Saturday, April 20, 2013

Are desktop computers a dying breed?

Remember how I said it was time to take my old computer "out behind the woodshed and put it out of its misery"? Well, I did it; it's good and dead. Its replacement – a sleek, refurbished Lenovo laptop – cost only $320 and does everything I want it to do. Best of all, it's portable. (As you've probably discovered from reading my blog, portability is kind of a big deal to me.)

Unsurprisingly, I didn't even consider buying a desktop PC and probably never will again. How could I carry a desktop computer with me to the coffee shop, work, or on vacation? How would I make room on and under my desk for the tower, monitor, and other peripherals?

Figure 1. A photo of my new baby, a refurbished
Lenovo G570 laptop.
Of course, desktop computers do have plenty of good qualities. Purewal (2012) points out that desktops are usually less expensive and more powerful than laptops. Additionally, desktops are better for graphics-intensive games (Purewal, 2012). (This is not really an issue for me, since the most complicated game I play these days is the oh-so-addictive Words With Friends.)

Paul (2012), however, offers a different perspective and lists several "desktop killers," which include many of the usual suspects – laptops, tablets, smartphones, the Internet/cloud computing, and the recession. Google's Chromebook, a small, lightweight laptop that relies on cloud storage and a Web browser-based operating system, also made the list (Paul, 2012).

So are desktops a dying breed? Maybe. According to the Pew Research Center (2013), 61% of American adults owned laptops in 2012, just outnumbering the 58% who owned desktop computers. Sales statistics, however, look more grim for desktops: Baker (as cited in Paul, 2012) says laptops now make up 80% of PC sales.

What do you think? Are desktop computers still marketable today? Do you own a desktop, laptop, or neither?

References

Paul, I. (2012, January 23). Desktop PC killers: Past, present, and future. PCWorld. Retrieved from http://www.pcworld.com/article/248610/
desktop_pc_killers_past_present_and_future.html

Pew Research Center. (2013). Device ownership. Retrieved from http://www.pewresearch.org/data-trend/media-and-technology/device-ownership/

Purewal, S. J. (2012, October 9). 10 reasons why the desktop PC will live forever. PCWorld. Retrieved from http://www.pcworld.com/article/2011391/10-reasons-why-the-desktop-pc-will-live-forever.html
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5 comments:

  1. Kate JacobsonApril 21, 2013 at 9:21 PM

    I've owned laptops for the past 5 years. I didn't get one until my second year of college because I had more papers to write and I needed the portability of a laptop to write in peace and quiet. Prior to my first laptop, though, I did all my paper writing at the family desktop in the sitting room. Looking back, I don't know how I got anything done that way!

    The downside of owning a laptop, though, is that it seems like you have to replace them every 2 years or thereabouts. I finally have a Mac, which seem to be pretty hardy, so I'm hoping it'll last for longer than 2 years. I've always said that when I'm done with school I'll just get a desktop because, like you point out, they are usually cheaper, easier to fix, and more powerful than a laptop. But we'll see. If my Mac laptop lives a good long life, I may just stick with laptops. You can't argue with portability.

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    1. Michelle EwingApril 23, 2013 at 12:42 PM

      I somehow managed to keep my last laptop for almost six years, but for the last six months or so I had basically been using it as a desktop anyway because the keyboard stopped working. I am hoping this one will last just as long, but we shall see... :P

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  2. UnknownApril 27, 2013 at 6:24 PM

    I had both at one point, but when my desktop conked out on me a couple of years ago, I never bothered to replace it, as I rarely used it. I suffer from chronic back pain, so sitting in a chair for long periods can be unbearable. Laptops allow me to sit comfortably on the sofa while I work on a paper or watch funny cat videos on YouTube. So, for me, it's laptops all the way.

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  3. UnknownApril 28, 2013 at 8:50 PM

    Hi Michelle,
    I think that the desktop computer will fade away in a few more years and that the laptops, are on a rise, especially in libraries. I have noticed in the library where I am working how they are purchasing more laptops because they cost less and they can be carry anywhere in the library to be used by the patron. One problem to tackle is the security of the laptops in the libraries.

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  4. Angelica TorresApril 30, 2013 at 9:35 AM

    My first desktop computer was purchased in 1997 when I was in school. We had it for a while then I went to laptops and have not looked back. I now equate desktops with work/libraries and school.If you think about it, you want desktops in places where people cannot easily walk off with it. At work we just got 4 new computers for an archival project and they are all desktops since they are better for large data saving. Just like with most technology items they will still be around just nobody uses them, any the only attention they will get will be random pictures online with a tag lie of "Hey do you remember this?"

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