I see these kinds of phrases crop up from time to time and have to sit back for a moment in ‘shock and awe’. I read all kinds of slogans like this while driving, or cruising the internet; but as of late this particular one has been gnawing at me for awhile. The problem with the phrase “Post-PC Era” is that it generates a semantics issue that can unfortunately be misconstrued possibly even misleading if one isn’t careful. Let’s deconstruct this for a moment. What does Post-PC really mean? When you dig into the origins of the phrase the premise is that what we call a PC, the ‘box’ we use to describe it that is, (Laptops/Desktops) effectively take a back-seat to other devices such as SmartPhones, Tablets/Slate/iPads, SmartTV’s, whatever, etc. No one is saying that the PC is ‘dead’ per se. However; the long and short of the saying implies that PC’s, as we know them, become marginalized or used less over time. I can agree with some of this premise but believe it completely misses the bigger picture. Allow me to explain why I disagree there’s going to be a “Post-PC Era” and instead an upcoming PC Renaissance. There are really two major viewpoints or lenses with which to look at this from. First would be the Consumers viewpoint. They have a wider choice of devices and form factors to choose from that do what we have come to know and love as PC like functions. Second would be the Industries viewpoint. I define this as those in the industry that supply either the hardware ‘guts & brains’, or the software ‘intelligence’. It’s the latter lens that I’ll base the rest of this discussion on. First off what exactly is a Personal Computer? Does it truly have to be tied to a particular form factor? I for one believe that the form factor is nearly irrelevant. You can build a PC inside a couch, make it look like a flower pot, integrate it into your car or whatever you can nearly imagine. Digging deeper, and with the lens (not rose colored mind you) of being in the industry just what are the guts in a typical Personal Computer comprised of? There is typically some type of processor, memory, hard drive capacity, a motherboard of some kind and so forth. Along with an Operating system which allows for other software applications that can make your PC smarter, enhanced, more communicative, etc. When we view it from this lens-perspective just what are the guts and brains inside the following devices and form factors? • SmartPhones? • iPads/Slates/Tablets? • SmartTVs? • Consoles? • SOC (System on a Chip) devices.  Most of these even seem to be getting smarter We all know the answers. Almost all of these form factors have the basic building blocks of a PC inside. They might be ‘marketed’ or ‘promoted’ as being something new, different, revolutionary, pioneering, etc; in an effort to sell them. Some of these devices are of course more personal in nature than others. As I’ve pointed out in previous blog sessions I do in fact view my iPhone 4 for example as another expression of a Personal Computer. As a matter of fact it might even be the most ‘Personal’ of PC’s I’ve ever owned. I carry the thing around with me practically everywhere. From a ‘Guts and Brains’ perspective it’s also more powerful than the first desktop PC I purchased back in the late 90’s. I also realize that some camps won’t buy into the notion that everything as I describe it above is effectively a PC; and that a PC is about “open-platform-innovation”. I agree largely with this statement too, but have to point out that there are varying degrees of ‘openness’ in these platforms. What we see over time is that the more open a platform is allowing for innovation to happen, then the more those platform or form factors are set up for success. If an iPhone 4, or other SmartPhone can do what it does today what will they be capable of in just the next 3 to 5 years? Does it mean my PC is dead? That my SmartPhone replaces that device? Perhaps; however, by my lens it implies that this futuristic SmartPhone is merely an evolutionary stage of how I interact with my Personal Computers. This leads to the next most important point. The key word here is ‘Personal’. At the end of the day this is what a PC is all about. The form factor evolutions notwithstanding, PC’s have become more personal, and smarter over time. Dare I say even more ‘intimate’? The form factors will definitely look different over time. PC’s are definitely becoming smarter and more of an input-output device than ever before. However; this doesn’t mean that there’s any sort of a Post-PC era going on in my books. PC-hangover perhaps but not a Post-PC era. I say ‘hangover’ tongue in cheek due to the headache of everyone trying to wrap their heads, and business models around all the various evolutions taking place all at the same time. There seem to be as many evolutions occurring in the Personal Computer space as there are dog breeds. However; just because there are more breeds doesn’t mean that at the core they aren’t dogs. Dogs aren’t going to turn into Cats anytime soon. (Poor analogy but it’s the best I could come up with) In summary here are some proposed thoughts and ideas to leave you all with. IF there’s going to be a post anything I believe it’ll be the end of Post-dumb consumer devices. So Post-TV, Post-Console (Even they are evolving into PCs), Post-Public Post Office and so on. You get the point. The Slates/Tablets and SmartTVs of the future are not a revolution by any stretch in my books either. Those devices are evolving or growing up, they are maturing. The ‘Personal Computing’ Age welcomes them into the fold. It likely won’t be until we have our own talking and walking PC-Androids/Robots that we have something we can truly call “revolutionary”. That time is likely going to happen sooner than we think but let’s not digress. In the meantime a PC is a PC is a PC. The only other thing that I can think of that would truly bring about a ‘Post-PC’ era would be something along the order of a ‘Post-Apocalyptic’ era. Hopefully that never happens. I’m not a fan of EMP!  I’d love to hear what you all think on this matter? Are we really in a Post-PC era by your definition? Should we change that phrase? Is there a more accurate way of talking about PC evolutions? Please chime in and let me know!