I have a hard time buying this. The days of the desktop PC were declared numbered back in the late 90's when NetPCs (Thin clients that were just a terminal to a server that would hand out a kernel and host all apps) were going to take over, especially in corporate environments.
As much as I am in love with my Android phone, and love being connected with so many apps everywhere I go, my desktop is far more powerful, has a full-sized keyboard and mouse, and a 19" screen. If I'm sitting at home and want to type an email, why on earth would want to peck it out on a tiny touchscreen?

My computer at home looks EXACTLY like the ones in the picture....am I that much of a dinosaur? How shameful.

balt tech - Do you really "edit" photos and videos on your iPhone (you work for a news paper – you do know what edit means). Do you process this column on you iPhone (don't lie)? I have an iPhone to and I love it, but... The financial manager I go to doesn't look up my transactions and reports on his iPhone. The engineers that I work with don't design circuits or model products on their iPhones. The concept of this article is silly - why did you approach it as serious? Even if you are a total geek and you do these things on your iPhone, do you think you are in the 99 percent majority? I really hope that in three years the air traffic controllers are not landing planes on their 3.5 inch iPhone screens. Grow up.

Yes, I edit my personal photos and videos which I shoot with my iPhone on the device a lot of times. And then I immediately share with friends and family via email or social networks. This type of activity, I think, is going to become more common as the mobile devices become better. People will want to edit the photos/videos they shoot with such devices "on the fly" -- and not spend too much time editing on a desktop. It's not that people don't want to use a desktop; it's just that there are so many instances where someone isn't near one, but they have a phone handy. The concept of "good enough" -- getting a photo or video "good enough" for Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, email, etc -- is the standard now.

Professionally, working in a newsroom, more powerful editing tools are necessary and won't go away anytime soon. I rarely write a blog post with my iPhone but I approve and respond to comments with the device all the time when I'm away from a desktop/laptop. -GS

I'm not giving up my desktop for exclusive use of a smart phone, anymore than I would give up my file cabinet and try to carry everything around in my pockets. They fill different needs. At home and at work, I want something with a nice big screen that fights eyestrain on my Boomer eyeballs, a nice big keyboard (since I actually know how to type at high speed instead of using a little stick or doing permanent damage to my thumbs), and a lot of storage capacity.

As an engineer in my mid-40s, I really need large monitors and the input devices (full size keyboard, mouse, etc.) that desktops provide to efficiently work with construction plan sets. These are crucial features currently lacking from mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs, and I don't suspect we'll see them added anytime soon. People like me are moving towards laptops, which have connections for external (larger) monitors, mice, etc. and using smartphones for emailing, IMing, and getting crucial information off the internet when we're out in the field. True, the desktop does seem to be gradually fading in popularity, but it's also still the most economical and efficient computing device for many business users.

I agree, Bob. I don't think you'll see desktops disappear. I think part of my point is that people now have the expectation and desire to be connected to a computing device, even when they're away from their desktops. So the mobile device world and the mobile Web will only grow. -GS

This is so funny... thanks for the giggle, Google! You've really got your heads in the clouds! Or perhaps somewhere darker...?

I agree with the notion of desktops becoming irrelevant in the near future. Where I disagree is the suggestion that people will jump from desktops to smart phones. I've never been to Japan so I don't know how things are there. What I can say is that I know more and more people, myself included, who have given up desktops in favor of laptops and even netbooks. Mobility is highly sought-after. The performance gap between desktops and laptops is quickly closing. I don't see the need to be tethered to a desk and its stationary workstation anymore.

Don't think I will be doing my taxes on a smartphone (I won't buy something that costs me over $100/month anyway). I don't think I can use a smartphone as an HTPC. I can't put together a smartphone with exactly the components I want as I can a desktop.

Just like ereaders won't cause the end of paper books, smartphones will not cause the end of desktops.

I'm going to shine in this one. I'm only 26, and I can't stand all of these tiny sized gadgets. I don't even like the laptop I have because the mouse and keyboard and screnn, and well, everything about it is too small. The fancy phone is great for necessary on the fly workings, but I took a picture with my phone yesterday, struggled with the phone picture editing software and ended up emailing it to my computer so i could edit it there. I realize i'm in the minority, but i'll always buy a PC as long as they are available.

Hi,

Have you considering what gaming and watching video means ?? Really people do buy larger and larger video screens and televisions for a reason. Its like going back to the 1950's watching anything on a 3.5 inch screen.

Now what I will buy into is a hand-held device that can somehow display 1920 by 1280 on a 30 inch plus LCD.

That capability is not 3 years away.