Are PC's a dying breed of computing?

I was watching the Gadget Show (mainly because of Rachel Riley and Pollyanna Woodward :wink:

) but they were talking about how the PC is not a viable option for anyone anymore. I'm disagreeing with them by the way. Then Jason showed us an extremely over priced £4000 I think AlienWare laptop with which he said that this can run games at the same speeds as a high end PC which got me pretty worked up seeing as you could build a much more capable PC for half the price of that. Heck, you could even put dual GTX Titan graphics cards for that price. The only trade off I can see is portability but I'd argue that a 18.4 inch laptop is not the most portable thing ever.

Anyone else agree?

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Reply 1

alow

Alienware is massively overpriced. And the powerful ones are almost as heavy as some towers :lol:

PCs are definitely not a dying breed.

Reply 2

Mr Tall

Anyone know where I could get a powerful PC for under 300 quid?

I don't need a screen or anything ... just the PC

Reply 3

simpletech668

Original post by Mr Tall

Anyone know where I could get a powerful PC for under 300 quid?

I don't need a screen or anything ... just the PC

I would say build one yourself. Depends on what you want the PC for because you can quite an inexpensive i3 processor which can do most tasks

Reply 4

455409

Original post by simpletech668

I would say build one yourself. Depends on what you want the PC for because you can quite an inexpensive i3 processor which can do most tasks

An i3 will set him back a quarter of his budget alone.

Reply 5

seaholme

For sure not for serious gamers, I imagine.

For me, maybe... I don't do anything that I need a PC for any more and all I care about is portability! I don't think it's going to die out, but the fact is a laptop is sufficient for most people and because you can lug it around, if you only have money for one, buying a laptop seems the obvious choice.

Reply 6

AdampskiB

Original post by simpletech668

I was watching the Gadget Show (mainly because of Rachel Riley and Pollyanna Woodward :wink:

Market stats do show that tablets > PCs, however a laptop is still a personal computer so if he said that the alienware laptop wasn't a PC he's a fool.

Reply 7

Reue

Laptops have awkward keyboards, prone to overheating, are difficult to upgrade/repair and much smaller screens.

I cannot ever see laptops overtaking desktops in either the business or gamer markets.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 8

Reue

Original post by AdampskiB

Market stats do show that tablets > PCs,

What do you mean by > ?

Reply 9

Мэтью

Original post by Reue

What do you mean by > ?

Tablets > PCs means that Tablets are greater than PCs.

Reply 10

Reue

Original post by Мэтью

Tablets > PCs means that Tablets are greater than PCs.

Yes, I know the mathematical term, however it isnt actually applicable in this instance without referring to a specific measurable point.

Reply 11

HugeBicepLAD

I would never trade my dual monitor PC setup for a laptop that is going to go out of charge in the middle of something combined with a horrible non-mechanical keyboard and a dodgy touchpad mouse.

I know I could plug these peripherals in but that's not happening.

PC > Laptop

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Reply 12

AdampskiB

Original post by Reue

Yes, I know the mathematical term, however it isnt actually applicable in this instance without referring to a specific measurable point.

Market stats, as in they're selling better versus personal computers. Suggesting personal computers are of dying breed.

Reply 13

simpletech668

Original post by Reue

Laptops have awkward keyboards, prone to overheating, are difficult to upgrade/repair and much smaller screens.

I cannot ever see laptops overtaking desktops in either the business or gamer markets.

I agree, definitely not the gamer market because as long as AlienWare keep selling over priced "laptops", PC gaming will not die. Until mobile processor are able to contend with desktop processors then I can't see a time where PC's are pretty much extinct.

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Reply 14

Jjj90

You're talking about gaming?

PC gaming is getting stronger and stronger, there are now more Steam users than Xbox Live users. PC's are clearly more economical too.

I think you're a bit behind the times frankly. 5 - 10 years ago it looked like PC gaming was on the way out but I can genuinely see it overtaking console gaming in the next decade. The gaming community on Youtube is ever growing and it has a real emphasis on PC gaming. The Steam sales are very appealing too, the thought of paying £40 for a game is ludicrous to me now.

So no.

Reply 15

simpletech668

Original post by Jjj90

That's exactly what i'm saying. PC's are not dying out as more people have more access to tutorials such as building your own Steam machine, more people are interested in it. If anything they're picking up pace for gaming.

For general everyday use PC's are pretty pointless but anything that requires heavy graphics like photo or video editing or gaming the PC is really the only viable option

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Reply 16

Pride

I think what's clear is that more and more people are looking to build their PC to get the most out of their money. Alienware is massively overpriced, but they kinda remind me of Apple products, in that though they're outrageously expensive, everyone knows that the specs and quality of their stuff will be good. I think they're the easy and safe option for those who just want to buy high-end equipment.

Reply 17

Shodann

mobile is the future but right now tablets can't replace laptops, and laptops can't replace desktops (the uber powerfull ones are too heavy to be mobile)

Reply 18

goldenfish

Original post by AdampskiB

Market stats, as in they're selling better versus personal computers. Suggesting personal computers are of dying breed.

That's because a pc can last someone many years, I've had mine for over 5 years. Whereas people are constantly buying new tablets as new models come out eg upgrading ipads or galaxy tabs.

Desktop pc's will never die.

Original post by Pride

For the price, alienware (and apple) have bad specs. You can easily build a pc that has the same specs to an equivalent apple product for at least 1/3 less in price, likewise with most alienware machines.
You're paying extra for the brand not the specs.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 19

Some random guy

While the PC market is growing smaller, the PC gaming market is increasing. The average non PC gamer has less need for a PC nowadays whereas there are now more PC gamers than before so that segment is growing.

Also as has been mentioned here, most people that want a PC already have one by now and PCs are lasting longer than ever, before requiring an upgrade or replacement. Whereas before not everyone had a PC and PCs were quickly becoming outdated or breaking down requiring replacement.

All this combined leads to lower overall PC sales.