This article on Quartz really caught my attention. Dell has a bold new plan to reinvent itself with a project it called “Ophelia”:
Ophelia is as big as a USB thumb drive, yet it’s a complete, self-contained PC. It allows access to Windows, Mac OS, Google’s Chrome OS, Dell’s custom cloud solutions, Citrix cloud software, and even Google’s Chrome OS, using virtual instances of those operating systems running in the cloud. The stick itself runs Google’s Android operating system in order to handle tasks that are processed locally, like decoding and encoding voice and video streams. The entire device draws 2.1 watts of power; for comparison, the microprocessor in the average smartphone draws 1 watt, and the average PC draws 20 times as much electricity.
To use Ophelia, you plug it into a flat-panel monitor or television. That’s it: It connects to the internet via WiFi and to a keyboard and other peripherals via Bluetooth. It’s the PC-as-parasite, a device that offloads most tasks to servers in the cloud so that the user is left with barely a token, a nearly ephemeral, solid-state key connecting to their could-based “computer,” wherever they are.
That would take them away from competing with Microsoft. They’d be competing with Google:
If this business plan sounds familiar, that’s because it’s also Google’s model. Google’s entirely cloud-based Chrome OS and Chrome-based devices turn everyday notebook computers into thin clients that are designed to conveniently access Google’s alternatives to Microsoft Office and email software. In a way, Ophelia is just a more extreme realization of this vision.
It may also have something to do with this SEC filing where they cite “the uncertain adoption of the Windows 8 operating system.” They clearly need a new market to play in.
So, is this a last gasp at Dell trying to be relevant? Will it succeed or fail? Post your wisdom below.
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This entry was posted on April 1, 2013 at 1:23 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Dell. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Dell Has Bold New Plan…. Will It Succeed Or Fail?
This article on Quartz really caught my attention. Dell has a bold new plan to reinvent itself with a project it called “Ophelia”:
Ophelia is as big as a USB thumb drive, yet it’s a complete, self-contained PC. It allows access to Windows, Mac OS, Google’s Chrome OS, Dell’s custom cloud solutions, Citrix cloud software, and even Google’s Chrome OS, using virtual instances of those operating systems running in the cloud. The stick itself runs Google’s Android operating system in order to handle tasks that are processed locally, like decoding and encoding voice and video streams. The entire device draws 2.1 watts of power; for comparison, the microprocessor in the average smartphone draws 1 watt, and the average PC draws 20 times as much electricity.
To use Ophelia, you plug it into a flat-panel monitor or television. That’s it: It connects to the internet via WiFi and to a keyboard and other peripherals via Bluetooth. It’s the PC-as-parasite, a device that offloads most tasks to servers in the cloud so that the user is left with barely a token, a nearly ephemeral, solid-state key connecting to their could-based “computer,” wherever they are.
That would take them away from competing with Microsoft. They’d be competing with Google:
If this business plan sounds familiar, that’s because it’s also Google’s model. Google’s entirely cloud-based Chrome OS and Chrome-based devices turn everyday notebook computers into thin clients that are designed to conveniently access Google’s alternatives to Microsoft Office and email software. In a way, Ophelia is just a more extreme realization of this vision.
It may also have something to do with this SEC filing where they cite “the uncertain adoption of the Windows 8 operating system.” They clearly need a new market to play in.
So, is this a last gasp at Dell trying to be relevant? Will it succeed or fail? Post your wisdom below.
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This entry was posted on April 1, 2013 at 1:23 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Dell. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.