustained practice of getting in early on new trends and spotting trends is the biggest trick. It's not enough to simply acquire shiny new things - any fool with a credit card can do that. No, the key is not to be reckless but rather to demonstrate a keen understanding of which technologies are destined to be great, before they become great.

Past Early Adopter Trends

When it comes to gadgets, there certainly have been many opportunities in the past few decades on which to build an Early Gadget Adopter reputation. Here are some examples of technology trends that you would have to have been a part of (good EGAs can claim more than one or two of these):

• TiVo - the original time-shifter started the whole DVR wave
• Home Theaters - real theaters with projectors, screens, and surround sound in the home
• Portable MP3 Players - sure the MP3 software format itself was an important lead-in but Rio helped blaze the trail for personal music jukeboxes like the iPod
• High-Definition TV - one could argue that it still isn't quite mainstream but early adopters have already found a way to enjoy those three or four channels - and thousands more are coming
• Camera Phones - shake your heads if you want but I remember hearing lots of naysayers when this idea first came around and now you can't buy a decent phone without one

And let's not forget to highlight those technologies that the Early Gadget Adopter should have successfully avoided. Again we are talking about reputation so it is just as important to spot the weak trends and steer clear.

• Laser Discs - good idea but flipping the disc halfway through the movie kinda kills the whole effect
• MiniDisc - I love Sony as much as the next guy but this format seemed to only make sense for the live audio recording buff
• Divx - the Circuit City version where you buy a DVD that is rendered useless after viewing
• Rechargeable Batteries - just kidding, make sure you were paying attention

So What's Next?

So you fancy yourself an early-gadget adopter, do ya? Then surely you will have already picked up on these trends in the making:

• Portable Video Players - PVPs are soon going to be all the rage. Will they completely overtake portable music players? Of course not - TV didn't kill radio. They both have a place in our lives and soon people will begin to realize that having all forms of video content available to them on the go is a good thing. And if I hear one more person argue that video is not more compelling that audio... well I'll write another Opinion piece, that's what I'll do.
• Smartphones - the mobile phone is the ideal convergence device. We have already started to carry them with us everywhere we go and product companies like PalmOne, Blackberry, and SonyEricsson have shown that it is possible to create an appealing do-everything device
• Digital Radio - your first encounter with digital radio, especially if you live in the US, is satellite radio providers like XM and Sirius. But soon the US will catch up with Europe and roll out digital terrestrial radio as well thanks in no small part to the folks at iBiquity. Trust me that radio has plenty of room for improvement, your current AM/FM broadcasts will soon join 8-tracks and vinyl to be replaced with dramatic improvements in sound quality and programming metadata.
• Digital Home Libraries - your quickly growing digital music and photo collections are just the tip of the iceberg. Soon we will all be collecting massive amounts of video on hard drives in our computers, console game systems, and a/v equipment. But storing it is only half the challenge. Look for a whole new range of products that will give you convenient access to all your content as you stream it to every room in your house.
• Heads-Up Displays - "so that's what that picture is supposed to be?" Yeah, they're coming and at first they will be ridiculed more than the current Bluetooth (wireless) headset. These make so much sense but they have to evolve from a geek fashion statement into more integrated, less obtrusive information accessory.

I'm sure I touched a few nerves in this article. So let's go, chime in and tell me what I forgot. Tell me where I was completely off! Let's hear what you have to say.