COMPUTEX 2010

Computex 2010, which incidentally was the 30th Anniversary of the event, was, as it is every year, an event that showcased the very best in computer technology that both exist and will exist in time. It featured over the top technology from all corners of the globe. And like any large-scale annually held event, there are couple of trends that tend to emerge that pretty much set the pace of what’s to come. At this year’s Computex, the trends became rather obvious the moment we set foot into the first of the large halls, however just three major trends seemed to visibly stand out from the otherwise overwhelming displays of computer hardware.


Tablet/Slate PCs
The touchscreen PC segment isn’t exactly something that we can consider new these days. Technology expands exponentially and the rebirth of the tablet PC is very evident so naturally that was the one bit of technology we saw at pretty much every single booth at the event. Although, in all honesty, I can admit that all of the Slates we came across didn’t really have too much to offer in terms of design, as there really isn’t too much one can do with a device that essentially consists of a screen, a couple of keys and a few USB and other ports. With regards to features, they all seemed very generic as well. They were either running on a Windows OS with a few that showcased customized UI’s and the rest... you guessed it, were Android powered devices. Wi-Fi and a few sporting HDMI ports stood out amongst the plethora of devices. Of course the slate PC, except for the only one that’s big on the market right now i.e. Apple’s iPad, still appears to be in it’s infancy as almost all companies that showed their wares at Computex 2010 had noting more than buggy prototypes.


Slates aside, there were also quite a few trendy looking Tablet PCs of a more conventional form, employing the more traditional design, a swivel display that’s touchscreen enabled. It’s a bit redundant in my opinion, to have a laptop with a touchscreen, but the ergonomics of having a tactile keypad does have its merits. Netbooks are certainly not going anywhere as there were quite a few new models being showcased not only by the more reputed companies that Indian users would be accustomed to seeing on shelves but even by companies that were focused only their regional sales with no global plans, or so we were told. We can expect to see new netbooks from Leg, MSI, ASUS and possibly even Gigabyte.

3D Gaming/Multimedia experiences
The next big thing which seemed universally evident with all of the big name companies including MSI, NVIDIA, ASUS and alike was the 3D gaming experience. Although the 3D technology has officially made it to our shores, PC gaming in this segment is yet to take off. It does however seem like the rest of the world was eagerly soaking up the high end graphic cards, motherboards and rigs that were optimized for the ultimate gaming experience. But the gaming community in India, especially of the PC variety is still at the ground level. Nevertheless the PC gaming scenario complete with 3D seems to be heading to the notebook segment as well.


On the other hand, since this seems to be the year of 3D, manufacturers have also been focusing their talents into creating more affordable rigs for those who simply prefer their 3D for multimedia purposes. We saw quite a bit of technology that we will see here soon that will most definitely enhance your video viewing experiences, even if you have to stick to 2D gaming.

USB 3.0
Not that it's something that we’re complaining about, but I’m sure we’ve all been waiting for the next generation USB components to take over from what exists today. Another major Trend that made the scene at Computex this year was USB 3.0. It was all over and rightfully so. New computer hardware from motherboards to external devices are all gearing up for the next level in ultra fast data transfer. So with that said, we can now expect much higher transfer rates up to 4.8Gbps and better power management features. We already witnessed multiple devices like media players etc. that were already equipped with 3.0 support so it’s coming and it’s just a matter of time before the next level in data transfer speeds between PC and portable devices is upped considerably. The best part is it’s backward compatible so using all existing devices will be no problem.


Of course, most of the new technology that Computex had on show from the large variety of computer manufactures, were still works in progress, however it’s going to be just a short wait before some of them become a reality in our homes or portable lifestyles.