Jox

September 09, 2009 at 2:30pm

There will always be a desktop PC in my home.  I wonder if the people who claim desktops are a dying breed are taking me into account?  I don't purchase prefabs.  If a Dell or HP machine ever enters my house it'll be because some member of my extended family has asked me to fix it for them.  I build all my machines (as I'm sure do most MPC readers).  Are our purchases being counted, or only the garbage sold at Best Buy and the like?

Unless you got an excellent deal on a clearance item (purchased for the kids, or an elderly parent), there's little reason to buy a prefab PC.

 

-Jox

Sina

September 09, 2009 at 7:16am

desktop is already dead.

 

pcmaximus

September 08, 2009 at 10:01pm

the desktop computer will never die.

i am sick of hearing all this negative talk about the pc.

since the beginning of pc's and mac's, i've been a loyal user gaming and doing everything and anything with them.

i for one will continue to support pc's, mac's and everything they represent to the best of my ability.

the consoles feel kiddy like to me, never cared for them...a friend of mine does but they make me yawn, boring.

MeTo

September 08, 2009 at 9:53pm

For me it's simple i like to go to the store buy a game bring it home install and play. Now with game makers paranoia (of pirates) they only want to have digital downloads of games or games that stream from there servers. I will have nothing to do with that and so i don't need that new fast computer. My old machine works fine for internet,open office,Audacity,FreeRip,DVD player and what ever. The only reason i needed to buy new computer's was to keep up with the new games if i don't buy new games i don't need new computer.

mattman059

September 08, 2009 at 7:38pm

If the desktop (and its components) (and that is a strong IF) do drop significantly in popularity and become seemingly irrelevant i would be really happy..and so would any hardcore gamer, i mean think about it....cheaper parts, better hardware, new games....add it up and you've got a recipe for awesomeness.

1337Goose

September 08, 2009 at 7:37pm

This is MaxPC, we all know that we're going to build desktops 'till the bitter end. However, the argument does have some merit. Desktops will likely never die 100%, but I can certainly see laptops taking up a larger share of the market in the near future.

Laptops continue to make strides in the categories of price, battery life, and weight (mobility). Think about it, 8 or 9 years ago, a laptop computer was totally incapable of even the most basic computing chores. In contrast, modern laptops are much more able. It's sometimes hard for us hard cores users to see what the average users sees. Average users generally ask questions like "Can I surf and use Microsoft Office on it?" or "Can I lug it around wherever I go?".

~Goose

n0ctis

September 08, 2009 at 6:50pm

 No, the desktop computer will not die out. How it interfaces with our ever-evolving mobile gadgets will change and, hopefully, improve; but, the desktop PC will not cease.

It seems to be a hack topic to cover (and many have, over the years) and I am disappointed to see it here.

________________________________________________________________
.: vires et honos :.

lhatten

September 08, 2009 at 6:20pm

This reminds me of the argument that because we have bicycles, cars are doomed. 

The gadgets we use now to access the internet are good for accessing email, and some limited surfing of the internet.  They are useless doing any kind of real work.  The industry I work in is software design & test.  The one thing we are always complaining about is not enough power & the displays are too small.  Our current minimum screen size is 24 inch, and I could use a 27 inch. 

Also, laptops work great for taking on a trip, but even with a docking station, it doesn't take long for the latest & greatest laptop to become too slow.  With a laptop the most you can do is increase the Hard disk size and add some RAM.  You best not wait too long to buy it or there will be none that will fit your "old" laptop. 

Even with the price of LCDs dropping, desktops with decent size monitors are way cheaper than an equivalent laptop.

Don't get me started about gaming!

Gailim

September 08, 2009 at 6:14pm

as long a people need powerful/cheap computers, desktops aren't going anywhere

I Jedi

September 08, 2009 at 5:57pm

"However, Matthew Wilkins, principal analyst for iSuppli, contends that
businesses will choose mobility over performance as they place new
orders."

 - So, in other words, he's saying that when companies place new  orders in the coming months and years, they'll choose mobility over performance/productivity? 

nsvander

September 08, 2009 at 5:16pm

I have a desktop, and a laptop, sure the laptop is nice, its portable, and I can browse the web from the couch, but it cannot do the things that my desktop can.  I cannot game with all the eye candy on a 30" screen, with out a major performance hit, it only has room for one optical drive, so coping from disk to disk is not possible unless I use an external usb.  Having a couple of terabytes of storage is not cheap or possible right now on a laptop.

erks

September 08, 2009 at 5:08pm

Well most apps are still single threaded today, like Microsoft Word. Who needs i7's 4 (or 8!!! with HT) cores? A single core or and old dual core easily run Word and Firefox.