Research firm predicts what isn't going to happen in 2005

Predicting what the future will bring is not an easy task, so instead ABI Research identified over-hyped technologies that won't be next year's Big Thing. Of course it's easy to think of improbable events and trends, so ABI analysts focused on the company's core areas of expertise such as energy, semiconductors, wireless communications, and RFID. The following are their conclusions, which are nowhere near as debatable as regular predictions:

• High oil prices will not hasten fuel cell vehicles' introduction.
• Entire enterprises and global supply chains will NOT be rebuilt by RFID in 2005.
• We will not see the much-expected micro fuel cells in laptops, PDAs, or mobile phones.
• Renewable energy markets will not buckle under the pressure of the 20%+ growth rate they've seen in recent years.
• Despite an increasingly sophisticated set of capabilities, including GPS, the mobile handset will not replace the embedded telematics device.
• WiMAX will not be replacing Cable and DSL anytime soon.
• No clear leader will emerge between the next generation optical recording technologies, HD DVD and Blu-ray DVD.
• Portable Media players will certainly not become as popular as Apple's iPods in 2005.