Which Type of Personal Computer is Right for Your Needs

You’d be surprised at how many people still think of a big gray box on the side of a desk when someone says the word “computer”. Computers in 2020 come in all shapes, forms, sizes, and colors. They come with screens, with more than one screen, and sometimes none at all. Today’s devices are very different from those of yesteryear, and today we’ll be exploring some of the different types of consumer computers that you can go out and purchase today.

Notebooks

Notebooks, otherwise known as laptops, are a very popular class of computers. They’re portable and convenient, but not as powerful as desktops because of their power and size limitations. Making something very thin means it can get hot if too powerful of hardware is put inside and cooling is not adequate. Because of their small size, many components for notebook computers are often custom-made for their specific model, meaning they’re much more difficult and expensive to repair should the need arise. For this reason, laptops are typically much more expensive than traditional desktop machines for equivalent amounts of performance.

This being said, oftentimes notebooks are not necessarily used for heavy tasks. Many notebooks are sold for school or office purposes, where primary tasks will be completing administrative-like work such as word processing, spreadsheet editing, and creating slideshow presentations. For these purposes, laptops are fantastic and offer a great proposition of functionality paired with portability and ergonomics.

Desktops

The one that birthed them all. The pinnacle. The “big boy”. The desktop is the original computer form that we all recognize, and love it or hate it, it likely isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Desktops are stationary and therefore inherently less convenient than the others, but because of their stationary nature, you get a much larger display (even multiple displays if you so desire) and much more power at your disposal. Desktops are expandable and easily repairable. They can be outfitted to play games, edit videos, store terabytes of data, and yes, they can play Crysis.

But what is the future of the desktop, and why hasn’t it died yet when just a short decade ago journalists and industry experts were saying the writing was on the wall for the desktop form-factor?

The future of the desktop is bright and sunny. There’s a reason why schools and businesses and corporations still rely on desktops, and that’s the ease of use and recognizable. It’s so easy to walk up to a desk, press a button, and be on your way to productivity. No chargers to carry around and fuss with. No fragile screens to worry about getting cracked or smudged. No sticky thighs or fans that sound like a 747 jetliner is taking off on your lap. A desktop can easily grow with you over time, and that’s why it’s still the industry standard for computing.

Which is the Best?

In my very unofficial opinion, it’s still hard to beat a traditional desktop. I find myself going to my desktop whenever I need to get any real work done. Something about a notebook strikes me as very distracting -- maybe it’s the smaller screen size or the occasionally oddly lain-out keyboard. With a desktop, I can sit down, get done what I need to get done, and then leave. It doesn’t infiltrate my life as my smartphone does, and it’s not trying to be anything else like a tablet. It is pure computing, pure productivity, through-and-through. It’s an appliance more than anything else, and there’s something very romantic about that for me.

If you’re looking to replace your desktop or laptop, be sure and shop above, and if you have any questions at all, reach out and we’ll help you choose what’s right for you. 

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