Windows Mobile and the future of PPCs

[Linus]

Now that Windows Mobile is out, what are your impressions of what the next 2 or 3 years will be like for the PPC? Except for gaming, it seems to me that the desktop PC's utility leveled out substantially about 2 years ago, when nearly every new machine was fast enough to play DVDs and DivX movies smoothly. Since then, increases in processing power seem to have made little difference in what a machine can do (just how fast it can do it).

I don't own a PPC, but I'm thinking now might be a good time to get one - Windows Mobile and the lastest batch of PPCs seem capable of smooth audio & video playback and reliable wireless networking. Physical size may shrink some, but how tiny do you really want a screen? Larger storage cards will continue to become available at lower prices, but that's upgradable. Are there any big advances you see coming that today's PPCs either don't have or won't be capable of upgrading to?

I know a lot of you are always out for the latest and greatest, but I'm interested in the longer-term. If I'm going to spend $400 on a PPC, I would want its useful lifespan to be several years (at least!).

[Linus]

*bump* Someone's got to have an opinion...please share it!

[mc_03]

Stop thinking about how technology will be in 2 years, because the time 2 years comes around, you'll want to wait for 2 years after THAT and you will never actually get a Pocket PC! :p

I have no idea where PPC will be in 2 years, but I don't think its worth waiting for. At most, I can guess that we will see more wireless- all new pocket pcs will have some form of wireless, and more and more will gave GPRS or CDMA. But all this can be added on to a current PPC anyway. Any new Pocket PC on the market today should serve you for at least 2 years, more if you're not a technophile. :mrgreen:

BTW, physical size has shrunk, but screen size has remained the same: Either 3.5 inch or 3.8. All the bulk around the screen has shrunk, which is a definite good thing.