The dawning of the Age of the Notebook

Notebooks surpass desktop PCs for the first time

Source: uulyrics.com

According to Byte and Switch and iSupply, notebooks finally surpassed desktops in global unit shipment volume. 

There’s no turning back, either.  Notebook units grew 40% in the third quarter of 2008, while desktop units shrank 1.3%. As iSupply’s Matthew Wilkins points out, this is the dawning of the Age of the Notebook.

A couple of observations:

1. Notebooks are mobile, but they aren’t just about mobility any longer;  vendors are merging desktop features into notebooks.  That’s why notebook storage capacity has shot up to 500 GB in a single drive recently.
2. Backup, already a challenge for desktop PC users, will be even more challenging for untethered notebooks.  Consumers need easier ways to archive their data off of their PCs.
3. The next billionaire will be the person who comes up with a good use for millions of big old desktop cases.

The notebook trend, plus the data center’s move toward smaller, lower power form factors are together reshaping the storage landscape.   It’s no coincidence that 2.5″ drives are on such a tear in the disk drive industry.