Is there a point to desktops?

[Tan3l6]

I've never owned a "modern" laptop and not missing anything.

To use computing needs through a keyhole a smartphone is enough for me.

[straight_stewie]

On 12/30/2019 at 7:35 AM, Gamer Schnitzel said:

Laptops have seen great improvements over the years. Is there any point to building a desktop computer when you can just plug in a laptop to a monitor and peripherals and enjoy a tiny and portable case?

I've been stuck using my laptop as a daily driver for a few weeks now while I'm collecting parts for my next build.

It's got fairly high specs for a laptop, not really the best, but not the worst either, i7-6700HQ and a GTX 960m, but it falls short of even the i7-4770k + 2xGTX-760TI machine that it's temporarily replacing when it comes to GPU heavy workloads.

[Mark Kaine]

On 12/30/2019 at 2:37 PM, WereCatf said:

Some of us need/want more performance than you can get out of a laptop. Also, many of us don't like the jetplane-sound a laptop does when you're doing some heavy task on it. This is to say, yes, there is plenty of point to desktops.

For me,  the true answer is, good laptops are just too expensive, especially in Europe, it was just way cheaper building a PC that about doubles the performance of an equally priced laptop. 

 

If money wasn't a factor I'd definitely get one of those high end "gaming" laptops with custom BIOS etc ...  To me the small form factor is super important,  also the mobility would be welcome (to move it around in my room  ) 

 

 

Good point about the sound - possibly -  my Lenovo is really not very loud at all, it's a cheapo mobile Intel CPU tho so that may be the reason. 

19 hours ago, Reytime said:

Not everyone wants to take their computer for a walk, I guess. Also, a desktop can be an ongoing project that keeps getting upgrades as time goes by. With laptop you are kind of limited to what you can improve.

Yeap, that's what I like about laptops - no (minimal) tinkering... It just feels more solid. 

 

My PC I have the feeling just moving it a few cm already messes it up sometimes lol, not to mention adding / removing parts... 

 

 

Don't get me wrong - it *is* fun building,  but when I'm done I rather just don't want to mess with it anymore - which is in my experience nigh impossible with a custom built PC, there's always "something"  

[biggieweeb]

On 12/30/2019 at 4:35 PM, Gamer Schnitzel said:

Laptops have seen great improvements over the years. Is there any point to building a desktop computer when you can just plug in a laptop to a monitor and peripherals and enjoy a tiny and portable case?

If you are a gamer and you only need to have 1 setup at home, just get a desktop. No one hears the fan sounds because you always wear a headset when gaming. You cant upgrade a laptop in a couple years when it gets sluggish, you just throw it away and get a new one. Besides, laptops are A LOT more expensive than desktops. I built myself a brand new gaming system for 800 bucks with an r7 2700x, a gtx 1080 gpu and corsair veng rgb pro ram. A laptop with that config would cost close to 2000 dollars. If you really like gaming on the go then sure, get a laptop, but i would recommend one with a 1080p 144hz screen as laptop screens are generally quite small and you really dont need a 4k screen on a 15 inch laptop.

[JoBales]

On 12/30/2019 at 7:38 AM, RoseLuck462 said:

You can't upgrade a laptop.

Depends on the laptop, as I have upgraded a couple over the years. Usually RAM and HDD/SDDs but there was a Lenovo that I did a CPU upgrade on. It all depends on the laptop. My current Dell laptop actually has a downloadable manual that outlines how to do many different upgrades/replacements. Sounds good, right? Well, a HDD to SDD replacement required disassembly of nearly the whole computer (same for RAM or WIFI card). It was a real learning experience but I'm not sure I'd tackle it again. (Kudos to Dell for creating a very detailed, step-by-step manual which proved indefensible). Some of the newer, super-thin laptops, I doubt an end user can do much with these. Working on a desktop is a piece of cake compared to a laptop!

[JoBales]

On 12/30/2019 at 9:11 PM, Intrafinesse said:

What are the advantages of a laptop over a desktop?

 

Laptops have smaller screens, and I don't like their keyboards, and I still need a mouse.

So I need a docking station or lots of ports.

And I  am content to sit in one place while using my PC.

 

 

The keyboard is a big negative for me on laptops. There was a time years ago where they weren't so bad. Now the keys are generally very flat, crammed against each other, and small amount of travel. I've never been able to make the transition to touch typing on a laptop. Touch pads also don't do it for me, so usually I add a wireless mouse to any laptop I own. I keep a laptop for the times I want to do some work away from home (or otherwise away from home and my desktop) but I really prefer the greater flexibility of the desktop...if something doesn't work for me, I can replace it.

[Arika]

16 minutes ago, JoBales said:

The keyboard is a big negative for me on laptops. There was a time years ago where they weren't so bad. Now the keys are generally very flat, crammed against each other, and small amount of travel. I've never been able to make the transition to touch typing on a laptop.

I'm the complete opposite. I control my desktop almost exclusively with my laptop. Either through remote desktop or using mouse without borders

[Lady Fitzgerald]

1 hour ago, JoBales said:

Touch pads also don't do it for me, so usually I add a wireless mouse to any laptop I own.

I detest touch pads (mostly because they hate me) so I disable them and use a medium sized wireless mouse (they fit my hand better; having np cord is huge).