Home The end of the modern era of PC sales is nigh.
OK, so that may be a bit of an overstatement. But the potential is there for a radical shift in the way PCs are sold to consumers.
ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley notes that Microsoft plans to open retail stores this fall, probably to coincide with the release of its next-generation operating system, Windows 7. Foley reports that Microsoft may copy the feel of the (wildly successful) Apple Store and may simply use the stores as a product showcase, rather than a proper retail outlet.
The move recalls the Gateway stores of the 1990s, but the difference lies in the fact that the company responsible for the operating system — Microsoft — is the one working the brick-and-mortar, rather than a manufacturer such as Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Lenovo and so forth.
Details on the concept remain to be revealed, but the move is a smart one. Why? By controlling nearly everything about its systems, from the design to the shopping experience (online and in-store), Apple is doing wonders in revamping the way the average consumer purchases a computer.