Why get a stationary computer?

[Christine]

I have a laptop computer which I use for everything.



And two portable drives I use for a rotating backup scheme.


I see people here and elsewhere buying stationary desktop computers like iMacs or similar Microsoft variants.


What do you use those for that you cannot do on a laptop computer?


Just curious here - wondering if I am missing something

 

[braumeister]

In a word, Tradition!

 

[skyking1]

yes I walked away from desktops many years ago. If I really needed the big screen, a dock or just a monitor will do.

 

[GenXguy]

I have 4 laptop computers that I rarely use.

I have 2 desktop computers that I use very often.

I built both desktop computers from personally selected parts.

One desktop home theater PC with tv tuner cards in it that I use often.
One desktop primary PC which is my main computer running Windows 10.

I much prefer using the desktop computer with the large monitors attached, the regular mouse, regular full sized keyboard, able to install my choice of graphics cards, overclock with higher powered processor, quickly change drives or add more drives, add other interface cards.

I leave it up and running constantly with various apps running and about 100 tabs open in Firefox. A laptop just wouldn't do the job for me. No way would I substitute with a laptop. Also, this way I don't have to worry about lithium ion battery fires by having a laptop plugged in all the time, either.

I've got about $1200 wrapped up in those laptops and upgrades. One is a smaller older ultraportable that's pretty slow, but the other 3 are much more usable, and two of them I bought from work for $25 ea. But I simply much prefer using my desktop.

 

[razztazz]

I've never been a laptop guy mostly because I hardly ever traveled. I own one about 8 yrs old and have only used it for anything once when I was visiting somebody.

Can you really get a laptop with all the power and capabilities and USB ports as a decked out desktop? Or are you going to have to give a little here and there just to keep your hardware footprint small? And at hone, how important is that?

 

[OldShooter]

I dunno. It is probably 30 years since I relied on one of those big boxes. Instead I have had laptops and now MS Surface tablets in docks. A dock at the city house, one at the lake house and formerly one at w*rk. Minimum dock configuration includes a large monitor, a conventional keyboard, and a mouse. Configuration at the city house includes a USB expander, a MS LifeCam camera, a high speed document feed scanner, a flat-bed scanner, an audio amplifier driving sat/sub speakers, a thermal label printer, and a Wacom tablet. Also several Tb of NAS storage. When I am done in the home office, I undock the tablet and put it by my recliner chair. I fire it up in the morning, accompanied by toast and coffee, and spend an hour or more with it on my lap, catching up on the news.

The device alone weighs a bit less than two pounds and is maybe 3/8" thick. That's all I have to carry between docks and I have all my "stuff" available wherever I am. Once docked it is functionally indistinguishable from a box computer.

Heavy photo or video processing might be a little much for my hardware but I'm not into any of that. I run Lightroom very comfortably.

 

[CardsFan]

For the last 10 years or so, we have opted for "laptops". In quotes because the current one has a 17" screen. Not really lap top, but portable. Regular mouse, close to full size keyboard. It is plugged in all the time, so I know my battery life is probably not great.

No heavy use requiring gaming cards, etc. 98% is internet use.

 

[TheWizard]

I use my Pixel 7 smartphone for 90%+ of all the Internet work I do, like this post.
I do have a PC at home that I'll use with FreeTaxUSA when I get home in a few days...

 

[Midpack]

I prefer a much bigger monitor (at all times) and a larger keyboard while sitting in a comfortable chair at a desk with space all around for papers, calculator, notes, mouse & trackpad, and a coaster for a glass. OTOH DW only uses her laptop. I used a laptop when appropriate during my career, don’t have those situations any more. IME desktops often last longer since components aren’t quite as jammed in. And aren’t desktops still slightly cheaper for a given spec?

I also have an iPad I use every day, more time than the desktop, though I use both most days. Having an iPad and a desktop is ideal for me. An iPad and a laptop wouldn’t make as much sense to me.

Whatever floats your boat.

 

[Ronstar]

I have a laptop computer which I use for everything.



And two portable drives I use for a rotating backup scheme.


I see people here and elsewhere buying stationary desktop computers like iMacs or similar Microsoft variants.


What do you use those for that you cannot do on a laptop computer?


Just curious here - wondering if I am missing something

Even though I have a relatively beefed up MacBook Pro, it doesn't handle CAD / photoshop / video editing of large files. My Mac Studio M1 Max handles these applications better, but I'm thinking about BTD'ing into an Apple Mac Pro with the M2 Ultra.

Even when I was working, I had top of the line HP laptops that were good for portability, but couldn't handle design files like the desktops in the office.

And now I need the extra power more than I need portability, so a desktop best fits the bill.

 

[jimbee]

Gaming.

 

[Aerides]

Gaming.

^

 

[pb4uski]

I traveled a lot and got very used to using a laptop. We haven't had a desktop computer since 1998.

My current laptop is a Lenovo Miix 700 which Lenovo made for a short period of time as an answer to the Microsoft Surface. I paid $570 for it in 2017, 7 years ago and it is still going strong. It's the best laptop that I have ever had. A few years ago I had to replace the keyboard but otherwise trouble free. I also like that it doesn't have a fan.

It's getting to the point where the battery life isn't what it was but I can get the battery replaced.

I use it at my desk or on my lap, very versatile. It has a detachable keyboard and can be used as a tablet but I rarely use it that way.

 

[jollystomper]

Personal computers are a hobby that also helped my career. My laptops are satellites to my tower servers. The main applications on the tower servers:

- Video editing
- Virtualization/cloud technologies
- Home networking (primarily monitoring and sharing)
- RAID platforms for backups
- Web serving (stanalone and integrated with public clouds)
- Large datastores for data analytics

When working I had more towers to also run multiple mainframe and Linux operating system versions, but since retiring those have been scaled back.

I find it easier to scale these thing horizontally, rather than vertically. Also, since I build my towers the cost is cheaper than the equivalent laptop configuration. None of this is something a "normal" person would do or need, but that is just me .

 

[tutan]

A few years back, when I retired, I thought I’d need to get a laptop after giving up the company laptop. So I got a cheapo Chromebook but soon after I was doing everything I needed to do regularly on my phone instead, namely internet browsing, email, spreadsheets, and paying bills.

I did get a Mac Mini eventually to run TurboTax.

I also thought that traveling without a laptop would be a major inconvenience but so far it has been okay.

 

[martyp]

When I retired I lamented the loss of my work provided laptop. Then my desktop began dying. I settled for a new MacBook laptop because I actually needed one for some tasks I was doing in retirement. I found that I could plug it into my former desktop screen and keyboard. By "desktop" we really mean - speed, memory, storage. The screen and keyboards are separate issues. 13 years ago the capabilities of a laptop were less than that of a desktop. So that is really the criteria regarding the choice. I imagine, for certain applications, that a desktop has features you just can't find in a laptop.

 

[Exchme]

I don't do sophisticated computing, but I appreciate the big screen of my old iMac. For travel, I either use an even older MacBook, plus a full size mouse (never got the hang of touchpads) or I just use my phone.

 

[W2R]

OK, here's the dumb answer of the week (but I'm trying!).

Get the computer you want/need. Think of the most intensive use you might make of your computer. If you goof and it turns out that you need a desktop computer and don't have it, you'll find out and next time you'll remember that and get one.

I know, it's easier if you know beforehand, but we aren't you and can't really know.

As for me, I stopped buying desktop computers in the late 1990's when laptops started claiming to be "desktop equivalents". I checked the specs, and decided that for my purposes a high end laptop can be close enough to what I absolutely need. Also a laptop can be physically much more comfortable for me to use than a desktop.

 

[Gumby]

I prefer a desktop, so that's what I have. You may prefer a laptop, so that's what you should have. Seems a silly thing to argue about.

 

[JackJester]

No desktops for me since early 2000s. DW and I each have our own MacBook Pro. Long lasting, reliable, portable, problem-free. Not a gamer. Just need to access internet and email and maybe some streaming videos during travel. I do most of my internet stuff while also watching TV on the couch or kicked back on the lounge chair or outside on the deck. Would not want to get up to go to a desktop just to look up some info on wikipedia or what not. Plus a "desk" is too much like the work cube from the former life. Even during my last work days during covid, megacorp gave us all laptops to work from home and we just plugged them into a big monitor we borrowed from our cube.

 

[DallasGuy]

Much larger dual monitors (32" and 27") and much better keyboard and mouse with my desktop computer. I have laptops as well, but my desktop is my "main" computer for getting things done. For me, it's difficult to do better and being more productive than having side by side dual monitors when wanting to look at two documents at the same time.

 

[Sunset]

I have both.

But I do most everything on the desktop. I like that I can pop it open easily, and add/remove drives or memory, etc.
When I buy a new one, I don't have to buy new screens as mine are fine. Same with keyboard and mouse.
Paying for a laptop means buying the screen and keyboard, even if I don't use it.


I have a laptop, I use for taxes and rare occasional computing when away from home.

If my main computer was a laptop, I wouldn't take it on trips, as it would too much financial info, etc on it.

 

[donheff]

I simply don't like laptops. They are a PITA to lug around and particularly a PITA to travel by plane or public transportation. I prefer an iPad mini for that and books. At home I use a large all-in-one desktop at my kitchen table which is a center of household activity. My older desktop is converted to Linux to extend its life and serves as a remote processor. If I had to work while travelling, I would want a laptop or maybe an MS Surface.

 

[Closet_Gamer]

We've transitioned to Chromebooks. I LOVE them. Idiot-proof, inexpensive and they last forever. You can dock them with a big monitor and put on a $20 bluetooth keyboard.

My daughter had a mac for college that she no longer needed. I refreshed it just to have a non-chrome browser for the few web sites that don't work well with Chrome. What a pain compared to a Chromebook.

I may buy a PC gaming rig. That will iikely be a desktop so that I can keep updating graphics cards as needed.

 

[DayDreaming]

I have a laptop for use when I'm away from home. But I've never felt comfortable using a laptop on my lap - it's just awkward, so I use it on a desk when I can. Even then, I really prefer a separate keyboard, monitor and mouse, so an old fashioned desktop box is my main computer. The laptop is only for when away from home.