As a follow-up to my “new computer” thread, I am considering getting a laptop (with a separate monitor, keyboard, and mouse) instead of a full-blown desktop.
Pros for laptop:
I can keep it on my desk, rather than on the floor
Presumably cheaper
Pros for desktop:
Not stuck with the laptop’s video processor - but don’t laptops with, e.g., GeForce 970 graphics exist?
The DVD drive in a laptop can be a pain to access
Can have two hard drives (e.g. a 500GB SSD and a 2 TB “normal” drive), which I don’t think would fit in a laptop
I have a laptop and a docking station (which connects the laptop to my monitors and has extra USB ports) at work, and don’t have a problem with it, but then again, I’ve never tried playing Elite Dangerous or Kerbal Space Program on it.
Does anybody with gaming experience with a laptop-based system want to weigh in on this?
The best question to ask is, do you NEED the portability of the laptop? If not, I’d strongly push toward a desktop. You will get better bang for your buck with a desktop as far as performance goes along with cheaper maintenance and greater upgrade capacity. Many years ago, I bought a laptop thinking I’d use the portability a lot, and it was nice for grad school and working on projects, but after that, it almost always just stayed in the docking station. Ever since then, I’ve built desktops, and even if I didn’t build them myself, they’d still be a lot cheaper for the same level of performance.
Really, in my view, the niche for laptops is disappearing. If you need something powerful for gaming, video processing, etc. you’re most likely better off with a desktop. If you’re not doing anything that requires a lot of power, you’re probably better off with a tablet, because they’re even cheaper and they pretty much anything a laptop can, especially with those portable keyboards and tablet docking stations. Hell, if I wasn’t still doing some gaming, I’d swap entirely to a tablet only.
ETA: And if portability isn’t the thing, if you want a laptop for space, they make compact desktops that offer probably even better space saving than a laptop while still having most or all of the benefits of a mid/full tower.
I go the laptop route, mainly so that I can have the same computer at home and at work. I use a USB->VGA connector to get a third monitor because laptops rarely (if ever) support multiple monitor ports.
The laptop is more expensive than a desktop. Not necessarily by a lot of money, but probably 25-30% more. (For example, in my cheapo price range, I bought a $500 laptop. A slightly better desktop, with equivalent 17" monitor could be had for $400.)
Performance is not an issue for me because I’m using office, accounting and web apps. The games I play (when I do, rarely) are all old anyway.
I suppose laptops have a little edge on power savings. If you’re the type upgrading your CFL bulbs to LED, then you might care about that.
Really, the laptop’s advantage is portability. That one feature is either going to make it an obvious choice or an expensive compromise in features.
It’s what I’ve done since 1998 and I’ve been happy with it for 3 different generations of laptops since that time. I run up to 3 total screens (two external monitors plus the built-in), external mouse, a seriously tanklike external keyboard (Apple ADB Extended Keyboard II aka “Saratoga”, plugged in via ADB to USB adapter). On the road, of course, it’s all laptop mode, WiFi and built-in stuff only.
I probably have the same USB adapter that dracoi uses for my 3rd screen (VillageTronic?) but if not, then it’s a close competitor.
I don’t use it for games or spend a lot of time doing digital video editing or rendering 3D objects with lots of textures. With 16 GB of RAM and a 1.3 GHz multi-core i7 it’s got enough oomph to do what I ask it to. And wherever I am, there’s my office, all my files and apps where I need 'em.
Okay, that’s top end, but I hope you get the picture.
You’ll get far better bang for your buck by getting a desktop. It’s more configurable, more upgradeable, and you can mix and match components to best suit your requirements.
The only reason to get a laptop is because you’re planning on moving it around a lot. The set-up you’re talking about has you paying twice for a screen and keyboard and a system optimized for portability, not power. If you do plan on using it on the road then obviously a desktop won’t really work but I can’t think of a good reason to use a laptop as a “in one place” computer. Laptops are more expensive than a comparable desktop in general and gaming laptops considerably more so.
It might surprise you to learn that many people do, in fact, put desktops on top of desks