ASUSTek envisions the digital home ecosystem

While the idea is not a new one, only Apple has really “succeeded” at bringing a successful vision of their digital home ecosystem to market with a good degree of success.  Microsoft only lightly pushes their version today though I’m figuring quite a bit will change when Windows 7 arrives for release.

Asus is actually in an interesting position.  They sell both Windows as well as Linux products and offer some very big bang for the buck.  The customers I’ve come across (mainly on the netbook side) are quite brand loyal and it would be easy to see how a lower cost mobile device could also be added as a control point in the home.

As Mr. Shih envisions the future, families will want to surf the Web and watch Internet video on televisions

“Today, the family crowds around a small PC screen when they are sharing digital media and getting on the Internet,” he said. “In the living room, it should be more convenient to use the big screen.”

Didn’t Microsoft fail at this vision with WebTV, I asked. Now the technology is much better, Mr. Shih replied.

To Mr. Shih, there’s no reason to stop at the TV.

“To make the whole digital home possible, in the eventual state every wall becomes a display,” he said, “The mirror should become a screen.”

Why?

“Because you want to blend it into your life,” he explained. “You already watch the mirror.”

And how will you control all these screens?

In Mr.Shih’s view, as likely as not, it will be on a cellphone. And the company is working on a low cost smart phone called the Eee Phone. [via Bits Blog]

I’ve always been excited by the prospect of the digital home and will be quite interested to see how this pans out.