The Rise and Fall of Personal Computing

Fascinating data visualizations, as usual, from Horace Dediu. Be sure to watch the video — that’s my favorite of the bunch. Dediu:

This last view corresponds to the data in the first graph (line chart). If iOS and Android are added as potential substitutions for personal computing, the share of PCs suddenly collapses to less than 50%. It also suggests much more collapse to come.

I will concede that this last view is extremist. It does not reflect a competition that exists in real life. However, I put this data together to show a historic pattern. Sometimes extremism is a better point of view than conservatism.

The graph in question — extreme though Dediu admits it is — should be terrifying to Microsoft and its shareholders. Maybe Intel too.

(See also: Dediu on Apple as the largest PC vendor if the iPad is included as a PC.)

★ Tuesday, 17 January 2012