USAToday Column

September 1, 2015
A fresh look at PCs

By Bob O'Donnell

FOSTER CITY, Calif. — Pity the poor PC.

Written off for dead on more occasions than I can count, it’s been relegated, by some, to the junk heap of electronics history.

After all, aren’t we in the Post-PC Era?

And yet, basic research and common sense would suggest otherwise. For example, on what device are you actually reading this article? Depending on your age, there’s a very strong likelihood that it’s a PC or Mac.

If you’re at work, how and on what are you working on documents, responding to e-mail, etc?

If you’re at home, how are you checking on Facebook updates, tracking your bills or organizing your photos? Sure, a lot of this can be done on tablets and smartphones too. But is your life really devoid of PCs? I don’t think so.

As great as smartphones and tablets are, there are some things that PCs are just better at. First, there’s screen size. Until we get foldable displays — and they are still a ways off — there’s nothing that can compare to looking at the big, high-resolution display of a notebook PC or a PC monitor. We are all visual beings at our core, and having more space to see things really does make a huge difference.

Then there’s the keyboard. What I like to call the most underappreciated piece of technology we all use. Yes, I have college-age kids that can type on glass faster than I ever thought possible but when it comes to writing a paper or some other exercise that requires entering more than a few sentences, even they generally move over to a PC with a keyboard. It’s simply more efficient.

Today’s PCs have also picked up a few tips from our mobile device friends. Long boot times? A thing of the past, especially if you’ve got a new computer running Windows 10 or the latest iterations of MacOS X. In fact, with the Windows 10 Hello feature on appropriately equipped PCs, you can even log in without typing by swiping your fingerprint or by using the integrated camera to scan your face — a particularly good option on PCs with Intel’s RealSense 3-D cameras.

Even better, Microsoft, Intel and component companies — such as touchpad/fingerprint reader maker Synaptics — are working with the FIDO Alliance, an industry consortium of tech, banking and other e-commerce companies, to enable the secure transfer of your unique digital identity. This allows safe, password-free log-ins to places like your online banking site and more.

In fact, after a bit of an extended spat, Microsoft and Intel are working together more closely than they have for some time, and the PC industry is all the better for it. In a single day last week, I upgraded PCs from Dell, Lenovo, Hewlett Packard and Microsoft, running a combination of Windows 7, Windows 8 and early betas of Windows 10. The whole process was done in a few hours without a single glitch. Impressive.

The companies specifically worked together and optimized their products for this latest round of new PCs, and it shows. Microsoft brought a solid new operating system to the table in the form of Windows 10, and Intel has returned the favor with its sixth-generation Core processors and Skylake platform — officially announced today at IFA.

Along with faster speeds, the new Skylake-based Windows 10 devices, which all major PC vendors will be offering by the end of September, feature longer battery lives (for notebooks), improved graphics performance, and, on many systems, a wide range of wireless connectivity options, including wireless displays. For wired connections, there is growing support for the simple, reversible, multipurpose USB Type C connector as well as Thunderbolt 3, which works over USB Type C connectors and can even connect to some high-resolution monitors.

The overall visual experience of Windows 10 is also much nicer than previous versions, and with companies like AMD and nVidia offering greatly improved versions of their graphics chips, the experience of using PCs has gotten much better.

In addition, there is now a vast array of PC types, or form factors, to choose from, reflecting the increasing diversity of the PC audience. From the kind of super-thin, ultralight notebooks that we used to dream about, to flexible 2-in-1 designs, 4K resolution all-in-ones, tiny desktops and even workstation-worthy gaming rigs, the PC market has become almost automobile-like in its range of choices.

The bottom line is that, if, like most people, you haven’t really given much thought to the PCs that I’m betting are still part of your life, you probably should.

Given that most PCs in use are over three years old, the difference you’ll see between what you have and what you can get is very noticeable. In fact, I’m willing to place a long-shot bet that one of the sleeper hits of this holiday shopping season could actually be Windows 10 PCs.

Now, wouldn’t that be a surprise.

Here's a link to the original column: http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/columnist/2015/09/01/fresh-look-pcs/71521416/