Always Connected PCs - Turning your PC into a Phone
In a previous post I discussed the two new ARM based PCs from Asus and HP that were announced at the Qualcomm SnapDragon Technical Conference.
The following day both Intel and AMD announced similar designs. AMD will partner with Qualcomm while Intel may utilize their own LTE modem technology which they are heavily involved in.
The key here being support for eSim based devices. With LTE 5 around the corner and the potential for 1Gbps to 10Gbps speed depending on device density - it will change the way we think about mobile computing.
As I stated n my previous post - I've installed LTE modems in my laptops for years. I tried to stay away from the LTE Wifi Hub or phone tethering approach since I felt having an device that focused specifically on the communication was well worth the $120 - $160 I would pay. Combine that with the GPS & Voice capabilities that most of these modems provided and you suddenly did have an extremely mobile laptop.
eSim extends that capability even further by now eliminating the need for a SIM slot & reader hardware & card, plus provides the flexibility of changing your SIM on the fly via a web download or even having multiple "SIMs" live with a modem.
Another change is how MS is addressing power management. In Windows 8.1 Microsoft introduced what was called Connected Standby that utilized the S0ix power state to turn off a lot of the PC functions but could leave a device like an LTE modem live.
Microsoft advanced that in Windows 10 and the Fall Creators Update (1709) introduced Modern Standby. Modern Standby can be either connected or disconnected and can allow for things like Wave on Voice (WoV) - so Hey Cortana or Wake on Fingerprint Reader (WoFPR)
So with the combination of a modern PC platform with LTE 5G Modem + ESim and an OS that can manage the power states - you can now start to think about a PC that you manage and control like your phone - a soft/hard button or time value to place the device in standby that allows very low power devices like the LTE Modem to stay live - and updating notifications, mail, etc with the screen off and then an nearly instant on scenario to being the device back to full life.
This differs greatly from Legacy Standby - were the OS was in effect in a suspended state and often devices would not comeback cleanly from "Sleep" state. Anyone who has tried Sleep modes in the past know exactly what I am talking about.
So this capability is coming quicker than you think. According to the deck that MS presented at the Fall 2017 WinHEC Conference - where the clip above came from - MS is promoting OEMS to have this capability in place for 2018.
All of this positioning is in anticipation of LTE 5G. With the speeds and capabilities mentioned above many organizatons can consider retireing WiFi in RoBo situations and relying on LTE 5G for the primary connectivity for their workforce machines. Add to that multi-eSim and international travel scenarios change dramatically.
The following day both Intel and AMD announced similar designs. AMD will partner with Qualcomm while Intel may utilize their own LTE modem technology which they are heavily involved in.
The key here being support for eSim based devices. With LTE 5 around the corner and the potential for 1Gbps to 10Gbps speed depending on device density - it will change the way we think about mobile computing.
As I stated n my previous post - I've installed LTE modems in my laptops for years. I tried to stay away from the LTE Wifi Hub or phone tethering approach since I felt having an device that focused specifically on the communication was well worth the $120 - $160 I would pay. Combine that with the GPS & Voice capabilities that most of these modems provided and you suddenly did have an extremely mobile laptop.
eSim extends that capability even further by now eliminating the need for a SIM slot & reader hardware & card, plus provides the flexibility of changing your SIM on the fly via a web download or even having multiple "SIMs" live with a modem.
Another change is how MS is addressing power management. In Windows 8.1 Microsoft introduced what was called Connected Standby that utilized the S0ix power state to turn off a lot of the PC functions but could leave a device like an LTE modem live.
Microsoft advanced that in Windows 10 and the Fall Creators Update (1709) introduced Modern Standby. Modern Standby can be either connected or disconnected and can allow for things like Wave on Voice (WoV) - so Hey Cortana or Wake on Fingerprint Reader (WoFPR)
So with the combination of a modern PC platform with LTE 5G Modem + ESim and an OS that can manage the power states - you can now start to think about a PC that you manage and control like your phone - a soft/hard button or time value to place the device in standby that allows very low power devices like the LTE Modem to stay live - and updating notifications, mail, etc with the screen off and then an nearly instant on scenario to being the device back to full life.
This differs greatly from Legacy Standby - were the OS was in effect in a suspended state and often devices would not comeback cleanly from "Sleep" state. Anyone who has tried Sleep modes in the past know exactly what I am talking about.
So this capability is coming quicker than you think. According to the deck that MS presented at the Fall 2017 WinHEC Conference - where the clip above came from - MS is promoting OEMS to have this capability in place for 2018.
All of this positioning is in anticipation of LTE 5G. With the speeds and capabilities mentioned above many organizatons can consider retireing WiFi in RoBo situations and relying on LTE 5G for the primary connectivity for their workforce machines. Add to that multi-eSim and international travel scenarios change dramatically.
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