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How the death of TV sets could change mobile computing
Most LCD TVs sold over the past couple of years can double as PC monitors, eroding the distinction between the two. The emergence of UWB monitor links could eliminate the distinction altogether; the standalone TV set will give way to the smart monitor that can be used as the front end for any device that happens to be talking to it - including a set-top-box or TV tuner.
This is already the case in homes networked by early adopters, where the TV can easily be used as a dynamic photo frame, an audio player, a video screen, and a PC monitor. But the system has to be foolproof to go mainstream and UWB should eventually eliminate much of the tangle of cables in the average living room.
The downside is that it requires more cabling between rooms because UWB is very short range; but this may in the long term prove essential to ease the problem of wireless pollution, which will only get worse with the industry more bothered with hyping today's products for quick sales rather then developing optimum solutions for the future.
The industry answer is that emerging 11n Wifi wireless will provide the range and bandwidth to reach the places UWB hasn't got the legs for; but there have to be doubts about whether 11n will scale up if everyone starts using it to throw high-def video about. The first draft of the 11n spec was all about increasing range and hogging limited bandwidth to boost data rates, both of which will exacerbate the contention that is already cramping the use of Wifi in cities.
A compromise would be to use very focussed Wifi beams at minimum necessary power to link floors, which would reduce contention and incidentally increase security.
The most interesting aspect of UWB monitor links is the knock-on effect it could have on mobile computing. Notebook users today carry a nearly full-sized monitor around with them, which adds to the weight and battery drain. They are hardly likely to do this if they can use any available TV or monitor.
So think again if you regard ultra-mobile PC screens as too small. Their day will come.
Posted by Clive Akass on February 13, 2007 | Permalink
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