Netbook growth to trigger additional growth in external monitors; Isuppli

According to the whitpaper released by DisplayLink, demand for mobile PCs like notebooks and netbooks is growing, so will the demand for additional monitors.

Commissioned from independent market research firm iSuppli Corp. and written by analyst Rhoda Alexander, the whitepaper examines how the increasingly mobile PC world is changing the way that both workers and consumers setup their workspace.

According to iSuppli, more than 87 percent of notebook computer shipments in 2009 had 15-inch-or-smaller screens, "offering a rather limited display window," the paper says. At the same time, iSuppli researchers predict global shipments of standalone monitors will rise to 212.7 million units in 2013, up from 176.9 million in 2009.

"Consumers wanting the best of both worlds are turning to a blended approach: adopting a small, light, easily portable system for mobility, combined with a larger secondary display for use at home," iSuppli wrote. "Most systems allow users to directly drive at least one secondary display, while docking stations offer users the flexibility to easily charge the PC and link in a wide variety of other peripherals without reconnecting every component."

An additional monitor can simply provide the benefit of a larger screen space, but researchers also said that "if you want to maximize your productivity and make fewer mistakes, it helps to have multiple screens." Among the advantages of multiple displays cited:
Displays can be dedicated to specific tasks, avoiding the need to resize windows or shuffle applications.
Users can build their screen space as they need it, adding more displays as budget and usage needs shift.
Users can select a display combination that matches their application needs, mixing wide displays with standard configurations, portrait with landscape, large with small.

However, to make mix-and-match-monitor use possible, connectivity is "the all-important glue," the paper says, for experts and novice users alike. Users need connectivity solutions that are dependable and reliable, flexible with various peripherals, easy to use with short setup instructions, and digital for the "simplest and cleanest connection approach."

"A growing number of monitor vendors are leaning towards USB connectors, which have the advantage of being readily available across past and future systems and are familiar to and easy for users to manage," iSuppli wrote.

No matter what kind of PC a person chooses to use in the future, it is "unlikely to be a stand-alone device," iSuppli concludes. "The ability to easily link to other devices provides users with the ultimate flexibility."

Processor maker Cavium has gone a step ahead in this by displaying wireless LAPTOP displays/external monitors working based on its PureVu processors. The PureVu processors utilize the existing WiFi chipset in PCs to transmit real-time computer displays, 3D graphics, and video to any TV display, monitor or projector. Cavium to demonstrate this at ongoing CES 2010.

For more details visit www.displaylink.com/pdf/isupplidesktop.pdf