I was having a friendly discussion with someone this morning about PC and Laptops for work/education stuff, he suggested that I could use a chromebook for all this stuff and this would be a good idea and make things easier. I strongly disagreed with this, mainly because I hate laptops, the keyboard and touchpad make me angry and my PC does everything I need. Most things are synced to my phone for the rare times I may want to add something while out and about. So I thought I’d come here and seek other peoples opinions on laptops vs pc your needs? also if you are feeling bored and want to head on over to the survey ive linked and fill in a few questions I can more easily gather data to make into fun graphs, which if the data agrees with me, I can shove it in his face or should I be in the minority I can let him have this win.
Aren’t all laptops PCs?
Oh, rereading, I see you’re talking about netbooks specifically, which, yeah, are kind of not really PCs.
I prefer PCs for most things, no real preference for desktop or laptop as long as I can use a mouse; I usually do desktop because they’re cheaper to build and usually quieter.
Netbooks are fine for classwork, browsing, and webdesign in most cases.
PC is a funny word. You can ask Mac or PC (From the era when PC was short for IBM (compatible) PC (vs Apple’s PC offerings). But apparently laptop vs PC is also a distinction for some people.
Nowadays I think of a PC as a computer that isn’t a dedicated headless server. Or maybe one that isn’t a work station for your professional work?
Anyway, is really a term from a bygone age.
Desktop 1000%. They are just more ergonomic in every way. A laptop without a mouse is basically torture. For lots of typing a laptop without a full size external keyboard isn’t pleasant. For viewing anything laptops screens are too small and generally poor quality, so you need an external screen, or better, 2 or more. So now you have a docking station with all your peripherals plugged in to, being powered by a machine that if it were a desktop would be at least twice as powerful and have much longer life through upgradability.
For the odd task that requires portability then laptops obviously have uses. But I’d rather have a cheap laptop just for that job rather than pretend an expensive laptop is a good desktop replacement.
Both. Both is good
Though depending on your situation a laptop will do both, think the thing you’re missing is that you can plug a laptop into a monitor mouse and keyboard the same way you do a PC and it will be functionally identical, except you have the option to unplug it and take it with you if you need to
Personally I have a gaming PC at home and a laptop for work, and a USB c hub that lets me plug said laptop in and use it as a desktop if needed. Perfect setup imo
This is exactly what I do too, plus a tablet for quick notes or reading when I’m studying or somewhere a laptop might feel a bit excessive (basically anywhere that I need to be waiting for something).
I’ve got a pine64 tablet on the way that I’m quite excited for. Going to run gnome mobile and waydroid so I can switch between android and Linux at will and use it as a laptop if need be
Laptop by far, it’s not even close. There’s practically no advantage to a PC I’d be missing at all. I can quickly grab it and bring what I’m meddling with anywhere I go quickly, and the battery makes it so I can jump between my desk, couch, or down the street. If I need to run an external peripheral for some strange port, I have a Thunderbolt external PCIe enclosure at my desk.
That said, I wouldn’t consider a Chromebook a practical replacement. Not because it’s a laptop, but because a lot of what I fiddle with is just easier on a normal OS.
I prefer working at a desk with a full sized keyboard, mouse, and monitor. Often these days I end up using a laptop for this though. Mostly because being stuck in the “computer room” at all times isn’t fun.
Laptop, because I can work from anywhere and it doesn’t take up much space
In a support role, I definitely prefer dealing with laptops. At home, I prefer having a desktop.
Under normal circumstances I prefer desktop since, at least mine, has plenty of USB plugs when compared to the crummy laptop I currently have. I also have never really been a huge fan of laptop keyboards or trackpads over a standard USB mouse and keyboard.
The only thing my laptop currently has/does that better my computer is the ability to more easily carry it around and that it has a detachable touch screen monitor thing. Otherwise, I’d say my desktop is superior in just about every other way.
Right now a PC but I may need a laptop in the next 2 years
I feel like you are approaching this wrong. You buy a laptop so you can be mobile. This is good if you travel or even just in an office where you might have to switch rooms (e.g. a meeting room). If you don’t need to be mobile, then you don’t need a laptop.
Some applications will restrict you to using a PC, gaming for example, or anything that needs a big GPU. In this case you don’t have a choice.
If you get a laptop, please, buy some peripherals. Get a docking station, a proper screen, a good keyboard and mouse. Pay attention to ergonomics. Dont give yourself RSI or back pain.
I’ve worked on both, and as long as I can plug the laptop in a nice monitor, with keyboard and mouse I don’t care that much. Laptops great for mobility, and the keyboard and trackpad, well you get used to it, and doesn’t bother you that much. For myself, its wfh and then going to the office, isn’t a big deal, all stuff is on the laptop and things are synced if I need to do disaster recovery. It depends on the situation, would you benefit from it. if not, desktop’s fine
I have a Mac mini at work because I don’t need versatility there. I sit at my desk, I do work.
At home though, I’m all about laptops. Currently on my 4th MacBook since 2007. I can use it on my lap, like I currently am, or I can hook it up to a monitor to do the same stuff, but big. Either way, it’s the same OS (pretty much) so I get the same stuff done on both.
I can’t use a laptop for work (graphics intensive, need a powerhouse) but I would if I could. I love being able to use it literally anywhere I go—at my desk, in bed, on the toilet, on vacation, on the bus, at a cafe, etc—and…
I installed a headless Debian OS, added a keyboard-focused window manager and I don’t have to futz with the trackpad nor find a place to put an attached mouse. It also is a much slower drain on the battery. Best of all worlds.
I use it for web-browsing, word-processing/spreadsheets, checking email, making memes, coding, managing my home network, controlling my headless SBC, and modding. Also occasionally for cyber CTFs or remoting into my desktop at least to do so.
Completely depends if you need to carry it around.
For best of both worlds: Docked laptop with full monitor and maybe keyboard. You can find monitors everywhere for cheap.
“the keyboard and touchpad make me angry”
I think you need to try this out with an open mind. Plenty of people use laptops as their only computer, only with trackpad. Plenty others just toss a Bluetooth mouse in their bag and use that.
I get using a PC, but a laptop does have its advantages.