What to Buy, a Notebook or Desktop PC?

Features
By Marcel Binder
published

Portable Multimedia Machines or Desktops?

The performance capability of notebooks has been increasing for years: in many respects, mobile computers no longer lag behind their desktop counterparts. When purchasing a new computer these days, many users wonder whether a bulky tower CPU is even necessary, given the advantages of a notebook.

If you decide to purchase a notebook, performance is often not as decisive a factor as design, or various additional functions such as wireless capability or the ability to eject CDs when the notebook is turned off. Even if such features tempt you to buy, it pays to keep a cool head, because when compared to desktop computers, notebooks can be difficult or impossible to upgrade. You should consider the hardware very carefully, to ensure that it meets all of your needs.

If watching movies on the go is important to you, then a DVD-ROM drive and a sizable screen are musts. In this respect, notebooks with 17″ screens are considered the cream of the crop. Now that Blu-Ray has won the exhausting format battle to become DVD’s successor, we can expect to start seeing a large number of notebooks equipped with Blu-Ray drives. However, playing such high-resolution video material puts even higher demands on the hardware. Intel has already responded, and in the course of introducing mobile processors in its 45 nm manufacturing process, has also rejuvenated its mobile computer platform (Santa Rosa). These modifications have also improved the playback capabilities of high-resolution video material (see also article: Notebook comparison: Penryn vs. Merom).

Manufacturers are reacting to these changing circumstances in the notebook market sector. Acer, for example, has produced various models optimized for multimedia use, to attract customers. The 6920 and 8920 series boast 16″ and 18.4″ displays respectively, and promise complete viewing satisfaction in full HDTV resolution. However, performance like this comes at a price: interested buyers have to reach deep into their pocketbooks. The smallest model in the 6920 series costs $1,855.13, while the largest 8920G-934G64BN model is tagged at a whopping $2,937.30.

But is it really worth it to anyone to pay so much for a notebook? What could you get if you were to invest an equivalent sum in a desktop? The following article will address these questions.

Marcel Binder
Marcel Binder
27 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Oakley707
    How does Tom's computer for 1850$ actually cost 1850$? Seems much lower than that... a 8800 gts (320 meg...?) seems weird!
    Reply
  • spearhead
    with the desktop you could get an even better card then 8800gts 320mb for the cash. 8800gt or 3870x2 and such could give you an advatage for 1850 i could build a far better system and that is true. if not for the graphics notebooks these days are great. they only need to get some upgradebility of the mxm module for us costumers for acceptable pricings then we can more to more mobile solutions. we just want more gaming power for lower prices :)
    we shall soon see faster mobile solutions. the hybrid graphic solutions of the puma platform might offer good preformance for low pricing.
    Reply
  • njalterio
    Overall good article except...

    1)There was no mention of overclocking.
    2)The Tom's guide computer was poorly built for the price. I could easily have included a 3870 X2 and two more GB of RAM. No mention of what case was used....although that probably would not have significantly impact the benchmarks.
    3)Is there some kind of behind the scenes advertising here? Whats with the Samsung/Nvidia only usage? (Intel I can understand for obvious reasons)

    With two more GB of RAM, the 3870X2 (which I am certain would stay within the price range), and a good overclock the desktop computer would have wrecked that laptop in benchmarks!

    Would have been interesting to see a MacBook tested against these computers as well.
    Reply
  • coldmast
    8800gts 320mb? ~$120

    ROTFLMFAO

    give us a cost breakdown on each part of the system spec (desktop)
    are you including the display cost for the desktop (22"ers are at a great price point $200-$350)

    keyboard, mouse? $40-$120

    Desktop and NetBook
    Reply
  • Shadow703793
    spearheadwith the desktop you could get an even better card then 8800gts 320mb for the cash. 8800gt or 3870x2 and such could give you an advatage for 1850 i could build a far better system and that is true. if not for the graphics notebooks these days are great. they only need to get some upgradebility of the mxm module for us costumers for acceptable pricings then we can more to more mobile solutions. we just want more gaming power for lower prices we shall soon see faster mobile solutions. the hybrid graphic solutions of the puma platform might offer good preformance for low pricing.njalterioOverall good article except...1)There was no mention of overclocking. 2)The Tom's guide computer was poorly built for the price. I could easily have included a 3870 X2 and two more GB of RAM. No mention of what case was used....although that probably would not have significantly impact the benchmarks.3)Is there some kind of behind the scenes advertising here? Whats with the Samsung/Nvidia only usage? (Intel I can understand for obvious reasons)With two more GB of RAM, the 3870X2 (which I am certain would stay within the price range), and a good overclock the desktop computer would have wrecked that laptop in benchmarks!Would have been interesting to see a MacBook tested against these computers as well.Agreed.
    Reply
  • coldmast
    these article are always good but some lack proper depth,
    it would be nice to do a series of articles addressing different aspects.

    Cheap Notebooks vs Cheap Desktops

    Desktop Replacements {17"+ screen size} vs Workstations (CAD related)

    Designer Notebooks (Stylish & Elegant) vs Designer Desktops / media centers (Stylish & Elegant)

    and most importantly

    GAMING Notebooks vs GAMING Desktops @~$1500 ~$2200 ~$3000
    Reply
  • garydale
    I've been listening to talk about how notebook computers are catching up to desktop performance for decades now and it still hasn't happened. At any given price point, you can always get greater performance from a desktop system. That's not likely to change.

    However, several issues that weren't raised that should be. When a notebook breaks down, it's often cheaper to get a new notebook if its out of warranty. With a desktop system, just swap out the failed part and continue on.

    I've seen lots of notebook failures too. They just don't seem to be as reliable as desktop systems. Even rescuing the data following a notebook failure is a real pain. The HD interface keeps changing and doing a disk-to-disk copy from one notebook drive to another is impossible - notebooks can't handle two hard drives at once. This means booting from a Linux live cd with the drive you want to copy in a working notebook, then copying the files to an external (usb) drive or a network share.

    Students seem to think notebooks are great - very portable. Yes, and that makes them easy to steal too. If you know a student who wants a computer, do them a favour and get them something big and heavy.

    And how about ergonomics? The miniature keyboard with the screen positioned too low relative to your eye level is asking for problems. Then there is the built-in pointing device. Sorry, but there's a reason why they're not used on desktop system - a mouse simply works better.

    With USB keys going dirt cheap these days, get two or more desktop systems and keep one every place you normally do work. Use a USB key to transfer documents, or share them on the Internet. Of if you want to be able to move a system around, there are some very small desktop systems you can get.

    I'm not saying that notebooks don't have their uses. However, a replacement for a desktop system isn't one of them.
    Reply
  • That acer is uuuuuuugly.
    Reply
  • onearmedscissorb
    It's not hard at all to find a decent selection of very similar laptops with 8600M GT/9500M GS graphics, but with T9300 processors, for $1,300 to $1,400.

    So the laptop price isn't making sense to me, either, but I guess that evens it out some.

    If they're going to allow a budget of pretty much $2,000 and basically directly compare laptops to desktops, what they should have done is used a laptop based on desktop components, as that's what the decent ones tend to start at.
    Reply
  • dmacfour
    With $1850 you could get a laptop with a much better video card. $1300 will get you one with an 8800m GTS.
    Reply