What is a laptop computer? This used to be a straightforward question to answer: a portable personal computer. But, today the way laptops are marketed and bought is rapidly changing.
As Walter Mossberg reports for the Wall Street Journal: “Just when you thought it was safe to shop for a new laptop, a fresh problem stands in the way of laptop buyers: confusion. The shelves are now filled with shiny new PCs and Macs running revamped operating systems, but it’s suddenly more complicated to choose a new laptop, especially for Windows shoppers. There always have been some core differences among the many Windows laptops and Apple’s AAPL +1.74% MacBook Air and MacBook Pro laptops. Now, with the release of the new Windows 8 operating system, there is an even more fundamental difference. MacBooks remain traditional laptops, controlled by touch pads and keyboards. Apple has kept the Mac separate from its touch-screen computer, the market-dominating iPad tablet. But Windows 8 laptops combine the two approaches, with two different user environments in the same computer. One is the traditional Windows desktop mode, best used with a touch pad or mouse and a keyboard. The other is the Start Screen mode, which operates like a tablet, has tablet-like apps and is best used with a touch screen.”
Click the image for a video with Mossberg’s tips on laptops.
Source: Microsoft
With the emergence of convertible mobile devices I predict that laptops are going to see a sharp decline in the market. Seeing how the technology industry is always about the next innovative product it is bound to happen. I believe the only way for laptops to remain competitive is to compete in the realm of affordability
Agreed. The future is tablet computers that meld the best of both products.
I believe that laptops and tablets are bound to become a single item eventually. But as of right now I don’t think it going to happen anytime soon, the technology still needs to be advanced a little more and the consumer needs to be ready for it. Apple has started to remove optical drives from their computers so it seems they are getting people ready for a transition down the road. I think windows based laptops and tablets have to compete on price as Zeke said but Apple has been able to see an increase in laptops, desktops and iPads sales with keeping the laptops separate from the tablet. Apple seems to have to winning strategy as of right now, based on their popularity, revenue and stock price.
good observations
Besides affordablitily, one of the few edges that laptops currently have is an established presence of ease of use and productivity. Down the line i believe that a hybrid between tablets and laptops similar to the new Windows 8 will eventually take over once Apple enters that market (the brand image of Apple alone will help them capture that market). However, as someone who owns both an iPad and a laptop with windows, I will still use my iPad of entertainment uses and my laptop for work purposes for the time being.
Agreed
The combination of the two will just lead to more vunerability to complications and viruses.
It will take time for people to accept the new things. If a customer is familiar with an operation system, she or he may have some negative attitude on the transform especially for the senior consumers. The key may be how to make the new innovation more acceptable and related to the existing one.
i feel that windows should receive a pat on the back for inventing this product but i do not think that there is any point in this product. People trust apple as much as they do because it is simple. There are a few models of pc’s the and the ipad is its own product. Every single thing about the marketing of apple products is just simple simple simple. The reason why windows has lost so much of their fire recently is because they have always been complicated and they are beginning to lose their audiences because of that. Households including my own have ditched their window products for apple because it is so much easier to use. The fact that window has now combined a pc and a touch screen is just a really bad move. People dont want that now or need that now. they have their pcs or their ipads or both and thats what they want. They dont want to combine the two in one machine it does not make any sense.