Are Desktops The Next “VCR”?

Do you remember the day when you would go to the video store and rent a VCR machine at the same time that you rented movies? Then, VCR’s became very common and everyone had one. You simply went to the movie store to rent a movie to watch on a Friday night. Then, it wasn’t long until you found yourself just buying the movies so that you could watch them anytime you liked.

Once everyone started to buy the movies instead of renting them, it started to look like mini movie rental places in every home. By the time that you thought that your collection of movies was getting complete, along came the newest and greatest in home movies, the DVD. VHS tapes became a thing of the past. Everyone was now buying DVD’s and DVD players. Trying to find a new VCR is a near impossible achievement today. Now, DVD’s are no longer on the cutting edge. The newest thing in home movies is this thing called a Blu-ray disks. They may very well begin replacing all of the DVD’s on the shelf.

So, the question is posed, will desktop computers become a thing of the past? Will we decide that all we need is our laptops and phones? Our society is one that is connected at the hip to computers. Some people start to panic if they cannot access all of their files at all times. The desktop computer stays on the desk and does not come with us wherever we go. Because it does not move with our every movement, we cannot gain access to the files on that computer wherever we go.

This is a fun question to muse about, because daily there are new websites, phones, and apps to go on both that help us stay connected 24 /7. That is not to say that we will completely leave the desktop behind, but do you remember the 3X5 disk? How many people own a computer with a floppy drive in them anymore? How many files do you have on those old floppies that you have no access to anymore?

So, it seems obvious why the desktop could be in danger of becoming obsolete, but what are some reason why that might not happen? One hint that I would look to is the manufacturers of desktop computers. They continue to improve them and produce them. If they saw desktop computer sales dropping through the basement, they would not continue down that path.

So why are people still buying desktop computers? Perhaps it is because it is habit and a desire to have a stay at home computer. Some people prefer a desktop over a laptop and will only use a laptop when it is absolutely necessary.

All of that said, we are still a society that is evolving into a 24/7 connected society. We like knowing what is happening as it happens rather than hearing about it on the evening news (and our friends happenings are not on the news). We like the freedom to work from wherever we please, be it at home, the park, or in the office. Employers also like connection and are finding that if they use laptops they can stay better connected to their employees, even when they are at home or on vacation because they will be more likely to be connected to the 24/7 information super highway.

There are still uses for the desktop on a larger scale in networks and other similar applications. However, desktops for the individual user at home or at the office may become a history question. Then again, maybe desktop will remain on the desk at the office or in the home for a long time yet. Only time will tell us which way it will be.