PCs weren't successful because they were upgradeable or because you could build custom ones out of commodity parts -- all that happened because the PC was succe

PCs weren't successful because they were upgradeable or because you could build custom ones out of commodity parts -- all that happened because the PC was successful. The PC was successful because everyone wanted a computer that was like a PC, and two things happened: With the clone market, enough manufacturers could make the same thing, thus making computers affordable. Secondly, MS-DOS (and later, Windows) became a de facto standard preventing manufacturers from fragmenting the market with vendor-specific platforms. You bought a PC and it could run any DOS application. Now, the clone market happened because the PC had standard components, which allowed any vendor to compete. Why can't standard components drive a new revolution in phones? Because everyone already has cheap, disposable phones. As far as the consumer is concerned, the mobile phone's "PC moment" already happened, except without the modularity. If there's anything to disrupt today, it's the network. (Would a modular phone be nice? Sure, probably. Would it work, physically? Not if you want to keep the form factor of today's slim smartphones.)