I personally would like to work in the industry, and I would also like to work on products that will reach the market in my lifetime. However I agree with krp76 that academic research does not only means long term research. The timeline of any study depends on the specific topic being researched. While many drugs and devices are developed in industry, some products on the market are the result of patents on discoveries/inventions made in academia and licensed to a company. It is also important to note as some have already mentioned that some devices on the market no only exist because of recent improvements on established understandings.