A new device has been developed which means touch screens on mobile devices might be a thing of the past. 

US researchers have developed "Skinput" - a device which allows you to interact with your mobile device by tapping your skin. A tiny projector uses the skin's surface to display number pads, a menu and a screen. The technology uses sensors placed on the arm, which then control the device depending on where the arm is tapped. 

Skinput's creator Chris Harrison came up with the idea to overcome the problem of interacting with gadgets. "The human body is the ultimate input device," he said. 

The arm was chosen specifically for the sensors because bone density, arm mass and the filtering that occurs when sound waves pass through the tissue make it easy to distinguish the location of the tap. 

"The wonderful thing about the human body is that we are familiar with it," said Mr Harrison. "Proprioception means that even if I spin you around in circles and tell you to touch your fingertips behind your back, you'll be able to do it."

"That gives people a lot more accuracy then we have ever had with a mouse."

So far the device is only at the prototype stage and the sensors are enclosed in a bulky cuff but Mr Harrison believes there's an opportunity for these to be scaled down at a later date. Early trials have shown the technology can be learnt in just 20 minutes, with a 5 location system having an accuracy rate of around 95%. 

It's not yet known when the device will be available for commercial use but when it does go on the market it's sure to be snapped up by mobile workers across the world. 

Mobile and wireless technology is now increasingly critical for small businesses according to a new report out this week. 

More than a fifth of those questioned for AT&T's "Small Business Technology Poll" said they would and could not be in business without wireless technologies, while a further 43% claimed it would be a "major challenge". 

The questionnaire also found mobile and wireless usage has soared in the past 2 years. A quarter of respondents reported the same usage as 2007, while 74% of small businesses said they relied on mobile and wireless technologies much more. 

And that usage is only going to go up and up in the coming years. Nearly 75% said they were planning to increase their usage, including 37% who will use the services "much more". 

Key tasks for using wireless on the go include checking e-mails (more than 80%) and browsing the internet (57%). Smartphones were used for similar tasks but were primarily used as mobile phones. 

“Wireless technology is a critical business tool that allows mobile workers to stay in touch with colleagues and customers, and to access company data on the move,” said Timothy Doherty from IDC.

“Reliance on wireless technology will only increase, as growing adoption of mobile business applications among small businesses drives the need for fast, reliable connectivity." 

A new survey has revealed that the main motivation behind buying the iPad is mobile working.

2,500 consumers were questioned by Sybase and 52.3% admitted they would be buying the tablet for portable working. 48.2% would use it to watch videos, while 35.4% would buy it for gaming purposes.

75% of respondents said they felt smartphones like Blackberrys and tablets like the iPad would make them more productive at work. This will come as welcome news to Apple who are hoping for huge sale figures when the iPad goes on commercial sale in America next week. 

“Study findings reveal that consumers are increasingly demanding mobile devices that blend consumer and enterprise functionality, exposing an unexpected emphasis on the iPad’s suitability for work-related activities, and demonstrating the iPad’s potential value to information workers," Sybase said in their report. 

Despite this, it's believed the majority of the applications being developed for the iPad are for games, with work-related applications expected to be configured at a later date. 

The Sybase report says users are increasingly looking for a mobile device with functions which can be used both at home and at work. With the large number of mobile workers working on the go and from home it seems the iPad could be just what we've been waiting for. 

A new report out this week shows that mobile data traffic has overtaken voice traffic in the last few years. The findings from Ericsson are based on measurements from live networks covering all areas of the globe.

The survey shows data traffic has grown worldwide over the last 2 years by 280%, with that number predicted to double again in the next 2 years. The popularity of smartphones, PCs and other mobile devices are thought to be behind the growth spurt. 

New technology, such as virtual desktops, which make it easier to work on devices on the go and the rise in mobile workers are also believed to have impacted on the results. 

"This is a significant milestone with some 400 million mobile broadband subscriptions now generating more data traffic than the voice traffic from the total 4.6 billion mobile  subscriptions around the world," said Hans Vestburg from Ericsson. 

"Our view that the appeal of anywhere, anytime connectivity would drive mobile broadband growth is confirmed by the real world measurements under taken by Ericsson." 

Mobile devices, like smartphones and laptops, are used not only by businessmen but by a wide range of people on a regular basis. Social networking sites now account for a large percentage of data traffic - 200 mobile operators over 60 countries are deploying and promoting Facebook products, while the site has a registered 100 million active users.

Mobile broadband-based PCs have also helped to give operators a much-needed boost, both in customers and profits, post-recession. 

Gartner have revealed their list of the top 10 mobile technologies that companies should take note of and invest in in 2011. 

The report out this week highlights the pieces of technology which will “evolve in ways that affect corporate strategies, significant numbers of customers or employees will adopt or expect them, or will address particular mobile challenges that organizations will face." 

These technologies are set to adapted this year and will significantly change mobile policies and strategies in 2011. All types of businesses will be affected by the new technologies as they look to re-establish their policies post-recession.

There will be two new versions of Bluetooth out next year. Bluetooth 3 will enable faster data transmission, while Bluetooth 4 will include a new low-energy mode. Both will include technological improvements which will improve things like battery life and security. 

Another entry into the top 10 is the browser. By 2011 almost 85% of handsets shipped will include some kind of browser, while in mature markets 60% of the handsets shipped will be smartphones with sophisticated browsers. 

75% of devices shipped in these markets will include GPS, while Wi-Fi will remain important when GPS can't be used. Mobile platforms and mobile widgets will also become much more diverse and easily available but Gartner believe they will not yet have become consolidated. The rise in mobile widgets and applications will increase the prominence of app stores and Gartner expects many applications to "exploit the ecosystem cloud services". 

The report states that smartphones will come with bigger, higher resolution screens which will help mobile workers with their daily workload. Touch-screens are also in the top 10, with the analyst expecting 60% of mobile devices to be shipped with them next year. 

Other entrants include cellular broadband, device-independent security technology and machine-to-machine-based systems. 

Once upon a time mobile phones were only used to make calls and send texts. Now they offer much, much more. So much more in fact that they are now regularly replacing common household items. 

The first thing to be replaced? The humble landline. While most of the UK have a landline, 92% of the 1054 mobile users questioned said they would be more likely to use their mobile phone to make a call than use their landline. Furthermore, 21% said they only had a landline because it came as part of an entertainment bundle. 

Nearly half (42%) said they did not own a camera but 79% said it was because they used their mobile phone instead. Similarly alarm clocks are becoming more and more redundant, while users are more likely to access the calculator on their device than a traditional calculator (91%). 

"It is always interesting to watch how trends persist in technology and I’m sure that as phones develop even further, other devices will fall in popularity with consumers. The fact that more than half prefer the idea of having one device to do everything says it all," said Neil McHugh from rightmobilephone.co.uk. 

While mobile phones are replacing many common household items it seems the revolutionary Sat Nav is safe... for now! 1 in 4 of those questioned said they regularly used their mobile to navigate their way but 81% said they would prefer to use a traditional Sat Nav device when travelling somewhere unfamiliar. 

As the needs of mobile workers rise so too does the need for smart devices which can do everything and anything. While these devices are ideal for many, they will soon sadly cause the death of many familiar household items around the world. 

New research has revealed that a large number of employers would be less likely to quit their job if they were allowed to work from home. 

A study by Regus found that 16% of workers have considered resigning from their job simply because of the length of their commute. And the figure just keeps rising the longer the commute. More than 33% of workers have thought about quitting because their everyday travel time is longer than an hour. 

"While businesses can't control the traffic, they can control where and how efficiently their staff work," said Regus' Sande Golgart.

"We're no longer tethered to a static office environment with alternatives from virtual offices to cost-effective, fully-equipped offices that are closer to an employee's home."

The news comes just days after the CBI called for a more flexible attitude towards working from home in a bid to cut down on the UK's congestion problems. 

Similarly another survey has revealed a reduced commuting time might not be the only positive to letting employees work from home. A recent survey by Microsoft Corp revealed that 68% of Detroit workers said they were more productive when working from home. Despite this, only 27% said their bosses were supportive of home working. 

Lack of trust and fears over work volume and quality were the main factors named in holding employers back from embracing home working, however the news out this week might make employers want to re-examine their attitudes if they want to hold onto their staff. 

New research has revealed the UK has the worst record for backing up data in the whole of Europe.

Acronis surveyed 600 companies across Britain, Germany and France and found 38% of UK SMEs never back up at all. This compares to just 6% in France and 9% in Germany. 

Other countries also take back up more seriously. 90% of French and German countries carry out automatic back up at least once a week, compared to just under 60% in the UK. 

Despite these poor results, the survey also showed that UK businesses are the most confident about making a recovery after hardware crashes. 

"With little room for downtime in today's business environment, it's surprising that many companies still don't carry out regular backups," said Acronis' David Blackman. “The UK’s attitude to data backup does not make much sense and it suggests that a lot of work needs to be done to educate them on this." 

It's not known why UK firms seem to disregard back up compared to other companies. Some experts think it could be to do with the economy, while others think they regard their documents as less important than their European counterparts. 

A few years ago no one had heard of mobile applications but today they're everywhere. From games to GPS trackers, you can, quite literally, find "an app for that". 

As well as becoming hugely popular in the last few years, these applications are now starting to make big money. A study by the world's second largest app store, Getjar, has revealed the app market is set to grow to a staggering $17.5 billion in the next 2 years. 

The study shows downloads will also rise. The download number is set to soar from 7 billion last year to 50 billion in 2012 - a 92% year on year increase. 

While Apple's App Store still remains the dominant player in the market, the number of app stores have increased more than ten fold in the last 2 years. Nowadays, there are plenty of app stores to choose from, including those from Blackberry, Microsoft, Nokia and Samsung. 

Since its launch, Google's Android Marketplace now has over 30,000 applications for smartphone downloading. This high figure shows just how much variety and choice there is in the application world. 

The number of available applications and downloads is also set to increase with the launch of the iPad next month. Many mobile workers are eager for the arrival of the iPad as the format and style will really help when working on the go. The imminent unveiling of the tablet has also seen a rush back to the iPhone. 

"We have definitely seen a shift back to the iPhone with the anticipation of the iPad and a little bit of the disappointment with the Nexus 1 (Google phone)," said Simon Khalaf from Flurry Analytics.

"Definitely there has been a rush of applications. It will invite a new wave of developers and it is a very cool device so people are going to develop for it."

The CBI are encouraging flexible working in a bid to cut down on gridlocked roads. 

They've called for a "radical overhaul" of road travel in the UK, which currently affects thousands of drivers on their daily commute. The CBI have estimated that road congestion costs the country £8 billion every year and has warned the problem could double by 2025 if something doesn't change.

A recent CBI survey shows 80% of firms class roads as being "vital" to their business. Additionally, 96% of firms want the next government to take a new approach to the road traffic problems, focussing on rush hour traffic in particular.

The CBI have made a number of suggestions about how the government and firms can help to address the problem. These include encouraging flexible working e.g. working from home and changing working hours in a bid to cut down on morning traffic. 

New technology such as WiFi and virtual desktops mean this is now a much more viable option than it was even 5 years ago. 

“For too long, Britain’s roads have been a cause of frustration and delays for our businesses and commuters. Some government initiatives, such as road-widening schemes or using the hard shoulder on motorways, have been welcome but hardly scratch the surface of the problem," said CBI's Andrew Palmer.

“Now is the time for fresh thinking on the roads. We need a radical overhaul of how we travel and manage our road system if we are to do more than simply tinker at the edges."