The United State Patent and Trademark Office recently published an application by Microsoft for a modular personal computer (PC). The application describes an all-in-one PC with stackable components that consumers can add to main computer display. The basic system would take up minimal space, but it can also be easiliy customized by adding extra memory or processing power for better performance.
While custom PCs aren’t exactly new, the system that is described appears to be slicker than other all-in-one PCs on the market, so more consumers could upgrade and repair their computers without needing expertise or spending too much money. Microsoft, like many companies, is adjusting to a challenging PC marketplace. The patent application also mentions using similar modular technology beyond PCs, such as for personal gaming devices and smart watches.
In one or more implementations, a computing device includes a display modular component including a housing, a display device physically and communicatively coupled to the housing via a hinge, and one or more display hardware elements disposed within the housing that are configured to output a display for display by the display device. The computing device also includes a computing modular component including a housing that is physically and communicatively coupled to the display modular component, a processing system disposed within the housing, and memory disposed within the housing. The processing system is configured to execute instructions stored by the processing system to generate a user interface for display by the display device of the display modular component.
