The selfie was created pretty much by accident… and that’s how the next big thing could appear

Phone companies have thrown themselves into finding another elusive must-have quality for the front-facing camera - but a teenager could beat them to it

'The front-facing camera currently seems to stand rather low on the list of system-critical features consumers demand," observed PocketNow in a chin-stroking article in March 2012. "With the primary focus of this secondary camera aimed at video calling "one would think there would be a corresponding eruption in the usage of mobile video services. This explosion hasn't happened."

Such are the perils of jumping too far forward in trying to read social signals. It turned out that a front-facing camera was terrific for taking stills - and then meant stills featuring you, the phone owner. We all know what happened next. Taking a picture of yourself is hardly new; cameras have had timers for ages so you could set them on tripods and run around in front. What's new is being able to see what you're photographing, and do it at arm's length.