Many fellow bloggers have offered reasons why convergence of platforms (PC, gaming console, hand held console, etc) is the way of the future, however, I disagree with this. While I agree that the capabilities of these platforms are expanding, I still believe that total convergence will never happen for two reasons. First, having a system that can perform a huge variety of tasks has great potential to be confusing and cluttered, especially to users that aren’t very familiar with technology. Many people purchase pieces of technology because they are looking for it to perform a single function and don’t want a lot of bells and whistles; I’m sure we all have a parent or grandparent who maintains that they just want a phone that can make phone calls, and who bemoan the fact that they can never find the call button on their phones because of all of the extra programs. Another reason why this convergence of platforms probably won’t happen is the cost; for example, if people just want a DVD player, they aren’t going to be happy when they have to cough up $500 for a system that can play music, run games, and surf the internet as well. Many people invest in only a few kinds of technology and have no need for a system that can do everything; therefore, it isn’t practical for them to buy a system that costs so much more because it offers capabilities that they don’t want. This consumer desire can play a major role in how technology will advance. For these reasons, I would disagree with the previous posts that state that platforms will integrate and become homogeneous.