Do people really need laptops?

[DesiPrinceX09]

Yeah Laptops are definitely useful. At first I thought they were useless so I held off on getting one till half-way through my first semester in college but my desktop got old and slow so I needed something new and better. Now that I have my own laptop that I bought myself (with leftover scholarship money), it's something I can call my own and I use it all the time. There is wi-fi where I work and there is alot of downtime so I can do something productive with the downtime as well as something fun like emulators and talking to friends so the day isn't so boring since my work day is quite long.

 

[braincore02]

Do people really need computers at all? Do people need games? Mmm?

As for whether people make use of the fact that their computer is portable, sure, people do, just not the ones you see typically, I spose. I have a laptop I use for electronic music composition. Back when I was in school I would pop it open and work on tunes in between classes, tho I would never use it during class. I guess I stayed old school with my paper and pens for note taking. Then on the weekends I would go to a coffee shop and work on music when none of my friends were around, and put it away when they showed up, and/or share with them what I'd been working on. Much nicer to work on my computer outdoors on a nice day rather than stuck in my room. Additionally when I collaborated with people it was really easy to take my gear to them. So, do we need them? No, not much in life is technically needed. Are they useful? Very.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

Well, I could drag a desktop and moniter with me to school and work, but that would really start to suck after about 5 seconds.


Speaking of need, think of how much you really NEED in life. Anything outside of food, water, clothing, and shelter is really debatable in terms of need.

 

[RanD00M]

Well the high school I'm going to next fall has this laptop program.It something where you have to have a laptop for certain classes.I personally don´t like the idea.But I guess I have to do it,since it as an experimental teaching method.

 

[maddawg IAJI]

Well, I enjoy them during down time. Heck, I'm typing this up with a laptop. And I am a bit clingy when it comes down to it, simply because without it, I'd have to sit downstairs with my brother and his friends while they played on the Xbox.

I don't use my laptop for anything other then entertainment. I don't bring it to school with me and I most certainly don't bring it out of the house with me. Right now, it stays in my room and it's only there so I don't have to buy a seperate PC.

 

[BehattedWanderer]

Yeah, I've got my engineering drafting software on here, in addition to all the standard office stuff for spreadsheets and papers. I use it to take notes, and I use it to do my drafting and modeling work wherever I go--and anything I don't have here I can remote access to, so that's an extra bonus. And then, while my junk runs its simulations, I can play a few games, or practice learning a new language with Rosetta Stone. I usually have two applications running work while I'm doing anything else. Not to mention its a great bonus to some classes to be able to look things up online while they're being discussed.

 

[Gigaguy64]

I can't lay in bed playing games with a desktop.

This and i hate it when my dad stares holes in the Monitor whenever im online.
i could be on the Google home page and he would still be giving it the Evil Eye.

I like my space, peace and quiet, and privacy.
Something i dont have enough of.

Once i get my own place ill probably get a PC but, i love my Laptop.

 

[TheLazyKnight]

I had to get a laptop because I move back and forth each weekend. Campus is dead on weekends, and I just go home.

 

[Ophiuchus]

I have a few consoles and a DVD player that require a TV to run, so a laptop would actually be a lot more awkward than my current desktop-running-through-the-same-TV-as-everything-else arrangement.

Actually, I did have a laptop in my first year at university, but it died in the first few weeks of my second year and I replaced it with said desktop 'cos it was much cheaper than an equivalent spec laptop.

 

[Tharwen]

Well, I'm dysgraphic, so I'd rather have a laptop for notes than paper. I currently don't need to take notes like that anywhere at the moment, though, so I keep my 2-year-old MacBook in my cupboard for when I need a Mac/a laptop/another computer. My iPhone is also almost as effective at internet usage as both of my computers, due to my school's proxy

 

[Dys]

I'm currently involved in a uni project wherein I have to design various parts using high powered software, and the uni computers are slow, difficult to get with the right software and generally inconvenient, so a laptop is a rather good idea (hopefully mine will arrive in a week, I've resisted getting one for as long as I could).

Yeah, I've got my engineering drafting software on here, in addition to all the standard office stuff for spreadsheets and papers. I use it to take notes, and I use it to do my drafting and modeling work wherever I go--and anything I don't have here I can remote access to, so that's an extra bonus. And then, while my junk runs its simulations, I can play a few games, or practice learning a new language with Rosetta Stone. I usually have two applications running work while I'm doing anything else. Not to mention its a great bonus to some classes to be able to look things up online while they're being discussed.

Apparently I'm not the only eng student who needs one for drawings and models

 

[DustyDrB]

I took my laptop in certain classes where the professor teaches faster than I can write; I type fast and I could make an audio recording. Also, my laptop (Macbook Pro) was invaluable for paper writing on the go. I wrote papers in the library, in hospitals when visiting family, and at friend's houses. I would have failed many paper-writing classes had I not had a laptop, as I find it impossible to do schoolwork in my living space.

Also, when I was leading a campus organization at my college, we used the office laptops heavily. We made videos and powerpoint presentations and hooked them up to the video equipment so everyone could see.

Also I do a lot of music recording on mine and it's incredibly useful to have those files when my friends and I have some jamming/songwriting sessions.

Currently, I take my laptop to different places to aid me in MCAT studying.

AND on long car rides when everyone else is sleeping, just pull out the lappy and watch some movies.

 

[siddif]

Well firstly i am typing this on my laptop as its my only computer...

though my main points would be that i need my laptop for college, be it taking notes, writing assignments and as im a media student its also used for editing movies in Final Cut, podcasts in Garageband and other related tasks.

Being a laptop this allows me to do any of these things in my classroom (which has WifI) and i can bring it with me to any room regardless of its a Mac or PC suite (as most rooms are PC and the media class use Macs for editing and my laptop is a MacBook) my laptop comes with me everywhere even if im not sure im going to need it i like to know i have the option of using it if i have free tome to do coursework.

Saying that though for time wasters like Twitter and Facebook along with emails (via Push) i find myself using my iPhone more for these things.

 

[Pimppeter2]

I don't have a laptop, I really want one. So that I can stay in my room and just get on here rather than have to go downstairs to do so. But still, for me at least, its pretty arbitraty stuff.

 

[GodofDisaster]

I decided to get a laptop, a few days ago using the money I got for my 18th.

So far I've been using it non stop, games, anime, escapist and I even watch a few dvds on it.

I also plan to bring it to university with me next year (If I get in that is.) Mainly due to theory work and to kill time during my breaks.

 

[BehattedWanderer]

I'm currently involved in a uni project wherein I have to design various parts using high powered software, and the uni computers are slow, difficult to get with the right software and generally inconvenient, so a laptop is a rather good idea (hopefully mine will arrive in a week, I've resisted getting one for as long as I could).

Yeah, I've got my engineering drafting software on here, in addition to all the standard office stuff for spreadsheets and papers. I use it to take notes, and I use it to do my drafting and modeling work wherever I go--and anything I don't have here I can remote access to, so that's an extra bonus. And then, while my junk runs its simulations, I can play a few games, or practice learning a new language with Rosetta Stone. I usually have two applications running work while I'm doing anything else. Not to mention its a great bonus to some classes to be able to look things up online while they're being discussed.

Apparently I'm not the only eng student who needs one for drawings and models

Sure aren't. AutoCAD, NX, MathCAD, Pandat...bleck they can eat up processing power at times.

 

[Nalgas D. Lemur]

I can't lay in bed playing games with a desktop.

Clearly you're doing it wrong, because that's what I do. I don't have room for a chair in here, so my bed is my chair, and I got a crazy robot arm [http://www.ergotron.com/Products/tabid/65/PRDID/351/language/en-US/default.aspx] to mount my monitor on a TV stand next to my bed so I can swing it over in front of me. So yes, I can lay in bed playing games just fine with my desktop, although I do usually at least sit up reclining instead of laying down so I can use the mouse better. Heh.

As far as laptops go, it's really annoying not having one right now, and I'm sitting on a pile of money waiting for the next revision of MacBook Pros to hurry up and get released already. I actually use my computer for Serious Business, so I couldn't really get away with trying to do crap on an iPhone or something. It's a massive pain in the ass to try to remote admin a server from a phone/PDA, and you can't exactly develop code on one, either.

I also always liked being able to chuck my old laptop in my bag and take it with me to band practice to record stuff or run instruments through it for real-time digital filters and things like that. It's just nice having a full computing environment with you with all your junk you use in a form that's easily portable and goes wherever you need it. And no, none of those 20 pound desktop replacement behemoths, either. I have a real desktop for that which cost me a small fraction the price of one of those and is faster. 12-13" is just right for lugging around everywhere, and you can get something fast enough to be useful in that size, unlike netbooks and cell phones.

 

[microwaviblerabbit]

I don't take my laptop to class, because I take notes on paper and in audio files (I record lectures sometimes.) However, I find my laptop gets a lot of use traveling between school, home, and other places. Also, my program means I move every 4 or 8 months to jobs or school. It is nice to have less to worry about, and it weighs a lot less.

That being said, I see people who buy really expensive laptops to do really cheap things a lot of the time. You do not need a macbook pro to check facebook. Also, laptops in lectures are pretty much never used to take notes.

 

[Acaroid]

I've noticed that lots of people buy laptops all the time, through various places and what have you. I go to college and when I look at what people do with their laptops I can generally summarize it as this:

-Get on Facebook, look at picture albums, make comments
-Check ESPN for latest sports news/scores
-Look at things you can't afford to buy (whatever your particular interests are)
-Watch videos instead of taking notes
-Reading blogs

Rarely do I actually see people in college taking notes on their class, they are always doing something else. I was given a laptop as a gift a year or two ago that's decent, but I have honestly used it maybe a dozen times. I just don't see the need to use it, because I summarize that all I'd do with it would be check email, look at forums - stuff I can do at home on my much faster desktop computer with a larger screen and better keyboard. I have an iPhone for checking email when I'm on the go and anything that strikes me as direly important I just get on the web with it to look.

I see other people cling to their laptops like they couldn't go without them but I feel like laptops are pretty much useless to me unless they can play games (and then they're expensive). That would be the only way I'd carry a laptop around everywhere. I don't ever see anyone typing papers on them and personally I wouldn't because their keyboards suck compared to a standard home keyboard. Never watch movies on them, I don't see myself as so entertainment starved that I need to watch a movie in between classes. I wouldn't take notes on them as my professors all draw stuff and then I'd have to keep paper notes for the drawings - I prefer to just write all the notes out. Some people seem like they take them to help them do professional stuff like compose music, create videos, etc but I again feel like there are too many distractions to do stuff like that on a laptop. To me, I find laptops to be basically useless unless they're able to play games and even then I dunno how much I'd actually use one to do that.

Anyways that's just what I think about laptops - my laptop has sat in its bag for almost 9 months now completely unused. I can understand people using a laptop in replacement of a desktop PC - one of those big kind that isn't super portable - but in supplement to my desktop, I almost never feel like using my laptop.

What is your view/opinion on laptops? Couldn't live without yours? Think they're useless? Think they fill a special place? I'm just curious what other people do with their laptops that they think makes them need it so much, I just can't find any use for mine and I feel that sure as I sell it I'll find a use for it.

This is funny as at our university our CAD tutor was talking about the same thing. The uni is moving towards a more laptop friendly environment and talking about getting rid of the CAD pools so all our work can be done in a more studio environment with laptops. Which is freaking stupid and everyone thinks so other than the uni and our class all agreed and pointed out the same thing you did, you do very little work on a laptop, you might as well buy a desktop and and iphone, because the iphone is a hell of a lot lighter than a laptop :|

Mind you I do own a laptop, but I got it cheap and well I do have a reason for it, I need it for my photography work. It is like a large portable screen I can take with me and do edits on site, and with my clients/models to see and well the tiny screen on the back of my camera is useless really for seeing if the shot is in focus etc. Really though, my GF uses it more than I do so she can plonk herself on the sofa and do her daily net habits, because it is more comfy than at her desktop LOL.