I remember "The 21st Century" — though I was young to appreciate it fully at the time. Here Walter Cronkite describes the "Home of the Future" as seen in 1967.
The gaps visible are key in writing any sort of near-term (or sometimes far-term) SF. The idea of wireless communication, as well as advances in miniaturization, means that that the Living Room of the Future (complete with Conversation Pit!) is controlled by a massive Star Trek -like console, rather than integrated remotes.
The kitchen segment shows another blind spot — how people actually live, vs. the ideals of technology. Not only does the automated Meal of the Future assume that everyone enjoys microwaved frozen food, but the dish-and-disposal scheme assumes zero left-overs. Is the extra food just wasted? Is each portion "computer controlled" for the individual's diet? Both have interesting implications. And, again, it's the small bits of the technology that feel most antiquated — ordering up your automatic meal via keyboard "or some time of punched computer card."
Lessons learned: (1) Consider the behavioral changes of the technology you show (are they realistic, and, if so, what does that say about the rest of the world). (2) The underlying technology is less likely to be dated if treated as a black box (which is how most people understand technology); what will really look dated, regardless, is the interface.
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How Far Off Were The Predictions Of 1967′s Home Of The Future? – The Consumerist
Faced with an amazing array of new technology, post-World War II America was obsessed with “the future” and how, within decades, we’d be living in geodesic colonies in the desert with self-sustaining …
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