Has development of PC computers stopped?

[Aapo]

I bought my current computer as custom model in 2010, 5 and half years from now. It came with Athlon II X4 635, 2.9GHz 4-core processor. When I went to look for new PC computers today to see where technology has developed I was shocked to see that the processors in my price range are still along the lines of AMD FX-6350, 3.9GHz clock speed. What has happened? It used to be for a long time that new components were magnitudes more powerful than old ones. Memory went from megabytes to gigabytes, processors from three-digit megaherz to four-digit megaherz. I read an article that said smartphones are going to replace PCs. Aren't those serving completely different function? You can't watch movies or play graphically intensive games on a smartphone.

Could someone fill me in what's going on in the PC market these days?

 

[alphaniner]

The rapid increase in CPU clock speeds is believed to be a thing of the past. From Wikipedia page on Moore's Law:

The 2010 update to the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors, predicted that growth would slow around 2013, and Gordon Moore in 2015 foresaw that the rate of progress would reach saturation: "I see Moore’s law dying here in the next decade or so."

Simply speaking, that's a consequence of physical reality catching up with us (or vice versa).

While there does seem to be a trend to move John Q Public away from a traditional PC, a lot has changed in the past 5 years, and there are still plenty of interesting developments today.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Could someone fill me in what's going on in the PC market these days?

Prospective customers are voting with their dollars and telling the likes of Intel, Apple, Dell, Lenovo, etc that portability is increasingly important and that means that hundreds of millions of dollars are being directed toward battery life, phones, tablets, and their features--rather than brute force PCs and laptops.

A typical PC running at 3.0 ghz is likely faster than a 6 year old PC running at 3.9 due to more instructions per clock, but it's true that the rate of increase is noticeably lower than it was 10 or 15 years ago---due to both physics and the redirection of budget resources. Even if phones had not come along and everyone were still lashed to desktops, I'm not sure how much faster PCs would be.

And software has not driven the push for faster PCs like it did some years ago. A decent PC from say 2011 can still run 2016 software pretty well. Upgrading today is usually more of a want than a need and more difficult to justify.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Smart phones are getting larger to sort of accommodate for viewing but it's the new mobile first world/ cloud we're being pushed too.

The industry likes devices that are only really good for a year or 2
It keeps people spending money on new ones

 

[Layback Bear]

If Desktop are on their way out I wonder why companies are making $1000.00 plus new video cards for them.

I do agree that the new trend is for portable and cloud.
Many of us have seen many trends. Some good and some not so good. PC's are still here.

Some how some people deduce if some one has portable devices then ran home or to there business and through away all the Desktops. Not so in my opinion. A properly maintained Desktop can last for years and repaired if need be. Many use both Desktop and portable devices. Desktops and portable device have there place in todays computing world.

Many if not most portable devices are through way's if they break. Cost more to fix them than it does to buy a new one.
Manufactures and operating system creators love throw away portable devices.

I don't use portable devices just because I have no need for one.
If and when the time comes I need a portable device I will get one. I'm going to still have Desktops.

Devolvement of Desktops have slowed down because it is quicker money for devolvement of throw away portables. One just has to follow the money.

 

[mjf]

I think Intel are making improvements in their CPUs but will you really notice a difference in day to day activities?. It depends what you use the PC for.
The last PC I built for a relative used an i5 4590 and they spent a bit more money on the graphics card. My personal system uses an i7 2600k (~ 5 years old now) and I have no reason to upgrade. I do some number crunching but still seldom overclock. If my CPU or motherboard fails I'll be forced into SkyLake and probably Windows 10.

 

[Layback Bear]

I woke up my old X58/i7 960 by just using a SSD and a upgrade of video card.

Try that upgrade on a poky pad.

 

[margrave]

The desktop is still king to me. My five-year-old was a moderately high-end box when new. Now it's pokey and I'll be replacing it soon. My at-work laptop runs circles around it, and my new desktop will be faster still.

People are enamored of the portables, but they still lag.
They have no keyboard.
They have no mouse.
They have almost no screen.
Conclusion: I see tablets as mere "serving suggestions". Useless for computing.

 

[rvcjew]

If the desktop was not improving and still going strong the console makers would not be bringing out .5 devices to compete lol. So who's getting a GTX 1080 (i'm not )? I just want thicker longer lasting phones at the moment not thinner.

 

[ThrashZone]

Yep I don't see any gpu upgrades for some time,
But with every new release others versions get cheaper