Tech trends in China that are on their way over here

Gold iPhones are status symbols in China. Not pink, rose or white, gold phones are everywhere. Black cellphones are seriously uncool. Non-gold phones, or devices from other manufacturers, tend to be hidden behind cellphone cases. Xiaomi phones, which outsell Apple in China, were nowhere to be seen.

Most mobile phone covers are gold, preferably blinged up with glitter or jewels. Other phones have cases wierdly shaped like cats or Pikachu to disguise your phone further.

Over here, we hardly use them but QR codes are everywhere in China. They are displayed in shop windows, posters, digital signage, and videos. Often two QR codes are used - just in case one is not enough for your needs. I saw people scanning QR codes for offers close to cash register points before purchasing items.

If you have a vertical wall, cover it with LEDs and use it for extra advertising space. Static brick is not good for revenue generation. The amount of digital signage on buildings in cities adds to the 'Blade Runner' look and feel of large Chinese cities.

Metro journeys on the subway do not need to interrupt your workflow. With full cell and data coverage you can carry on watching those videos, make your calls and do your emails - as efficiently as you can on the surface. Work never needs to stop.

In between subway stations, use the dark tunnels to advertise whilst you have a captive audience. The speed of the video is matched to the speed of the train, maximising the advertising opportunity for brands and making your journey between stations as high-tech as possible. An example is on this YouTube video at 2.00 minutes.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook Messenger are all blocked across China. You need to use a VPN to access any of the services. It does not matter at all. WeChat has over 650 million active users who use the service to book doctor's appointments, hail taxis and make peer to peer payments. You can even pay your parking fine using WeChat.

Selfie sticks are not only used by tourists in China. Many people carry selfie sticks and use them for watching videos, having face to face video chats, and for hands free chatting. Some use bluetooth remote controls for their sticks for complete hands free operation