PC nearing extinction

The traditional personal computer is on the way out as a technology of choice for most businesses, according to a Gartner report claiming a new wave of mobile hi-tech communications gadgets is set to replace the PC.

The Scotsman writes: "There are 870 million [PCs] currently in use, in an industry worth more than lb100 billion a year, but this has not stopped analyst Gartner from stating that we may be finally set to see the demise of the PC platform as we know it."

It appears the mobility and adaptability of devices like PDAs, iPods, and smart and 3G mobile phones may well cause the PC to quietly slip away.

PC World last week became the UK`s first national retailer to stock gadgets that turn iPods into mini radio stations, albeit with a limited broadcasting range, reports The Independent.

Although using devices such as the iTrip - short-range FM transmitters that use the airwaves to play songs stored in MP3 players on stereos - is still illegal in the UK, the communications watchdog, Ofcom, is expected to soften its stance this autumn.

PC World, part of DSG Group, is stocking the FM transmitters, saying its customers can use the gadgets while on holiday.

India`s music piracy industry has emerged from "dingy units copying cassettes... and shifted to organised IT units, manufacturing top quality CDs and passing them off as originals to consumers," writes The Hindu Online.

The article gives perspective on the state of piracy in India, quoting Savio D`Souza, secretary general of the Indian Music Industry, as saying: "Sophisticated technology is now in place for manufacturing pirated CDs, graduating from a cottage industry to an IT industry, with the difference being it is making no contribution to India`s GDP."

One of the nation`s biggest illegal CD plants was sealed recently in Delhi. It had the capacity to manufacture up to 70 000 CDs a day, says D`Souza, who adds technology is so advanced a person sitting in his home with a computer and CD writer can churn out 200 CDs per hour.