COVID-19 Means Some Homes May Have Multiple Computers: Dell Strategist

That the one PC in the average home was used “episodically” pre-pandemic “caught some people flatfooted” when COVID-19 hit, said Matt Baker, Dell Technologies senior vice president-strategy and planning, at a virtual Raymond James investor conference. “People are turning to the PC because it’s a flexible platform on which they can perform a myriad of tasks, from working through a spreadsheet to watching a Netflix movie.” Adoption of multiple PCs in the average home is a tech trend that’s bound to stick “for quite some time to come,” Baker said Tuesday. “One PC per household is no longer sufficient.” Consumer behavior toward tech changed during the crisis, and the change is “likely to be deeper and longer-lasting” than many realize, he said. Companies that haven’t invested in their digital transformation “have suffered disproportionately” through the pandemic, said Baker. “Leaders” in digital transformation “have really weathered the storm a lot better,” he said. “That’s going to motivate people to invest even more than they may have in the past.” Dell sees that “as a catalyst for growth going forward and a tailwind coming out of what has been a headwind for many industries from the impact of the pandemic,” he said.