There’s something I’ve been wondering about ever since I got my first computer.

A friggin Gateway P133 with what 8MB of RAM and a 500MB hard drive? 14.4 modem? Or something? It looked like this:

From that starting point Pentium processors starting picking up speed year to year. RAM went up at a similar clip. As did storage size. Dial-up modem speed. As did monitor resolution. Etc…

With other technology, cameras started off at a certain level (sucky) and then slowly crept up notches of advancement year to year. Prices came down as resolution went up. And if you look at the little USB flash drives– they started off at what? 8MB and have slowly moved up the ladder until recently when you can get gigs for cheap and stuff…

And whether it was computers or laptops or cameras or storage– for the most part, all the companies seemed to move at the same speed. At least in the same range of speed/price ratio. Processors, resolution, storage all seem to progress hand in hand. Company to company.

So my question is– Are actual technological advancements dictating our level of technology year to year— or is it simply businesses holding the reins back on advancing technology so they can have plenty of running room for upgrades for years and years?

(continue reading…)

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