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Will Laptops Ever Replace Desktops? - TechAmok
Will Laptops Ever Replace Desktops? - [hardware] 05:41 AM EST - Jan,31 2009 - (1 comments) Will
Laptops Ever Replace Desktops? This is a recurring question and it seems
that everyone has his or her own opinion on this matter. There is no doubt that
for the common user who just wants a computer for running office-like
applications and accessing the Internet laptops are a terrific substitute for
desktops. The benefits from this migration are obvious: less space required on
the desk, ability to carry the computer anywhere and less power consumption..
Laptops also provide some disadvantages over desktops, and are based on these
disadvantages - some of them are nothing but myths - that many users refrain
from giving up desktops and using only laptops. Let's see:
You can't upgrade components from a laptop: This is partially a myth.
Usually you can add more memory or replace the hard disk drive. Plus some models
offer expansion slots like Express Card. But there is something funny about this
claim. Average users, apart from installing more memory, replacing the hard disk
and replacing or adding a video card, are not upgrading PCs like they use to do
a few years ago. This means that the average user (who doesn't want to learn
technical details on how to replace parts and is willing to pay someone to do
this for him or her) will simply buy a new computer instead of trying to upgrade
the CPU or motherboard. The problem is that we usually base your rationale on
ourselves - heavy technical users. So the only area that this statement holds
true is regarding the video card, which traditionally can't be added or replace
on a laptop. But, hey, you can eBay your old laptop and buy a new one with a
better gaming performance. Of course if you are the kind of user that likes to
open your PC and play with its internal parts then a laptop is simply not for
you (at least as a primary computer)!
You can't play games on a laptop: Well, you can play games on an
entry-level desktop either, so what are you complaining about? The problem is
that on an entry-level PC you can add a good graphics card and you will have a
decent gaming machine, what is not possible to do with a laptop. So the
difference is that if you want to play games on a laptop you have to keep this
in mind before deciding on a model that is right for you. The market has changed
quite a bit in the past year and you can now have a laptop that has gaming
performance similar to desktops - or even better, depending to what desktop you
are comparing to. But you will have to pay more for it, of course.
Laptops have lower performance: Myth. If you have a laptop with a
high-end configuration and compare it to an entry-level desktop, the laptop will
be faster! So everything depends on the configuration you pick. The only area
where laptops are traditionally deficient is gaming performance, but this is
changing.
The laptop screen is too small: This is a myth. There are models with
really large screens around. The only kind of user that laptops are not really
addressing out of the box today is the one that wants more than one display
(even though we've seen prototypes of monitors with two displays). You can solve
this, however, installing an external LCD monitor and configuring your laptop to
use the second monitor as an extension of your Windows desktop. It works just
like on desktops with two monitors.
The laptop keyboard is too small: Pure myth. You can simply buy a
regular USB or Bluetooth (if your laptop supports this technology) keyboard to
solve this issue. Using a laptop with an external keyboard you will still be
using far less space than a desktop computer.
Laptops are more expensive than desktops: Laptop prices dropped a lot
in the past few years and in fact there are good entry-level laptops that are
cheaper than entry-level desktops. On the high-end arena gaming laptops tend to
be more expensive than their desktop counterparts, but the price difference
isn't so huge as it used to be some years ago.
Personally I don't fully agree with the article. Yes, laptops cost about the
same initially as equivalent desktops, but they're less reliable and more
difficult and expensive to repair. I've seen a lot of relatively new laptops
with dead motherboards, bad displays, or strange behavior due to overheating,
though, to be fair, laptops take a lot more abuse from users than desktops do
(coffee spills, dropped on the floor, etc.). Of course, I use both. I use my
laptop almost daily around the house and on business trips (along with my HTC
HD), but I could not work without my desktop PC! What about you? |
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