LIGHTS OUT! for PC

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 21^st 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.