SXSW Interactive: Haptics to watch in 2015

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An exhibitor demonstrates a panoramic, wearable camera at a booth at the 2015 SXSW Music, Film + Interactive Festival.

As a plane with a Grumpy Cat flag flew overhead, courtesy of Friskies, the Technorati flooded into panel discussions and happy hour spots at the annual tech festival South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.

READ MORE:Who ruled SXSWesteros?

Top tech influencers pondered immortality and mind cloning. FireChat, an app that lets smartphone users connect via mobile chat even without a cellular connection, was another hot topic. Here's a look at the most notable trending topics at the tech jamboree so far...

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Frontiers Of Computational Thinking at 2015 SXSW Music, Film + Interactive Festival. The event is increasingly becoming known for picking - and sometimes killing off - new tech trends.

OFF-THE-GRID MOBILE CHAT

No cell service? No problem.

An app called FireChat uses phone signals such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to connect to other users' phones and enable chats without any network connection. The app, created by a San Francisco startup called Open Garden, debuted in 2012 and was a hit last August at the Burning Man festival in Black Rock, Nevada, where cell phone service is scarce.

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SXSW Interactive: Haptics to watch in 2015