Will PC Sales Ever Stop Declining? – Microsoft Corporation (MSFT), Intel Corporation (INTC)

Haswell to the rescue?
If Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is unable to stoke PC sales, perhaps Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)‘s upcoming Haswell processor is? Coming this spring to an Ultrabook a near you, Haswell offers the single greatest generational leap in battery performance in the company’s history. Ultrabooks powered by Haswell are expected to last around 13 hours on a single battery charge. Combine Haswell with a touch screen and all of a sudden the PC becomes a contender against the sea of tablets. If Haswell’s delivery is anywhere near its promise, it holds the potential to singlehandedly drive increased demand for PCs. Perhaps consumers have been largely holding out for a PC that’s noticeably better than current offerings? Could Haswell be the one the world’s been waiting for?

No wind in the sails
For the most part, the PC industry has remained resistant to the sea change brought on by the explosive rise of smartphones and tablets. Naturally, this resistance has hurt the PC industry as consumers shifted their focus toward mobile computing. For the time being, the PC still holds a valuable place within society since there has yet to be a mobile computing device that can match the same productivity level of a PC. However, the PC industry needs more than just a wall that separates the tablet from completely overrunning the PC in the years to come. Perhaps Haswell is the industry’s calling for now, but longer term the PC ought to evolve into something greater than the sum of its parts. I’m not really sure what that will look like, but I’m pretty sure that if Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) can’t stop the bleeding, the PC as we know it may ultimately become a legacy product in the coming decades.

The article Will PC Sales Ever Stop Declining? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Steve Heller owns shares of Intel. The Motley Fool recommends Intel. The Motley Fool owns shares of Intel and Microsoft.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.