Personal Computer. Desktop. Do these words ring a bell
somewhere? The concept of personal computers took off as the next big thing in
the 90s and all through the first half of the 21st century. And it
did turn out as the BIG thing in the tech sector. But, Twenty years down the
line, things are not very rosy.
The very component of technology that kickstarted a whole
new race for providing customized and personalized computing services to the
common man, is sadly, yet surely coming to an end. Hot Shot manufacturers all over the world are
in a flux. For all we know, the dwindling market share of personal computers
may also drag their producers into the ground.
It’s a bold new world out there. The sheer force by which
smartphones have captured the market is mesmerizing. The temperament in the
Tech industry is so unrelenting, that the innocent PC didn’t even know what hit
it. It’s a shipwreck; and only a handful managed to escape unscathed. HP and
Dell are the companies that have been hit the worst by this unforeseen
crisis. It’s a chapter out of Sydney
Sheldon’s darkest novels. No metaphor would be sufficient to describe the
morbidity of the situation.
Smartphones have efficiently replaced and enhanced all those
services and features that people earlier used to do on their laptops or
computers. The hard truth is that smartphones and tablets are highly capable of
doing everything that your old PC did; and more. Word processing, Spreadsheets,
Presentations, you name it and they do it; and do it better no less.
The one product that is in part responsible for the decline
of the PC is something called a Mini-PC (No, it’s not a Net book). It is a cube
sized piece of hardware that is essentially a PC. Just like an External Hard
Disk. And all you need to do with it is connect it to a screen of your choice.
But, it hasn’t turned out the way it should have, and is currently a product
that only an IT guru or a geek would purchase.
The change is happening not only on the hardware or the
manufacturer’s front. The whole infrastructure is being adapted to enhance the
smartphone and tablet market. The PC does not even get the tiniest part of the
pie. With businesses encouraging BYOD (Bring
Your Own Device) culture and offering Work from Home incentives, there is no
reason that mobile technology will die down soon. Not for another year at least
(That’s how unpredictable things have become).
The PC market is seeing a yearly decline of almost 2
percent. Now, you’re probably thinking that Microsoft just launched their
latest version of Windows, so what this idiot is blabbering about. True; they
did launch their latest software, but it’s just their own personal agenda that
they are continuing with Apple since the era of Steve Jobs. The truth is that
every tech company is slowly and quite evidently shutting down their PC
development units. All R&D is focused on mobile tech units a.k.a
smartphones and tablets. Dell and HP are catching up with their own line of
tablets being launched recently, but I’m afraid they’re doing too little too
late.
The reason behind the failure of these tech giants is the
simple fact, that they are not trained in playing catch up. And for the first
time since their inception, they are being forced to do so. But, there is one
unsung hero among all these companies, who like The Dark Knight (pardon my
comic book lingo) is managing to turn things around for this doomed market; and
that is Apple. At their latest launch event, Apple revealed that they managed
to sell 5.52 million unit of their hugely popular product- The Mac.
Can you imagine? In a market that’s declining at a yearly
rate of 2%, their Mac saw a growth rate of 21 per cent over the previous year.
So, in my opinion, it might not be lights out yet. At least for the Mac it
isn’t. But, still, PCs won’t be the dominant force that they once used to be.
Their moment in the sunlight is over.
So, those of you planning to buy a laptop or a desktop PC
this festive season, choose wisely. Buying a laptop or PC may not be the best
option. And let me also take a moment to indulge my inner Nostradamus and make
a prediction- In another two years, we might also be talking the same way about
smartphones and tablets as we are now about PCs. The future beholds the
wonderful gift of Wearable Technology. Check out the Google Glass and a barrage
of smart watches that were launched this year, if you don’t believe me.
