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PCs more enhanced

SEATTLE - EVEN with all the attention lavished on Apple's iPhone and Amazon.com Inc.'s Kindle this year, it is likely that your PC is still the center of your digital universe. Here is a look at what the season's computer trends mean for you. - We're over drives.

Computers have come with 'optical drives,' slots for CDs or DVDs, for years. They've been useful for installing new software, watching movies or transferring music libraries into digital form.

Apple Inc. got rid of an optical drive two years ago when it introduced the first sliver-thin MacBook Air. That was not seen as a trendsetting step at the time because the computer, which cost US$1,800 (S$2,515) then, was not meant for mainstream consumption. But netbooks, which start at US$250 on BestBuy.com, surely are made for everyone.

It might sound impressive when a PC sales pitch mentions multicore processors, state-of-the-art graphics chips, 4 or 6 or 8GB of memory and hard drives with a terabyte (1,000GB) of storage. But another thing netbooks showed is that with a few exceptions - such as professional video editing, and maybe hard-core video-game playing - having lots of PC power is overkill.

The next frontier - cutting the cord for longer stretches. New chips that require less energy are emerging, and advances in battery technology are expected in the coming years to extend the time people can sit in the airport watching YouTube.

Since the iPhone made 'multitouch' mainstream, now the PC is in on the action as well. Windows 7 includes more support for multitouch applications, making some basic touch commands work even on programs that were not designed for it. -- AP

PCs more enhanced