After a few leaps forward, human society appears to require a moment to slump backwards and have a breather.
Take emojis: a stylised cartoon throwback to cave paintings and hieroglyphics that's gradually creeping out of our devices and into real life, thanks to gadgets like this Emoji Keyboard.
The creation of Emojiworks, this QWERTY Bluetooth keyboard claims to help you type out your favourite emoji symbols ten times faster than ever before.
"Spend less time playing 'find the emoji' and more time being awesome", writes the Emojiworks site.
On the Emoji Keyboard Pro option, every letter key contains three emoji options, with 'Shift', 'Control' and a new 'Emoji' button allowing users to select between the faces, cats and smiling faeces.
You can preorder the basic Emoji Keyboard (47 common emoji) for £52, while the Pro option will set you back £65.
If you required further convincing, here it is in action...
