Discussions

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).