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The Desktop Isn't Dead, but is it Dead to You?
Posted by anand lalshimpi in Notebook PC | Feb. 11, 2009 9:00 AM
Notebook PC sales have skyrocketed in the recent years. Intel's CPU shipments are finally beyond the 50/50 point, over half of all CPUs shipped go into a notebook now. Year over year growth also favors the notebook; it's a far faster growing market segment than any other in the PC space.
To say that the desktop is dead would be ill advised. Notebooks do have the portability advantage, lending themselves to very convenient usage models. What they do lack however is space for cooling. And here's where desktops have the real advantage: you can stick components in them with higher TDPs. That means faster processors,
more ridiculous graphics cards, all usually a year or so before you can find them in a notebook.
The inherent performance advantages of a desktop will ensure it's life simply because, as I often like to put it, we're not done yet. The sorts of computing usage models you see in science fiction haven't come to fruition yet, partly because we are still limited by
performance. There's a need for a platform to continue to grow and act as an enabling ground for the next generation of applications and usage models, and that'll be the desktop.
But the question I'm here to pose is whether the desktop has a purpose in your life any longer? My usage is probably split pretty evenly between notebook and desktop, although I spend more time in front of a desktop when I'm not traveling. The larger screen and higher performance CPUs both contribute to my desktop preference, but when writing a review I'll sometimes just grab a notebook and walk somewhere else simply for the change of venue; it helps clear the mind...or something :)
Many of the people I know, especially if they don't game on their PCs, have moved to a single notebook as their only computer. I don't see myself moving away from a desktop/notebook setup, but what about you folks?
Well from my perspective, if I need high performance, I'd use a desktop. If I do not, I would do fine with a netbook.
For the same performance, notebook is more expensive than a desktop. And if I don't care about performance, notebook is more expansive than a netbook. Notebooks are for people who require *both* decent performance AND high mobility, and I imagine its market will eventually be the smallest when compared to Netbooks and Desktops.
For home use I love my desktops I have both a desktop for gaming and everyday use and a decent media center for movies and TV. I would love to go for something more along the lines of a Mac Mini or Ion platform for the media center but I like to have the opportunity to play games on it too at 1080p or 720p with full surround sound. I have a laptop for work so I can be more readily available but I also like having it to watch some media files or DVDs in bed or just as a convenience for a gaming guide on the couch while playing video games. I lean more towards desktop and have a laptop for the convenience and work.
One of the things you listed as an advantage of the desktop has become a pitfall for me, and that is heat. Sure desktop can dissipate more heat, but that heat means more wattage. A PC that idles at 150w isn't bad in the winter, but during a Texas summer it makes a room uncomfortably hot in no time. I've now gotten a laptop with dedicated graphics for everything except the latest 3D games and video editing. I also have a switch that allows me to use the same keyboard/mouse/monitor for both the laptop and desktop. As an added bonus, my PC room is much quieter.
In the past I've always used a desktop as my PC, only resorting to a laptop when I absolutely need portability. This was back in the Athlon XP era and time before that. Laptops before then were slow and expensive, and forget playing even half decent games on them. However, in the last couples of years the laptop's price has dropped dramatically while it's performance multiplied. A $500 dollar laptop is pretty much spec'ed the same as a $500 desktop the year before. So, in recent years I've slowly moved over to using the laptop for mostly everything and the desktop for only a few things.
Notebooks serve a purpose as a "good enough" solution. You can do everything you need to do on them but concessions need to be made to do so.
Large monitors and high end equipment don't suit mobile computing. Until low TDP high end processors and GPUs and collapsible 24"+ LCDs are readily available my desktop is in no danger of being replaced.
it is called catch-up...
EVERYONE and their DOG has a desktop... now they are also buying a notebook to go with it, so notebooks are selling more, for now... it will level off.
You know.. I work on alot of computers (as a hobby) and enjoy being on them after work but I don't even own a notebook. I'd probably consider moving over if I could build my own and customize it to my preferences but mmmm for now? Im notebook/netbook free!
When working AND when gaming, I will always prefer to sit at a desk, use a comgortable keyboard and mouse and look at a big screen (yes, I use 30 inch screens at work and at home). So even if no desktop chassis was built anymore, I would still prefer to use a notebook in a desktop setting.
IO do a lot of writing. A good keyboard and good screen are vital. With a desktop unit, I can get the keyboard I want (and I hoard several old IBM ones with real microswitches).