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Anyone ever sell or give away all of their desktop PCs, and switch to laptops?

VirtualLarry

VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Just curious what your feelings are/were when you did it?

I'm just having some thoughts about this. Maybe I'm bored already with my OCed Skylake Pentium CPUs. They still take hours to process a NumberFields@Home WU. (Some of them, 50+ hours. Most, 3-8 hours.)
 
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Sort of. I went from half a dozen desktops to a Sager to a Chromebook. Nearly everything I do is online these days; I only use my wife's comp (Hackintosh desktop) if I want to edit a video, or slouch in a chair to type something for a long time on a full-sized keyboard. I'm considering a Zotac 860M mini PC as an HTPC for some light Steam & emulator gaming, but that's about it. My iPhone & Chromebook do 99% of what I want.

Living on a laptop isn't bad these days. The new ones get like ten hours of battery life. You can hook up a 4K external display for desktop usage (there are some pretty nice USB 3.0 docks out) or even get a 4K screen on the laptop itself (Toshiba has one for about a grand, pretty reasonable for what you get). SSD's go up to 3.84TB in laptop size if you need the space & have the cash.

I think the next big thing will be the GPU-over-Thunderbolt system, although I think it will be another generation or two before it's perfected. I would definitely love to have like a 12" Ultrabook with all-day battery life that I could dock to say an external GPU & 34" curved gaming screen. Then again, my Chromebook was $199 😀
 
Thanks for the input, Kaido. I've been mostly using my Lenovo IdeaPad 100s, an 11.6" Netbook w/Win10 32-bit, based on Z3735F with 2GB RAM, 32GB eMMC, and I added a 64GB microSDHC for downloads and stuff.

It's not the fastest, and not quite as snappy as my OCed desktops, but the performance doesn't bother me. It's fast enough. (Something like 333 Passmark ST, pretty slow, but it runs in "Burst" mode most of the time.)

The main reason that I'm contemplating this, is, I already own the laptops, and I've got way too many desktops. Just thinking of downsizing my "harem".

Edit: Before I got my Lenovo, I was using some 7" Win8.1 32-bit tablets, including an HP Stream 7, and a Winbook TW700. Unfortunately, they only got 4-5 hour battery life, so I have several on rotation on a multi-port USB charger. The Lenovo gets a 8+ hour battery life. (Sometimes it claims as much as 10 hours.)

The tablets were alright, but a small screen and touch input meant that I was constantly jabbing at small buttons and UI elements, often partially futilely, until the exact center of my touch input would register right on the botton. It didn't help that one of the TW700 tablets didn't register the touch inputs exactly on-point.
 
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Kaido said:
I think the next big thing will be the GPU-over-Thunderbolt system, although I think it will be another generation or two before it's perfected. I would definitely love to have like a 12" Ultrabook with all-day battery life that I could dock to say an external GPU & 34" curved gaming screen. Then again, my Chromebook was $199 😀
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That's quickly becoming a reality. I use my 14" business laptop a lot but I still have a desktop to use daily, once what you said becomes more available and reasonably priced- a lot of us will ditch desktop all together.
 
Well, I was variously on my Lenovo laptop last night, and I pulled out a tablet too and started using that, and now I'm on my fastest desktop this morning. I guess I would miss my desktop, if I got rid of it.

Still, I guess I wish I could use it for something more (subjectively) useful. I do DC with it, but it just takes so long for WUs. Granted, it takes even longer on my slower machines.

(4hr 27min estimated per WU on the 4.455Ghz G4400, something like 6hr estimated on my 3.7Ghz i3-6100, and something like 8-12hr estimated on my G1820 Haswell 2.7Ghz dual-core.)

Maybe I just need to crunch a different project, one that shows more immediate progress.

If I went entirely to laptops, it's likely that I would have to forgo crunching altogether.
 
I'd never give up having at least one powerful desktop with a huge lovely screen, mechanical keyboard, quality mouse and power to game. Laptops are nice but every component is a compromise.
 
I got rid of my personal desktop a couple years ago, I currently use an alienware 13, I do have some small form factors hooked to TV's and a desktop for my daughters to play games on. I don't use the desktop though, my alienware does everything and plays everything I need/want it to
 
JWade said:
I got rid of my personal desktop a couple years ago, I currently use an alienware 13, I do have some small form factors hooked to TV's and a desktop for my daughters to play games on. I don't use the desktop though, my alienware does everything and plays everything I need/want it to
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Laptops also have the benefit of going with you, so you can nef while watching TV or the kids or having breakfast on the porch or relaxing in bed. The three benefits of a desktop station are a nicer keyboard, you can sit in a chair, and you get a bigger screen, but you can just get a nice USB 3.0 docking station for all of that stuff (the new Dell models support 4K screens via the USB 3.0 GPU's & can do triple screens as well!). Lots of nice stuff available these days...
 
So if you ditch you desktops, are you going to do your DC on atom???
To answer your question, I would never give up my desktop for a laptop. I have a desktop for most uses, including online banking type stuff, and a tablet for surfing/watching videos away from my desk.
 
@VL: You really can't help yourself, can you? 😉

Laptops are primary/only systems for a lot of people. But most of those people only have one or two devices we would recognize as computers. I've been laptop-only on and off, over the years, and my laptop(s) still get a fair amount of use. With the right external accessories, you can have a pretty-much-desktop-quality experience, but it ain't cheap. (Even for desktops, I still tell people that, however much they spend on a computer, they should budget an additional 50% of that for mousepads, carrying cases, software, how-to books, and so forth.)

But any laptop you'd buy (I'm assuming you'd be looking at low-end/cheap Atom-powered ones, mostly) wouldn't likely be any more capable than a desktop for the same money, so it wouldn't help your DC issues. But then again, 50+hours on an OC's G4400 would probably still take 25+ hours on a quad core. The urge to have instant gratification sounds like it's more the problem here.

Unless you started buying old multi-socket servers. Something like this would probably do some serious DC. You could probably stick a couple GPUs in there too for GPGPU crunching.
 
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I went from laptop only to building my first desktop in the beginning of August. So hell no, not giving that away. Pricy, but it was one of those purchases where I felt no buyer's remorse whatsoever. Still, there was a bit of corner cutting in the build I probably should have avoided, but it serves my needs more than adequately.
 
I haven't had a desktop in almost 3 years. Used one forever as a primary machine, but I always had a laptop. My desktop was originally built in 2007 and had several GPU and RAM upgrades.

I spent $1200 on my gaming laptop, and I know I could've built a significantly better tower for the same price, but there's something to be said for folding up my computer, throwing it a bag, and gaming at my destination after traveling, needing nothing but an outlet.
 
nerp said:
I'd never give up having at least one powerful desktop with a huge lovely screen, mechanical keyboard, quality mouse and power to game. Laptops are nice but every component is a compromise.
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Unless you plug your laptop into a huge lovely screen, mechanical keyboard and quality mouse...

Power to game is tricky in a laptop but it is possible to do reasonably well.
 
I have switched from a Q9650 to a Sandy Pentium B980 notebook almost a year ago. Even though slower it is running smooth and it is my main "desktop". The old computer is now a file server.

As far as NumberFields@Home you should think the output vs power ratio.
 
lakedude said:
Unless you plug your laptop into a huge lovely screen, mechanical keyboard and quality mouse...

Power to game is tricky in a laptop but it is possible to do reasonably well.
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That is an option for some people but I still say you end up with compromises for the price. I'm one of those people that likes to have my laptop ready to go at all times and my desktop sitting and waiting for me as soon as I get back to my office. Docking and undocking is tedious, plus the desktop performance will always trump the laptop. And when I'm out, it's nice that my wife can sit down and use the desktop.
 
I have a SFF mATX desktop Haswell i3 and a 13" Dell Sandy i5 laptop. I use my laptop most of the day and then use the desktop at night. I don't think I would want all laptops because if something horrible happens to the laptop you need to send it in if under warranty or toss it, if out of warranty. I really like the Dell micro PCs like the Optiplex 7040, but it still has proprietary components and after the 3 year warranty you are out of luck if PSU or Mobo breaks.
 
nerp said:
That is an option for some people but I still say you end up with compromises for the price. I'm one of those people that likes to have my laptop ready to go at all times and my desktop sitting and waiting for me as soon as I get back to my office. Docking and undocking is tedious, plus the desktop performance will always trump the laptop. And when I'm out, it's nice that my wife can sit down and use the desktop.
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I'm not really going to argue with any of that, except that undocking isn't much of a big deal since HDMI and USB.

Put it this way, if someone had to choose desktop only or laptop only, a powerful desktop replacement laptop hooked up to a keyboard, mouse and nice monitor might be the way to go. Easy to take on the road, just unhook a couple USB cables, a HDMI cable and a power cable. Enough power for all but the most demanding games.

Sure the desktop would be more powerful but it would be very cumbersome while on the go.

I'm fortunate enough to have both available but as one imagines the pecking order of what would go or stay I think the laptop would be the last thing thing standing.
 
1. Powerful desktop compute/gaming rig
2. Laptop/tablet/hybrid with good battery life and just enough power to properly stream from the desktop when needed
 
lakedude said:
I'm not really going to argue with any of that, except that undocking isn't much of a big deal since HDMI and USB.

Put it this way, if someone had to choose desktop only or laptop only, a powerful desktop replacement laptop hooked up to a keyboard, mouse and nice monitor might be the way to go. Easy to take on the road, just unhook a couple USB cables, a HDMI cable and a power cable. Enough power for all but the most demanding games.

Sure the desktop would be more powerful but it would be very cumbersome while on the go.

I'm fortunate enough to have both available but as one imagines the pecking order of what would go or stay I think the laptop would be the last thing thing standing.
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It's hard to argue against this, too. I think the point here is that it's nice we have so many options, some more suitable than others depending on the user.

I suppose for someone who doesn't really game, a decent laptop and a docking station setup at home works great.

Ideally, in my opinion, the best setup is a powerful desktop and a very portable laptop, each excelling at their intended purpose. It is true that laptops are fast enough that they're fully capable of replacing desktops, even with multiple monitors and fairly demanding applications. Even just a few years ago it was tough finding a machine that was reasonably priced but also capable. Or something that was a great performer but not huge with poor battery life.
 
VirtualLarry said:
Just curious what your feelings are/were when you did it?

I'm just having some thoughts about this. Maybe I'm bored already with my OCed Skylake Pentium CPUs. They still take hours to process a NumberFields@Home WU. (Some of them, 50+ hours. Most, 3-8 hours.)
Click to expand...

I've often thought, why don't you build an X58 hexcore system (since folding seems to be important to you)? You can get board, chip & cooler for $200, and that 4hr 27 min. job will get done in a little over an hr. :sneaky: Plus I know you like tinkering. I think once you see how 12 threads does at 4+Ghz., you'll be hooked. 😉 Sky OC may be a bust, but X58 blck OC isn't!
 
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Burpo said:
I've often thought, why don't you build an X58 hexcore system (since folding seems to be important to you)? You can get board, chip & cooler for $200, and that 4hr 27 min. job will get done in a little over an hr. :sneaky: Plus I know you like tinkering. I think once you see how 12 threads does at 4+Ghz., you'll be hooked. 😉 Sky OC may be a bust, but X58 blck OC isn't!
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Intriguing. I almost went for an X58 rig, when that big thread in CPUs and OC started.

But that doesn't work that way with BOINC. Instead of one task taking 4 hours, you would be able to run 12 tasks, each taking 8-12 hours.
 
I've been thinking about doing the same. I built my desktop in 2013 right after Intel released Haswell. I primarily bought it as my everyday computing device at home (gaming, web browsing, a little office work), so it's more than powerful for everything I need. I don't game very much these days - getting older stinks, group of friends just don't have enough time for gaming. So, my desktop is primarily an internet browsing device. It's also the most inefficient browsing device, as it's consuming more power than something like my iPad, or MBPr, or Surface Pro 2 (have a dock for this guy).

I can see this desktop lasting another 6-8 years, and probably won't build one after this one dies/gets old. I'm going to focus on mobile computing devices - so laptops, tablets, phones, etc. If anything, I'll just get a dock for my laptop, and hook it up to my monitors/keyboard/mouse. I would keep my desktop if it wasn't for my NAS - all my docs/videos/pics/music/backups are on there.
 
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