UPDATED 17:10 EDT / OCTOBER 21 2020

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The PC lives on: Dell eyes enhancements for product line while overall demand rises

When Apple co-founder Steve Jobs stepped onto a stage in San Francisco in 2010 and unveiled the iPad, some observers believed they were witnessing the end of the personal computer. Ten years later, another legendary tech company founder — Michael Dell — took delight via Twitter in reminding the world that “the death of the PC was greatly exaggerated.”

In fact, a global pandemic has led to shortages amid high demand for a device that presumably had one foot in the grave.

“It feels pretty good being dead for 10 years,” said Sam Burd (pictured), president of the client solutions group at Dell Technologies Inc. “We like to talk about it as the renaissance of the PC; it’s kind of the rebirth, a reemergence of this really good friend you had. It’s become core to how we get stuff done in the world today.”

Burd spoke with Jeff Frick, host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio, during the Dell Technologies World Digital Experience event. They discussed recent growth in the PC market, finding ways to make machines smarter, and future operating system enhancements. (* Disclosure below.)

Need for mobility

Burd’s description of a renaissance for the PC has been confirmed by recent market data. IDC reported in October that calendar Q3 shipment numbers in the global PC market were up 15% year-over-year. That’s the strongest growth rate since Jobs first waved Apple’s iPad in front of an enthralled crowd.

Dell has ridden the wave of demand as a result of COVID-19, which led much of the global workforce to work from home.

“A commercial space that used to be half desktops and half notebooks is now in the 70% range with more mobile form factors, which reflects how people want to use them,” Burd said. “They want to go between rooms at home; that’s one of the things we found in our research. We’ve learned we can operate in the multi-modality world where technology can help keep us connected, collaborating, getting stuff done.”

As the ability to make machines smarter continues to expand, Dell is looking closely at how to leverage artificial intelligence in its systems. This might soon include a scenario where a PC user who always pulls up their calendar first thing in the morning is instantly recognized by the device and the day’s schedule appears without even needing to be loaded, according to Burd.

“It’s like your system can anticipate some of those things, and it will just do that for you,” Burd said. “We started about five years ago and have been very aggressive at putting intelligence and machine learning into the systems. We’re going to see multiple ways of interacting with technology, and it needs to be natural and easy for us.”

The PC industry could be in for another turbo boost through a combination of the new 5G wireless standard and an ability to run applications in the cloud. Tools such as Microsoft Virtual Desktop in combination with more robust connectivity could shift performance emphasis from machine processors to the hyperscalers.

This could become significant for Dell and other PC suppliers as the operating system takes on new meaning.

“The applications and what you’re doing on the system have become increasingly important over time, and it will only become more important as we go forward,” Burd said. “We’re focused on tuning that experience on top of the operating system. We’ve got to make that experience one that’s great for the users, and that’s where we’re really focusing our time.”

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the Dell Technologies World Digital Experience event. (* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for Dell Technologies World. Neither Dell Technologies, the sponsor for theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE

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