desktop to laptop?

jaylahewitt:
I've pretty much always had both a desktop and a laptop (nothing too high-end just for web browsing or word documents), though my desktop was where I'd find myself if I ever needed processing power. It is nice to see many of you have good things to say about the macbook. I've basically gone through all the guides at pnf and I think I've narrowed it down to the macbook pro 15 or 17. If you had to choose between the two, would you go for a 15-inch display w/ retina or the 17-inch w/out retina?

I have a 17 inch mbp. Next time I'll go for the 15, just cause the 17 is a MONSTER!

Yeah so maybe I'll just go for the 15-inch w/ retina then, because I can get them for around the same price w/ similar specs. A 17-inch screen does seem a bit large for a laptop..

I have had small laptops for quite a while. I used a 10" Compaq as my onpy PC for a long time. Then an older 12" FujitsuSiemens which, though considerably older, was actually faster.

I wanted a 13" or 15" and I have actually got a 17" 15" because the cheap smaller ones didn't include a DVD player. In many ways it is a bit too big for my small work table. But I have been very surprised to find that I much prefer the bigger screen for watching videos.

If it was easy to remove the keyboards from laptops so that I could wash them I probably would not need to get new ones :slight_smile:

...R
Edit - just realized I got my dimensions mixed up. A 17" laptop probably would not fit on my table :slight_smile:

I bought my laptop because I have no need for games. Although it didn't stop me getting a nice machine.

I spent $990 two years ago and got an i7 lappy with 16gb ram (8gb added after purchase). As an example, compiling the source for Shareaza on my old now-in-pieces core duo took around 15 minutes. On my current laptop it is around 1.5 minutes (and would be even shorter if I bothered with an SSD). I run two virtual machines for work stuff as well and it handles everything fine. The choice of an i7 was to future proof it.

A major downside of a laptop is the small screen, and the closeness of it. You will do your eyes in if you spend lots of time in front of it. Typically a laptop screen is closer to you than a standalone screen and causes your eyes to become used to the short focal length (Myopia).

I resolved this recently by getting a great bargain on a 27" full HD monitor I use at home. However I'll probably get a desktop next as I'm now using a Pine64 at work so I do not have to carry my laptop around.
Also a PC is the go if you will ever want to expand the amount of screens you have. Although the laptops at work we are giving out have a dual output (E5470), and there are some select options now supporting an external graphics adapter.

Also, you'd want enough USB ports. Mine has three and I could do with at least five (Mouse, Kb, external drive, Arduino, iPhone). Check before you buy as it is common for cheaper machines to have only two ports.

Also not plugging the guys I work for, but the bigger brands seems to have better warranty support. I know for us (Dell, Apple, Lenovo) we go to the customer (quicker fix than shipping to repairer). But in my experience I have never needed a warranty claim for computers, and is probably only worth it if you pay the extra for 5-6 years cover, when the machine is more likely to fail. So if you only plan on 2-3 years free cover, then warranty probably shouldn't be a deciding factor.

I agree with pYro_65 about the screen size and closeness, the other issue is that the laptop screen placement is not ergonomic. I hate laptop keyboards, I need a real mouse. So of course you can connect a real monitor, keyboard and mouse to a laptop but then what you have isn't much different or smaller than a desktop. I like how easy it is to upgrade and replace parts on a desktop. Because of this I haven't bought a computer in a long time but the last time I priced them laptops were more expensive than desktops for the same specs, even more so if you still need to buy a monitor and keyboard. The only reason I'd want a laptop is portability. I only need a computer when I'm home so this isn't a benefit for me.

Yeah, normally I would have to agree. I'd prefer a desktop not only for the smaller price tag but for the ability to upgrade or make modifications as needed. Unfortunately, I just don't have the space anymore for a desktop and so portability is exactly what I need.

chummer1010:
But if I were to recommend a laptop, a Macbook is the way to go

I know a lot of people really love Apple conputers, but I've never understood why. I can't stand the way they make it so that you can only use their components. Need to hook up a projector, no Apple doesn't wan to use the standard plug, you have to buy an overpriced adapter to do that. Want to hook your phone up to a car? All the manufacturers agreed on a standard and there are apps for cars that will connect to any phone EXCEPT an i-phone because Apple just can't bring themselves to play with everyone else. No if you want your i-phone to work in your car it has to have a special program just for apples called car-play.

They're even saying that they're going to do away with the headphone plug on the i-phone now and make headphones that plug into the lightning port. So then if you want to listen to your music you won't be able to use your normal headphones, you'll have to buy special (probably overpriced) headphones made by apple or buy some ridiculous (and probably overpriced) adapter. And what if I want to charge my phone and listen to music at the same time?

I think Apple has done a great job of convincing people that they are better. But I have yet to see anyone articulate exactly why. I get the desire to get away from Windows, but there's all the Linux distros to choose from.

I know that when you call IT at our company and tell them you're having trouble getting your mac to connect to the system they'll tell you to go get a real computer and call back.

jaylahewitt:
I'd prefer a desktop not only for the smaller price tag

? ? ?

...R

I never had a laptop :

  1. I am a hardware man not a software man, I build my PC. I choose just what I need.
    At each upgrade I change only the necessary components and I keep the other, so that I always have a powerful PC for cheap.
    Find a box for a laptop is difficult. Building a laptop is more expensive.

  2. On my desk I prefer a screen separate from the keyboard. As I can remove the keyboard when it is not needed and have more space.

  3. for mobility I use a tablet or a smartphone.

  4. I use Debian Linux. I have 2 PC and only one with an official OEM Windows 7 in dual boot.
    Install OEM Windows from DVD is really a pain, it take 4 more time than install Linux and I only use it when I can not do otherwise, that is very,very,very rarely.

The other reason I use a laptop is because they use a great deal less electricity and my off-grid electricity is very expensive.

They also come with a built-in UPS :slight_smile:

...R

Use all three if you include tablets.

Always been more into a real PC as they are so cheap to repair compared to a lappy.
Take the same approach as some of the other guys here and just upgrade as I need and when I need.

Used to always carry a lappy for when I was out in remote work sites but carting that and luggage for a month in a remote location along with tools made it a chore.

Got a tablet but the missus snagged that from me PDQ so had to get another and so glad I did.

Home is a PC with twin SSD raid with a couple of 32 inch monitors and an upgraded EX840 server with 8TB storage pool and a pair of 120gb SSD's in raid for the OS

I can RDP into the server from the tablets if I need to work on anything at home.

If you have the work space and wont be carrying it around too much the a full PC would be my first choice.
On the other hand if you know for sure you are going to have to carry it around then a good lappy but spend a little extra for the things you really want.

Not getting an apple gives you a better choice on hardware and expand ability and an easier way to use Linux too if you really want.

I don't allow apple (spit) in the house LOL

Ballscrewbob:
I don't allow apple (spit) in the house LOL

I didn't allow it. However, I have a bunch of free apple junk from work. So now I just stick with my previous rule: never spend money on garbage.

I'll always be a PC person... Oh and playstation over xbox also (don't own either though).

Robin2:
The other reason I use a laptop is because they use a great deal less electricity and my off-grid electricity is very expensive.

They also come with a built-in UPS :slight_smile:

...R

Not too far in the future PC's will start having ARM based CPU's and will have a significant drop in power. Hell, my Pine64 does a great job at a basic entry level with its 64-bit quad core. They'll need to up the RAM though, instead of supporting 3 - 8Gb, the PC industry will be wanting at least 16Gb minimums support.

Wowwww.

Laptop is much, much better.Laptop is much, much better.

Bah. I hate using a laptop. I want a full-sized keyboard, a 23inch or larger display, and a mouse, and I want them all to be a proper distance APART from one another. The only thing a laptop has going for it is portability. (However, most will notice that it's a lot easier to add an external screen/keyboard/mouse to a laptop than to make a desktop "portable.") (and also notice that laptops are incredibly cheap these days. You can get a whole, new, instantly usable computer for less than $300. Which is amazing.)

The one thing I'll give the lappy is that it is MUCH easier to attach a monitor, mouse, and keyboard to a closed up laptop on the desk and pretend it is a desktop than it is to put a desktop on your lap on an airplane. The desktop also doesn't fit quite so neatly in the backpack.

(((Written on my laptop from a hotel room far far from home)))

EDIT: Just realized that @westfw already said this.

An i5 with Intel's integrated HD 4xxx graphics does everything I need it to, some video processing, Photoshop, gaming, Autocad, whatever. It's my opinion that Intel's HD graphic setup does away with the old parroted adage that all discrete cards are categorically better.

I also have a Chromebook which can't be beat for speed, size/weight and battery life for all the putzing around the net and stuff that can be done on Google sheets/docs/etc. I think a Chromebook is all most people need.

It depends on your purpose and the laptop you plan to buy. But I think a top tier laptop can handle almost all computer tasks.

I have a Lenovo Workstation laptop, W530, with fast i7 processor, tons of RAM, and solid state hard drive.
Starts up fast, portable when I need that and 15" screen, and plenty of processing for Eagle schematic capture & board routing, and compiling big Arduino sketches. Make my i5 L440 seem slow at work.

Not enough room on airlines to open and use it tho. I listen to MP3s on smartphone and read a book instead.

Hey!

I'm using a desktop before but I usually go out of town and travel. In this case, I decided to buy a laptop. I bought Acer Aspire V17 Nitro Black because of the specifications I need for my video editing projects.

Specs are below:

Intel Core i7-4710HQ 2.5 GHz Processor (6 MB Cache)
16 GB DDR3 RAM
1 TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive, 256 GB Solid-State Drive
17.3-Inch (1920 x 1080) Screen, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M

So far, I don't have any problems yet and I can say that this is a high performance laptop. Might as well same as performance of my desktop at home but this one is handy.