Bach Seat

On Thursday (06-18-09) LG and NComputing announced an agreement where the Korean manufacturing giant will include NComputing’s desktop virtualization hardware on a new line of LCD monitors slated for release in June 2009.

NComputing’s desktop virtualization product includes both a proprietary hardware access device and Vspace desktop virtualization software. The hardware piece will be integrated with the LG monitors that will enable a single PC or server to be virtualized. Two LCD sizes will be available in the U.S. on the LG SmartVine N-series line: a 17-inch and 19-inch monitor. The monitors can also be used as traditional monitors that connect using VGA.

“LG is integrating the access device into these monitors themselves,” Stephen Dukker, chair and CEO of NComputing says. “So, instead of being a stand-alone, PC-like device, it becomes an all-in-one computing device, and you just plug your keyboard, mouse, and microphone into the monitor,” he says. The solution will be priced below $200 and will offer both NComputing’s L series which connects via Ethernet and the X series access device, which requires a local PC connection.

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The partnership is the next act in the migration away from desktop PCs to portable computing (laptops, netbooks, and mobile devices). The traditional PC makers don’t realize that desktop virtualization allows the owner to save money throughout the life-cycle of the device.

There are savings in upfront acquisition costs; there are operational savings by reducing the management costs and the risk of obsolescence. Long-term savings can include reduced power consumption and e-waste problems. NComputing indicates that by using LG’s monitors, customers can lower their computer hardware costs by 60%, maintenance costs by 70%, and electricity costs by 90%.

The combined capabilities of the two firms should make the rest of the industry take notice of their progress (or lack). LG shipped more than 15 million monitors in 2008, and NComputing claims over a million seats sold in over 140 countries. NComputing won the Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation award, the Gartner Cool Vendor Award, and the Frost and Sullivan Green Computing award. NComputing CEO Stephen Dukker was previously co-founder and CEO of low-cost PC maker eMachines.

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.