The PC is Here to Stay, Says Intel's Paul Otellini
The PC is not going to go away anytime soon, Intel's CEO states.
In a recent interview with BusinessWeek, Intel CEO Paul Otellini covered a number of topics ranging from the cost of building a chip-manufacturing plant, to producing SoCs for smartphones, to the competition between Microsoft, Apple, Google and Amazon. But there's a point where they start talking about a post-PC era, and Otellini clearly acknowledges that the industry has moved away from an era of personal computers, to an era of personal computing. Still, that doesn't mean the desktop is dead.
"That means that there are going to be computers all around us and in different form factors," he said. "The PC is not going to go away anytime soon, if ever. It’s going to continue to evolve. Right now, it’s the most powerful tool you can have, but it doesn’t mean that there won’t be tablets or phones or even connected cars. The beauty of all these things is, if you get it right, the sum total of them has more value than the individual devices. That’s the model that we’re working toward."
The interview then moves on to talk about the pace of technological change. Otellini calls it evolution, describing the move from mainframes to minicomputers to the desktop PC. Intel servers have taken on supercomputing characteristics while the PC form factor has shrunk from "brick" to "ultrathin." Our phones have even gotten "smart" -- all thanks to the evolution of the microprocessor.
"Had we not done the basic work in microprocessors, for example, none of this would be possible," he said. "While there are some really interesting moments where you see great leaps forward -- and I would put the iPhone in that category -- it’s not like it was the first thing. I mean, you see this being argued out in the IP courts today: of who had a phone that was similar to that. Who had swipe gesturing 10 years ago, those kinds of things."
BusinessWeek brought up the subject of Intel's late entry into the ARM-dominated smartphone sector with its own SoC. Otellini said that part of the "oh gosh Intel missed the boat" argument stems from the analyst community which, as he states, "has its own agenda." Critics are seemingly fixated on ARM's dominance rather than focusing on Intel's success with high-end chips in data centers.
"They may be long on something and short on something else," he mused. "We tend not to worry about that. We just tell our story to them. There have been believers all along. They have made a lot of money, and the people that invested in us at the trough at whatever it was, $12, a few years ago have more than doubled their money, and they’re happy campers."
He goes on to describe Intel's entry into the smartphone sector is a marathon, not a sprint. "The most important thing for us is to continue to grow our presence in computing, in personal computing, and in the data center, and then over time get stronger and stronger in devices," he added.
To read the full interview, head here.
And you sir have had the iWool pulled over your eyes.
Until something comes along that makes the PC underpowered, it's here to stay.
Drink up the kool-aid
When I hear the term "PC," I think of a home desktop machine, or a non-netbook laptop. As soon as the definition of a PC deviates from that because of its evolution, I could no longer consider it a PC (as a PC enthusiast).
State it however you want, it semantics. The PC is not here to stay.
Hence the reason I shun these devices and could care less.
However I do see something good, where a smart wireless device could act as a remote control for said Media/Storage Center that is installed into every home.
Could be there is an app for this already ?
And you sir have had the iWool pulled over your eyes.
Until something comes along that makes the PC underpowered, it's here to stay.
Drink up the kool-aid
If you can write a fully fledged app for the iPad, ON your iPad, then I will accept your argument.
Perhaps even offload heavier computing loads from your tablet to the household computer, allowing you to do more intensive work on it, while keeping your battery life high.
If you mainly used your computer for YouTube, then I'd agree, in that case there is no need for a desktop computer. If you use it for pretty much anything else, then a real computer with a keyboard that you don't have to hold up in the air is better.
If you want to predict trends in products, answer the question, "What's better?" Having a smartphone is better than not having a smartphone, because any access to a computer is better than no access when you're moving around. It hits the sweet spot for accessibility vs. ease of use.
When you are about to sit down for a 1-8 hour computing session though, which is better, a smartphone/tablet or a PC? The mobility aspect is no longer a factor because you are not going anywhere, so the superior interface and capability of a desktop PC make it a clear winner in that scenario.
Just throwing out some thoughts. Personally, I use my PC everyday quite extensively for tasks big and small. Should my phone be able to play crysis @ 60 fps one day, I wouldn't mind getting a dock
The only thing that is changing is the definition of what a PC is.