Kevin Laws thinks that “home servers and smartphones will eventually replace notebook computers for most users.”
First, people had computers at work. Next, they got them at home. Eventually, the work computer became a notebook, or one was added. This allowed mobility, and a scan of any airport will tell you how successful the notebook has been.
The next step is to eliminate the notebook and go back to a home pc with access via your smartphone. Several trends are behind this transition: more home applications require the power and constant availability of a home computer, while mobile technology and wireless data networks are evolving to meet the needs of notebook users.
Welcome to the age of personal servers.
Smartphones and home servers will meet the same necessity notebooks did, but in a new way: the home server is the center of everything, and the smartphone is your conduit to it. It will be surrounded by an array of accessories that can extend its capabilities when needed.
While notebooks will never truly disappear, the rapid growth will slow as people move to the personal server paradigm. You will soon use your mobile device to edit documents, do presentations, and check email as easily as you do from home.
This needs some thinking. I have been wondering if smartphones can become thin clients running VNC connected to servers at home and work. The last sentence of the article has a glimpse of things to come: “A great free application called PalmVNC which allows you to control your home computer desktop directly from your Treo 600.”
