Thursday, September 5, 2019
Trends in Computer Hardwares Essay Example for Free
Trends in Computer Hardwares Essay In the last two decades, businesses have come to rely more and more on technology, notably with the increased prominence of the PC and the ever demonstrated boundless resilience of the Internet. Whereas, if 10 years ago had these innovations fallen out of use, businesses would not have even worked themselves up, these days virtually all of these companies would have completely grounded to a halt. Indeed, there is not much work any business can do today without the aid of technology.  In the not-so-distant past business defined technology. Today, the question is already of how to use technology in growing the business.            The most familiar computer hardware to most people is the PC. Over recent years since 2000, the PC has basically become faster with the improvements on the micro chip, which came in various versions designed and released by industry leaders Microsoft, Macintosh, and AMD. Improvements in circuitry make the PC more reliable, while memory capacity is increased.  Meanwhile, the physical size has become smaller, though no less powerful, resulting in more compact machines, as well as the rise of more powerful laptops (Computer Hardware, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, 2007). Scott Williams of Hispanic Business Magazine (2004) quoted Christopher Ireland, CEO of consulting firm Cheskin, in that sales in laptops would increase in the future and thus earn a larger share of the pie of the PC-buying dollar. According to him, sales volume for laptops was less than 25 percent in January 2000, which shot up to 54 percent in 2003. As can be observed even by the non-specialists, the trend in computer hardware development has moved towards faster, smaller, cheaper –getting better, overall. As far as the hardware market will go, Gartner, Inc. released in 2003 their predictions on the hardware market trend in the Asia Pacific Region over a 4-year period, specifically focusing on client-part, server, storage and documentation hardware. The report graphed the PCs to dominate most market sales, while workstations would tend to be the least purchased. Market for all the mentioned hardware was said to peak at 2005, and then gradually decrease into 2007 (Wu, 2003). The benefits for the business world from the onset of technological developments, therefore, are two-sided: it affects both vendors of computer products and the corporate consumers who use the products. As for the present time, technologies continue to become more sophisticated and expand possibilities in communication and business, as well. Advancements in wireless technology have resulted in greater connectivity. Continued improvements on the USB have led to the Certified Wireless USB, which will utilize the connectivity of Ultra-wideband (UWB) radio technology. Wireless USB revolutionizes the â€Å"interoperable connections†and brings it into the wireless world (Universal Serial Bus [USB], 2007). UWB, meanwhile, is a recent short- innovation in low-power, short-range wireless technology, specifically designed for wireless personal area networks (WPANs). It functions similarly to Bluetooth, but enables the transmission of high-bandwidth data like video and audio between devices, and complements longer range technologies (Intel Corporation, 2007).            Arguably the second most familiar gadgets after the PC, mobile phones and handheld devices are among the rapidly morphing technologies in recent years. Along with increased mobility, features like a colored display, built-in digital camera, mp3 player and internet access are among the latest innovations, and are undergoing still more transformations yet. A new technology expected in the near future in cell phones and handhelds is an Organic Light Emitting Device (OLED) display, which is self-luminous and does not require backlighting (Williams, 2004).            The development of technologies closely related to business has evolved, as well. One of the big challenges to companies is the storage of massive amounts of information that is sustainable, secure, and into as less space as can be managed. As information pours out from more and more channels, humans cannot react to the volumes of data that needs to be managed. Now more than ever, businesses need the applications in information technology to store and manage incredible amounts of data in a scalable manner. A concept that is emerging in talks among business analysts is virtualization. One of its perceived functions is running multiple virtual servers so as to no longer add new servers when running new applications. This method will help reduce costs in the future, and is actually more feasible as companies become more swamped with market           data (Wall Street and Technology, 2006).            Technologies involved in business are ever more reaching new heights. The endless possibilities that pour from the Internet, for one, creates a more active and challenging environment for businesses, especially in information management. Accenture.com (2007) recognizes four major trends that will shape information technology, in relation to business, three of which relate to hardware. Regarded the most significant trend on the horizon is the large-scale adoption of service-oriented architectures (SOAs). It is said to have the potential to alter the fundamental structure of businesses and the information industry, and the software industry as well. The adoption of SOAs will ultimately mean simpler systems and lower costs for CIOs. With the growing demands for information processing and storage, technology for business is moving towards an abundant era of infrastructure. The world of technology will experience an increase in the number and type of embedded devices, and with the demands of SOA, infrastructures must be dynamic and flexible.            Information management will be challenged by the massive growth in information, especially due to the emergence of real-time information from sensors and embedded devices that existing databases cannot handle. Companies will become more dependent on external information, which is beyond their control. The major consequence of these trends would be virtualization, ultimately digitizing communication and information. Accenture.com predicts it will industrialize information technology on all levels.            Ultimately, the matter is not really whether future trends in computer hardware, and technology for that matter, help or hurt businesses in the long run. Companies essentially need technology to be able to keep afloat in the sink-or-swim world of business. It is, rather, about learning to read technological trends and applying insights gained from them, as applicable in the company’s affairs. The company should know, then, its technological requirements. It is applying technology inappropriately or unnecessarily, or failing to do so, that would hurt business, not technology in itself. After all, in these times, it is technology that drives business to evolve. References Accenture.com (2007). Major Trends That Will Shape IT. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.accenture.com/Global/Services/Accenture_Technology_Labs/Services/FromIT.htm Anthes, G. (2006, May 1). Computer Science Looks for a Remake. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,110959,00. html Betts, M. (2002, November 18). The Next Chapter: The Future of Hardware. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticle TOCspecialReportId=120articleId=75887 Blu-Ray Disc (2007). In Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc Clark, T. (2007, January 24). Surging Electronic Trading Volumes and Reg NMS Require Financial Firms to Enhance Underlying Technology Infrastructures. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=K0135A L3OVGAGQSNDLOSKH0CJUNN2JVN?articleID=197000218 Computer Hardware (2007). In Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_hardware Funny Relationship Between Technology and Business in Startup Companies (2004, March 4). In Viewpoint of an Entrepreneur: A Business Intelligence Software Blog. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://blogs.ittoolbox.com/bi/entrepreneur/archives/funny-relationship-between-technology-and-business-in-startup-companies-517?sp=CM Hayes, F. (2002, November 18). The Story So Far: Hardware. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://computerworld.com/hardwaretopics/hardware/story/0,10801,75888,00.html History of Computing Hardware (2007). In Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_computing_hardware_ (1960s-present) Intel Corporation (2007). Ultra-Wideband (UWB) Technology. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.intel.com/technology/comms/uwb/ Mid-Hudson Library System (2002). Future Trends. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://midhudson.org/resources/administration/trends.htm Universal Serial Bus (2007). Certified Wireless USB from the USB-IF. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.usb.org/developers/wusb/ Wall Street and Technology (2006, July 19). Equities Market, Technology Infrastructure and Virtual Servers Are Top-of-Mind for ISE SVP. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/search/results.jhtml;jsessionid=DMSJCSVYBCV3GQSNDLRSKH0CJUNN2JVN?site=500004sort=datequeryText=virtualizationxse.x=0xse.y=0 Williams, S. (2004). Top Trends. Hispanic Business Magazine. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/news/newsbyid.asp?id=16030cat=Magazine more=/magazine/ Wu, J. (2003, July 15). Asia Pacific, 2003 Hardware Forecast. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://www.gartner.com/teleconferences/attributes/attr_46494_115.pdf
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