CES: VIZIO Announces new line of PCs - Impacts eLearning?

Hey! It's CES week! Why is a Corporate eLearning Strategies blog covering consumer electronics?  Well, I wouldn't exactly say that I'm "covering" the show.  However, I am getting a lot of info about new product launches.  I'm actually quite shocked at the number emails I am receiving as an industry analyst.  But it's also quite fun to see it all.

This came from VIZIO inviting me to check out their new PCs.  It's interesting to me because I always think of VIZIO as a TV maker.  And the products in this image look REALLY nice.

So, what does this tell me and why should eLearning people care.  Okay, I know this is going to be a stretch but its also kind of fun :)

1) The TV is increasingly more interesting as a content delivery device...not less.
2) Convergence (an often overused word in computing) is becoming more mainstream.
3) Mainstream adoption of new consumer electronics capabilities means eLearning can get on board.

So that's a long way towards an impact on eLearning, right?  Yes, but seeing the reality of what the future holds can help us prepare.

Think about how powerful it is to participate in a Google+ Hangout while watching a YouTube video.  That experience, as good as it is, is still not quite ready for prime time.  But it will be...soon.  When TV makers get into the PC business and PC makers start getting into the TV business it's easy to see that we are well on our way to a shared video viewing experience.

This is the convergence that has been talked about for many years.  2012 is when this begins to actually work for many people.  Computing on your "TV", and watching television shows on your laptop, iPad, or other mobile device.  Yes, it's available now and many enjoy the experience, but I would still call it new and in it's infancy.  The true convergence and ease of use begins this year.

And since eLearning lags behind consumer technology it's easy to see how this new technology will be useful as a technology delivered learning channel.  Don't worry.  You don't need to start converting all of your training materials just yet.  But aware of what's coming and start thinking about the next 5 years in your org.  Plan now.

Get more CES info and video at their official YouTube channel.