The Next Kickstarter Hit: StormFly

Spanish startup Now Computing has hit its $100,000 goal for a wearable USB 3.0 wristband that can be used to boot an entire operating system, out of the box, on PCs and Macs. Called StormFly, the device doubles as a USB storage device that ships with a Linux-based OS embedded within a wristband. Just plug the USB into any computer and reboot the machine, taking your custom operating system and important data wherever you go, on your wrist. The primary targets of the product are parents, education institutions, and most specifically business travelers, who often need a presentation, a few important documents, and the processing capability that any laptop would offer, while checking email and maintaining business on smartphones on the go. The biggest selling point is it’s price: $59 before shipping, and the device will be ready to ship within a few weeks.  

Tablet Sales Rise as PC Market Stagnates

The world’s going mobile and the PC just can’t keep up.  Recent reports indicate that last quarter, the number of tablets shipped was more than half the number of PCs, compared to the 3rd quarter numbers from November, which showed almost 1 in 4 computers sold were tablets.  The trend does not show any sign of slowing down, and suggests more than a shift in computing hardware sales. Windows may now be losing its long-lived market dominance.  Of all PCs and Tablets shipped in the 4th quarter, a third of them run OSX, iOS, or Android.  The definition of “personal computing” is certainly changing. Will Microsoft be able to adapt in time?