The PC business is in trouble, but that's OK!
(Credit: HP)2009 is shaping up to be a tough year for the PC industry. According to a forecast update to IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, PC shipments are expected to decline sharply over the first two quarters this year.
I consider this period, one marked with declining profit margins and plummeting sales, which would be a death knell for some industries, an opportunity for this one. It is just what PC manufacturers need to get them to jump-start their research and development divisions, to find new ways to sell computers.
Perhaps this isn't the end, but rather the beginning of a new era in the PC business, where manufacturers pay more attention to consumer desire and provide them with more of the things they actually want. I hope so, anyway. And if it comes to pass, here's what I'm looking for:
... Read moreWith last week's news that Sony was forced to recall 438,000 Vaio laptops over burn concerns, it got me thinking about Sony, its place in the tech industry, and what's really going on at this once powerful company.
Sony's stock price is down more than 30 percent this year as its Vaio laptops fail to captivate audiences, its Playstation 3 still lags behind the competition, and its ill-fated attempts at holding on the Walkman brand have proven detrimental to its growth. And all the while, the company believes that it's doing everything right and it can hold on to its position as the single company in the industry that can release products in practically every market and be successful.
For years, Sony was successful because it brought high-quality products at an affordable price to store shelves. As it gained in popularity, the company was able to rely more on its name and solidify its brand as the single most popular in the entire industry. But as that happened, I feel like Sony lost its way.
When we rank some of the best products in each market, Sony once came to mind in every instance. But right now, I'd say that Sony is only in the top five in HDTVs, Camcorders, and gaming. Everywhere else, Sony products need not apply.
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eWeek has an interesting article up today detailing the difference in price currently being witnessed in the computing space, according to NPD. Based on the research firm's analysis, it estimates that the average Windows desktop is selling for about $550, compared to Apple's average desktop selling price of $1,543. The average Windows laptop in June was selling for $700, while Apple's laptops were going for a hefty $1,515.
After comparing comparably-equipped HP laptops with Mac notebooks, it became abundantly clear to me that Apple, although working hard to reduce prices on its computers, still has considerable work to do.
Right now, you can head over to HP's website and buy yourself a Pavilion dv7t sporting Windows Vista Home Premium, a 2.26Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, a 250GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM, and 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 9200M GS to display video on your 17-inch screen for just $1,217.99.
But if you chose the Mac, you'd be paying $2,799 for a MacBook Pro sporting a 2.5Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics card, and a 250GB hard drive.
The list goes on. Mac Pros are substantially more expensive than comparably-equipped Dell machines, and aside from iMacs, which are far more competitively priced, you're not getting a bargain on any Apple product.
... Read more
The Compenion Concept Laptop
(Credit: Slashgear)For those of you who are sick and tired of looking at the same laptop every day, Felix Schmidberger has shown off a slick new laptop concept.
Dubbed the Compenion, the laptop is a futuristic design that Schmidberger believes could become the norm by 2015. The Compenion features a sliding touchscreen that unveils an OLED touchscreen keyboard underneath. The concept also includes a multi-touch recognition system that allows you to use both hands when maneuvering your way around the desktop or the Internet. If finger-pressing isn't for you, the Compenion also supports a "senstylus" that, as far as I can tell, works much like the stylus you find on Tablet PCs.
But perhaps my favorite feature is the inclusion of a dock that, once you slide the keyboard into it, will project movies onto a screen or wall.
All in all, the Compenion isn't a bad idea, and I wouldn't mind it sitting on my desk at home. But for all that it offers, is 2015 really going to be like that? I certainly hope not. I want to see some serious gains in technology and instantaneous responses to my queries. OK, so maybe the latter is a pie-in-the-sky idea, but a guy can hope can't he?
Via [Slashgear]
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