Fish in a Laptop Barrel

[digitaldiscipline]

I make no bones about my general disdain for laptop computers, but that doesn't mean that I can't backhand industry pundits for being know-nothing blowhards when they talk about how wrong the consumer/market is for doing something completely unreasonable like, say, voting with their wallet.

Mr. Pitch, allow me to point something out to you, using large, friendly letters, the better to be seen on your beloved 10 inch netbook:

People buy what they want, not what you think they ought to buy.

I'm sure this comes as a tremendous disappointment, what with your incessant carping on weight (as you point out, "Many users don’t even think they need portability") and battery life (if they never leave the house, they don't spend much time unplugged, neh?).

"And because the family computer is now a notebook that travels around the house more than the globe, many consumers wrongly assume that they don’t need long battery life or light weight. They just don’t understand that, even on the couch, it’s inconvenient to be chained to an outlet or to use a system that’s too bulky to prop on your lap."

Dude, grow some fucking stones. If you're so bloody emaciated and suffering from muscular atrophy that the pound or pound and a half difference in weight between a 13" and 15" matters, maybe you should browse your scrawny ass over to ShrinkGeek to work on that problem. If unjacking a power cable from a quick-release port if you need to bring a recipe from the living room to the kitchen is too much of an imposition, I'd be more than a little surprised that you do your own cooking.

"Still others take the brain-dead position that bigger is always better. Unfortunately, many of them don’t realize that they aren’t gaining any screen real estate by purchasing this [15"] class of notebook. If you want a large screen system, either get a 17- or 18-inch notebook that has full HD resolution or, better yet, spend $150 on an external monitor you can use when your notebook is on your desk."

The casual user is apt to have older eyes, Mr. Pitch; the larger screen with lower resolution might simply be more comfortable and easy to see, but I doubt that crossed your mind. I, personally, were I forced at gunpoint (which, incidentally, is about the only way to make me consider this scenario) to use a laptop in lieu of my tower, would absolutely opt for the biggest damn screen I could lay my hands on. As for your suggestion of attaching a monitor to a laptop, weren't you just bitching not five paragraphs ago about how much portability ought to matter?

Get your panties out of the bunch they're in because your favorite model has been discontinued, before I beat you to death with the chassis of an Alienware M17x, replete with extra battery pack.

Comments

[sskipstress.livejournal.com]

I have 2 laptops, and I'll probably never go back to towers. Of course, I don't play video games, edit audio or video, or render 3D animations, so I could probably switch to a netbook and have enough computing power for my every day needs.

I don't find it inconvenient to be plugged into the wall when using a laptop on the couch. Even before the super quick-release plugs they have now, it wasn't a big deal to unplug to move the laptop if I needed it somewhere else in the house. I have 2 power cords for each laptop. One for the couch and one for travel (even if travel means to the kitchen to watch a DVD).

I just hope that the laptop I use for prepping cards for my sewing machine never dies because I don't want to shop for or build a new computer that has a parallel port :)

I do have an external monitor, mouse, and keyboard for my laptop because sometimes I need more screen real estate and sometimes I want to sit at a desk not on the couch. I got these when I was taking classes and found I preferred to study at a desk. It came in handy when I worked from home 4 days a week, but I could have gotten the same set-up from the office if I didn't already have it at that point.

[etcet.livejournal.com]

I do game, and write for a couple of side jobs, so having the fullsize ergo keyboard and jumbo display are important. i loathe every pointing device i've ever encountered on a laptop - touch pad, keyboard clit, etc - i'd have to get a usb trackball and set it on the arm of my chair.

[sskipstress.livejournal.com]

I do miss the trackball on the laptop I had in college. I don't miss the greyscale display or the lack of built-in networking.

[etcet.livejournal.com]

True. I had a small desk at a former apartment, so it was "keyboard in lap, mousepad on cardboard box on arm of chair" until I finally got my first logitech trackman marble; I've used one ever since.

The nicest thing I've been able to say about any laptop I've ever used (an alienware m15x they sent me to review) is, "If I had to use a laptop, this one is okay."

[serpentstar.livejournal.com]

I went for the biggest damn screen I could find. :)

Basically in a laptop I want something very close to a desktop, but more easily portable. An hour or so of battery life will probably do, realistically.

If I want a smaller machine, it won't be a laptop/notebook -- it'll be a mobile phone, or something of similar size. Something that fits in a pocket or belt pouch.