Will people still be buying home p.c.'s in 2020?

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Fritzo

Lifer
Jan 3, 2001
41,920
2,162
126
Most people use tablets at home today, so it was a "right/wrong" prediction. Mobile tech in a different form.
 
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rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
My 15yos still love their built PCs. They're actually both marginally better than mine because of their gaming. They sure as shit ain't playing FPS games on mobile or a tablet and certainly thumb their noses at console FPS. They do however do EVERYTHING ELSE like YT on their phones.

This reminds me, I should probably sell my XB1 collecting dust. As a one-time offer, the latter part would be free.
 
Last edited:
Nov 17, 2019
13,444
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My biggest objection to desktops is the power consumption. I switched to a laptop for that reason alone.

Tablets .... not really cutting it for me. I need a full sized keyboard and monitor. Though I might have posted that above somewhere.
 

spacejamz

Lifer
Mar 31, 2003
10,997
1,745
126
Editing 50MB raw files ain't happening on a tablet or a portable $1k laptop (i ain't lugging around a 17" laptop)...
 

GodisanAtheist

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2006
8,532
9,969
136
It's wild how off base the original supposition was given the absurd demand for home PCs during the pandemic...
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
71,266
14,063
126
www.anyf.ca
Most people outside of enthusiasts don't have a home PC anymore and if they do they never use it, so technically this aged pretty well. Seems lot of people are happy doing everything on their phone as most of their internet usage is social media and not content creation. Even things like banking and email lot of people use their phone now. I personally couldn't fathom that as everything on mobile feels like a compromise. I rather have a proper keyboard and mouse, and multiple monitors. Even social media is a pita on phone, I don't bother. Not to mention the privacy invasion nature of phone apps. But most people don't care.
 

mindless1

Diamond Member
Aug 11, 2001
8,843
1,810
136
Whichever *computer* is used, a desktop arrangement with keyboard, mouse, and larger monitor will always be the choice of those who aren't deprived, because the experience is better, the user interface more productive.

Even in futuristic movies where you see the glass or holographic screens and people reaching up to scoot thing around with their hands, that's not really an upgrade to have to keep moving your entire arm around compared to small wrist and finger movements.

Mobile devices are optimized for that use and have multiple drawbacks compared to a decent desktop for non-mobile uses... and "decent" doesn't have to mean high end or even modern, depending on how demanding the use. Posting on social media or a forum just isn't that demanding but even then, I can type on a regular keyboard, several times faster than on a touchscreen. The irony is that it actually takes more time to figure out how to concisely write less on a touchscreen, than to type more on a desktop keyboard that you're used to.

Most people I know, still have PCs but their desire is to just keep them running, maybe add a bit of snap by replacing a HDD with an SSD if the system is old enough that this applies.
 

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
^ every time I'm asked to login to a site / app while on my phone, I have an overwhelming feeling of dread. Having to type uncommon words out and also hoping I'm using the correct password else I have to type it all over again. Tell me I'm not the only one.

At least with a keyboard, it's so much quicker and logging into sites with a browser - most of those logins are saved/sync'd.
 
Jul 27, 2020
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Mobile, laptop, desktop etc. are complimentary to each other if you have them all. No one device is best for everything. You use whatever makes sense to you in the moment.
 

MrSquished

Lifer
Jan 14, 2013
26,702
24,873
136
I think PCs are far less needed than they were by quite a bit. You don't see them in a lot of business environments.

I do have one but for only two reasons. Gaming and photo editing. If I didn't do either of those I would just let my PC get old then replace it with a nice laptop and docking station in a few years.

For certain applications you need a desktop that includes high intensity graphical work or engineering etc etc so there are plenty of great use cases for them. For the home consumer not nearly as much anymore.

For my 8-day trip to Yellowstone this summer I'm just taking a pixel tablet and a nicely made Logitech Bluetooth chiclet keyboard. I just need to be able to browse the web and send lots of emails, an amuse myself during down time. I don't even need a laptop.

Most people I know don't have it desktop at home anymore. Just laptops and tablets.
 
Jul 27, 2020
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Except a PC, a PC is best for everything.
Not for me. When I was a teen, it sucked in winter to sit in front of my PC, with a blanket wrapped around me, especially at night. I longed to be able to just lie down and surf the internet. Now I can do that with a phone or tablet.
 

spacejamz

Lifer
Mar 31, 2003
10,997
1,745
126
Maybe I am doing it wrong, but when comparison shopping on a phone or tablet completely sucks vs using a pc/laptop...searching for an item on amazon or best buy so you can compare different options is a major PITA when doing that same exact search on a PC/laptop...
 
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