[Intriguing Alias]

Thought it would be interested to see what people use most for general computing. Whilst this was mainly to see the laptop/desktop divide - I imagine there are a few who barely use either so I've included a tablet and smartphone option.

By 'computing' I mean everything you do usually whether that's internet browsing, gaming, word processing, working, design and so on.

If you use 2 things pretty much equally, which would you say you PREFER?

And feel free to discuss pros and cons of each in this thread, but let's not have an all out 'laptop vs desktop' war (or any other flame war for that matter)

[Daniel_R]

Desktop I prefer by far, they just so easy to use at the speed I like to use computers at.

[Gofre]

Currently a Nexus 7, although that will be changing whenever the desktop Macs get refreshed.

[mangoh]

Word Processing on a Smartphone

[mr_connery]

Laptop mainly. If I could afford it I'd get a desktop as well, but I'm broke.

[Manitude]

Laptop. Wouldn't mind getting a desktop, only I don't really have anywhere to keep it at home as I don't have a desk. Plus my desk space at university is not ideal.

[txo]

Laptop. I hate desktops because it's so much more comfortable to use a laptop as you can take it wherever. I'm currently sat in bed on my laptop.

[BoringComputerGuy]

Desktop.

[Intriguing Alias]

(Original post by txo)
Laptop. I hate desktops because it's so much more comfortable to use a laptop as you can take it wherever. I'm currently sat in bed on my laptop.

Hmm you see I'm the other way round. I find using a desktop a much more comfortable experience. This is partly down to the technological 'comfort' I have like having a better keyboard, mouse, larger screen etc. rather than seating comfort (but my desk chair is pretty good anyway). I sometimes turn my monitor, plug in my Xbox controller and lay on my bed to use my desktop though.

Also my desktop is crazily smooth to use (as in when I click something - it has opened, no waiting) and I get to play the aforementioned games with brilliant graphical fidelity. I guess my geekiness leans me towards desktops - I assumed laptop would win this but be quite close on the tech forum.

If I posted this on a different part of the forum I'm sure laptops would have a landslide victory in this thread.

[jack_the_king]

I got one of each because i ball HARD.

[Ice Constricter]

Smartphone

[DontWantYourBloodMoney]

I might be one of the only people who doesn't get the hype of the smart phone. I got one (a HTC something or other) because my old phone's contract ran out and it's left me unimpressed. I mostly use a laptop that can't survive battery power in my home, then a netbook at uni.

[cesca42]

Laptop. I like being able to take it anywhere in the house, and my desk's pretty small so I usually end up working on the floor/on my bed/in the kitchen/ on a random sofa.

I also stream music a lot on my laptop and tend to listen to that rather than my iPod when I'm at home, so a laptop is useful because it means I'm not restrained to my desk when I'm listening to music through headphones and want to read in the living room or something.

Oh, and I use it for watching DVDs in bed because I don't have a TV in my room or anything. It's a tad harder to do that with a desktop :P

Second would be my smart phone, I use that quite a lot for reading emails etc...

And I only use the desktop for iTunes now, sometimes photography.

[DannyR2811]

I have a selection, Smart Phone, Tablet, Desktop, Netbook.

Use all as much as each other, the desktop sits at the end of my bed connected to my tv, meaning I can watch films and do more demanding tasks. Netbook, used mainly for Web Browsing and taking to my dads house. Tablet, well its more of a novelty as I was given it, but its handy when you go in the garden and on holiday, except I've cracked the screen so need that to be replaced by Blackberry. Smart Phone, well just e-mails,data,calls,texts,BBM

[und]

I prefer the comfort and speed of a desktop, but I'm looking into ultrabooks because two monitors, speakers, a keyboard and a mouse take up far too much space on my medium sized desk, and I don't need the power of a desktop computer these days as I don't game or edit videos/photos.

[Beatlemania]

My desktop... I built it myself to my specifications/what I wanted. Use it for everything.

My laptop is a backup. Used if we have a power cut (always have the battery charged) or if I go away for a few days.

[firegalley246]

First starting university - desktop only, for uni work.

Middle of university - desktop and netbook, for doing work on the go.

Start of postgraduate - laptop in the office (because the IT department have draconian rules on computers that they supply to our offices), netbook at home.

Now - laptop in office, desktop at home (for playing games).

[Darkphilosopher]

Desktop without a doubt.

[Alexander94]

Use a netbook for day to day surfing, because it is light and I get 12 hours battery out of it. I have a laptop but it is so big and heavy and the battery is so shot on it I use it like a desktop... it is currently hooked up to a tv as a screen. I then have a desktop, which I am attempting to fix at the moment, my brother built it, then stole the majority of the components out of it. Once that is fixed it will be my main machine, particularly because I can put 4 monitors on it, and I am going pretty blind ¬¬

[Bhumbauze]

I use desktop, laptop and smartphone.

Desktop wins hands down. Faster by a mile than any laptop going, and with a 24" monitor... I find it difficult to handle having less screen real estate. Even on a standard 15.6" laptop screen it's not really practical to have more than one application "in view" at a time and I just feel... claustrophobic? Especially when doing web admin stuff... I like to be able to see the browser, have FTP running plus a local folder open for drag'n'dropping, usually photoshop open and probably WinAmp hiding in a corner somewhere too.

Plus I do enjoy a bit of gaming... ...