The Future of the PC - 2017
While I hate to "age myself" by referring to older things, I've been hacking on PCs since their introduction in the mid 70's.
And while over the years there have been various attempts by other manufactures to influence PC makers to move away from Intel, no one has ever really come close. From Motorola, to PowerPC and AMD, while all had their "benefits" - the overwhelming majority of PCs come with "Intel Inside".
But in the Mobile and Tablet space, that is not the case. ARM manufactures like Qualcomm, Apple and Samsung are king. And while Intel tried with the Atom processor to influence that space - they eventually dropped the line.
So why am I talking about this ?
Recently there have been two points that may influence what a PC is and uses.
First is Windows on ARM. Announced at the WinHEC Conference in China - a new Microsoft/Qualcomm partnership is changing the approach to ARM based CPU with a full version of Windows 10 being able to run on new processors like the upcoming Qualcomm SnapDragon 835.
The SnapDragon 835 is one of the most anticipated CPUs ever announced by Qualcomm. The SOC CPU provides tremendous power and flexibility along with a huge list of features. And while it is anticipated to be primarily focused on the Mobile market, I see no reason why it can't also be used in what is called the Sub 9" PC Market.
Second was a discussion in Windows Central regarding the now 2 year old Surface 3 and was it still a viable platform. This $499 device, was for many the benchmark for the lightweight tablet style PC that the Surface line helped define.
Unlike it's Intel Core based sister the Surface Pro, the Surface 3 was based on Intel Atom, did not require a fan, provided 10 hrs+ of battery life while still providing enough power to perform a good combination of business/personal processing to satisfy many.
I use a Atom based Dell Venue 8 Pro as one of my test machines. While it can't support some of the newer feature of Windows 10 like Hello and Continuum it was designed in a similar vain as the Surface 3, light weight tablet running Windows that could run all day and provide decent support for the apps most people use.
One of the discussions in the article was questioning whether MS would refresh the Surface 3.
Obviously with the Atom processor now history the answer is no to a traditional refresh.
With that said, I could see a new device based on something like the 835 that could easily drive a new Surface device. And that raises an interesting question.
Could your next PC actually be an ARM based device ?
I certainly say it can. Over the last decade ARM based processor lines like the SnapDragon have been hugely successful - easily outselling Intel if you consider how many Mobile devices have been sold. And with each new generation comes new capabilities and features that no one would have dreamed of even 5 years ago. Who would have thought about an 8 Core SOC with 4K GPU, HDR Camera, LTE, WiFI/BT, USB, SD and Crypto support in something smaller than a postage stamp.
Now wrap the SOC in a 9" form factor with 4K Screen, Dual Cameras, an SD/SimSlot with enough battery to run all day and price it in the $500 - $600 range.
Add full Windows 10 with Touch/Pen support or MacOS for that matter with the ability to cast the screen to a large panel, run store and side load apps with no emulation and that could easily be your next PC.
Light weight, all day battery, WiFi and LTE connectivity. Now sure this may not peak the infamous Adobe Photoshop or CAD benchmarks, but I say for those users go ahead and use Intel - it's great for that. But for many of us who live in Office365 and a browser, then play movies or music while travelling - this new approach may sell.
Something needs to move the PC market. As I've noted in several previous posts, the PC market has been shrinking 5 - 10% per year for the last five years. Without something to really shake it up, that trend will continue. And while MS tried to redefine the PC with Surface and Windows 10 - it hasn't changed the trend line.
So maybe a new ARM based PC will.. Hopefully we'll get to see something like my imaginary 9" by 2018...
Only time will tell.
And while over the years there have been various attempts by other manufactures to influence PC makers to move away from Intel, no one has ever really come close. From Motorola, to PowerPC and AMD, while all had their "benefits" - the overwhelming majority of PCs come with "Intel Inside".
But in the Mobile and Tablet space, that is not the case. ARM manufactures like Qualcomm, Apple and Samsung are king. And while Intel tried with the Atom processor to influence that space - they eventually dropped the line.
So why am I talking about this ?
Recently there have been two points that may influence what a PC is and uses.
First is Windows on ARM. Announced at the WinHEC Conference in China - a new Microsoft/Qualcomm partnership is changing the approach to ARM based CPU with a full version of Windows 10 being able to run on new processors like the upcoming Qualcomm SnapDragon 835.
The SnapDragon 835 is one of the most anticipated CPUs ever announced by Qualcomm. The SOC CPU provides tremendous power and flexibility along with a huge list of features. And while it is anticipated to be primarily focused on the Mobile market, I see no reason why it can't also be used in what is called the Sub 9" PC Market.
Second was a discussion in Windows Central regarding the now 2 year old Surface 3 and was it still a viable platform. This $499 device, was for many the benchmark for the lightweight tablet style PC that the Surface line helped define.
Unlike it's Intel Core based sister the Surface Pro, the Surface 3 was based on Intel Atom, did not require a fan, provided 10 hrs+ of battery life while still providing enough power to perform a good combination of business/personal processing to satisfy many.
I use a Atom based Dell Venue 8 Pro as one of my test machines. While it can't support some of the newer feature of Windows 10 like Hello and Continuum it was designed in a similar vain as the Surface 3, light weight tablet running Windows that could run all day and provide decent support for the apps most people use.
One of the discussions in the article was questioning whether MS would refresh the Surface 3.
Obviously with the Atom processor now history the answer is no to a traditional refresh.
With that said, I could see a new device based on something like the 835 that could easily drive a new Surface device. And that raises an interesting question.
Could your next PC actually be an ARM based device ?
I certainly say it can. Over the last decade ARM based processor lines like the SnapDragon have been hugely successful - easily outselling Intel if you consider how many Mobile devices have been sold. And with each new generation comes new capabilities and features that no one would have dreamed of even 5 years ago. Who would have thought about an 8 Core SOC with 4K GPU, HDR Camera, LTE, WiFI/BT, USB, SD and Crypto support in something smaller than a postage stamp.
Now wrap the SOC in a 9" form factor with 4K Screen, Dual Cameras, an SD/SimSlot with enough battery to run all day and price it in the $500 - $600 range.
Add full Windows 10 with Touch/Pen support or MacOS for that matter with the ability to cast the screen to a large panel, run store and side load apps with no emulation and that could easily be your next PC.
Light weight, all day battery, WiFi and LTE connectivity. Now sure this may not peak the infamous Adobe Photoshop or CAD benchmarks, but I say for those users go ahead and use Intel - it's great for that. But for many of us who live in Office365 and a browser, then play movies or music while travelling - this new approach may sell.
Something needs to move the PC market. As I've noted in several previous posts, the PC market has been shrinking 5 - 10% per year for the last five years. Without something to really shake it up, that trend will continue. And while MS tried to redefine the PC with Surface and Windows 10 - it hasn't changed the trend line.
So maybe a new ARM based PC will.. Hopefully we'll get to see something like my imaginary 9" by 2018...
Only time will tell.
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