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New PCs to boot in seconds, not minutes

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uefi_logoIf, like us, you go off and make a cuppa after you have switched on your computer, then get ready for new computers that promise to boot up in seconds instead of the time it takes to, err, make a cuppa.

The new technology is called UEFI. This will replace the current BIOS chips found in almost all PCs. BIOSs have been around since the mid-eighties when Duran Duran was in the charts and ra-ra skirts were fashionable.

However, like a vinyl record, the BIOS of a computer is very old tech which takes ages to get going and struggles with new external devices.

“At the moment it can be 25-30 seconds of boot time before you see the first bit of OS sign-on,” said Mark Doran, head of UEFI. “With UEFI we’re getting it under a handful of seconds. We’re not at instant-on yet but it is already a lot better than conventional BIOS can manage, and we’re getting closer to that every day.”

New machines sport UEFI chips could arrive as early as 2011.