Multiple resolution displays were heavily used in the golden age of Amiga gaming - you had a low-res game screen so it would be fast and colourful but a high-res status bar so the text would be readable. This little thing, among others, gave the Amiga an edge over its rivals, like the ST. People like clever little touches - and it's amazing the uses they can be put to.
The PC hardware market has stagnated - nothing new, no innovation, just faster faster faster... Their hardware hasn't improved in the scope of what it can do, just in the speed it does it in. And we can't blame Microsoft for this one.