Desktops arent selling

[Romphotog]

Just saw an article that mobile devices and laptops have overtaken PC desktops, which aren't selling.
Looks like people just love to walk around and bump into people while texting or doing face time on the bus just 5mins away.

I sure wont be taking my new 15.6" laptop to Central Park or the beach or vacation or even to the café; nope I am leaving the baby home. But, then what do I need a portable device for if I don't port anywhere with it? Perhaps I should've bought a desktop to keep home and a tablet to play with on my subway commute or travel with?

[Albert]

A laptop kinda does help, even if you’re only bumping around the house. That’s my opinion, at least; you’re not confined to one desk/table/area.

[coolcolors]

Each has pros/cons to each…laptop is about portability on the go … and desktop is about power users especially Gamers. Regardless I have a Desktop Gaming Rig and Laptop standard graphics and gaming graphics so I can pick and choose what I decide to use. As to the sales…that hearsay unless we have some concrete numbers from unbiased independent source to know which is selling better or not. I can get more bang for the buck for Gaming Desktop then Gaming laptop but also upgradablility will make Desktop last far longer then laptop when new tech arrive. Also the cost if you choose a Gaming Laptop vs Desktop Gaming the Desktop will outpace the Laptop for Power and Graphics upgrades.

[UTR]

Hardware has gotten to the point that even a low budget tablet with Windows 8.1 on it can function as a desktop, power wise, for most people. While hardware has advanced, most people still use computers for the same stuff they did ten years ago. That “stuff” doesn’t take hardly any more computer power than it did ten years ago. Heck, plug a monitor, keyboard and mouse into a Windows tablet and it will function quite well as a desktop for most people. I think we are quickly moving toward a point where one computing device will be the basis for your desktop, laptop, tablet and maybe even mobile phone.

[Kerry56]

There are still a few of us out here with a need for a powerful computer. In my case, video encoding is the primary incentive for a fast, capable desktop. For most things, my 3570K cpu is overkill, and handles H264 encoding fairly well. But for the newer video codec, H265, it is dog slow, and this will push me to building a newer machine sometime next year.

No one is going to make money selling new desktops to the amateur level video enthusiasts though. The gamers are a much bigger market, but even they aren’t enough to make more than a blip on the sales ledgers. Business computers are the primary focus for Intel and all the other hardware manufacturers, but as noted, that market is saturated.

I’d say that for anyone who hasn’t already made their mark and gained a good foothold in the mobile markets, the future is bleak.

[philamber]

If you’re not into high end gaming and are willing to wait for video conversions (i.e. let them run overnight or while you’re at work) there really isn’t much point to a clunky fixed desktop any more.

[Kerry56]

^Last year I decided I’d try encoding a complete Blu-ray movie into a smaller H265 file. My equipment is nowhere close to cutting edge, but still plenty fast for most things. It was going to take 31hrs to complete that task…that’s over my patience limit. H265 is truly a different beast.

And then think about 4K resolutions and H265. I don’t know how many days that would take.

[coolcolors]

If people just surf web and youtube and FB then a everyday laptop would work fine but if you do video, audio, conversions then you will need something with more juice and that is where Desktop comes in handy. But also Desktop has more storage space for HDD/SDD compared to laptop should one need more space. I have a Desktop for everyday usage and laptop for on the go road and Gaming laptop when I need to and my Desktop has Gaming specs should I go gaming on it as well. So each tech fills the niche they work with. We all need to remember the Desktop is what made everything else possible from writing programs for Iphone/Android to designing the autos and products we use. Laptops even the most powerful can’t compete at that level.

[Dee]

While desktops are not going away soon, their days are numbered. The amount of movies that I convert these days are few and far between, so there isn’t the need as there once was for mega powerful desktop PC’s.

We have a smart TV, and generally just stream movies from the likes of Netflix. If the smart TV doesn’t have an app for a streaming service, then I simple stream it to an Android phone, and cast the stream to the smart TV.

Movies that I do have converted are streamed across our home network via an Intel Atom based server to the smart TV or anything else connected to the network.

If we buy a movie on BD, then I don’t even bother making a backup, as not a single BD movie disk has failed.

I still need a desktop PC, and will try and get hold of an Intel Skylake CPU and build a new system around that when Skylake launches soon. Skylake is said to support hardware encoding and decoding of H265, so that will be interesting.

[cholla]

I plan to buy or build a desktop for my next computer.
That’s a couple of years from now for me.
Maybe the Intel Skylake CPU will be in some of the already built computers by then & I will buy one of those.

I have considered building a mini HTPC but I haven’t.
I don’t have a Smart TV . I do have one that USB from a hard drive plays well on.
That is how I watch most movies but I still also use a DVD player to watch a lot of movies.

[coolcolors]

[QUOTE=Dee;2756908]While desktops are not going away soon, their days are numbered. The amount of movies that I convert these days are few and far between, so there isn’t the need as there once was for mega powerful desktop PC’s.[/QUOTE]

Laptop can’t hold the amount of data need to store is one reason Desktop won’t go away any time soon. Try putting 13 HDD/SDD in a laptop? That isn’t going to happen.

[QUOTE=Dee;2756908]We have a smart TV, and generally just stream movies from the likes of Netflix. If the smart TV doesn’t have an app for a streaming service, then I simple stream it to an Android phone, and cast the stream to the smart TV.[/QUOTE]

Streaming is for the dreamers that have FIber or no drops or throttle in their internet or those that can get Broadband. We have to remember not everyone everywhere has Broadband-some still use dial-up still.

[QUOTE=Dee;2756908]Movies that I do have converted are streamed across our home network via an Intel Atom based server to the smart TV or anything else connected to the network.[/QUOTE]

I just use the good old trust BD/DVD standalone player to watch my movies.

[QUOTE=Dee;2756908]If we buy a movie on BD, then I don’t even bother making a backup, as not a single BD movie disk has failed.[/QUOTE]

Well Media based movies are more reliable then they used to be and if you get a bad copy just go back and exchange it.

[QUOTE=Dee;2756908]I still need a desktop PC, and will try and get hold of an Intel Skylake CPU and build a new system around that when Skylake launches soon. Skylake is said to support hardware encoding and decoding of H265, so that will be interesting.[/QUOTE]

The problem is all the programs and apps that everyone uses-was written and tested on a Desktop based computer in one form or fashion before it’s release to the public. That is what alot of people seem to discount without the Desktop we wouldn’t have all this wonderful programs and apps we use on a daily basis and not realize it. And Servers(Cloud) are Desktop based computers not Laptop computers so that is why Desktop will not go away the way of the Dinosaur and will remain with us for long time to come. Oh yeah I have Full Tower Desktop as well to hold all my needs as the Tower is also my Archive Desktop as well keeping all my docs in one central place to access and use in my Network.

This is my OP ed but will stand the test of time. Without Desktop everything we take for granted today wouldn’t be here.

[QUOTE=cholla;2756909]I plan to buy or build a desktop for my next computer.
That’s a couple of years from now for me.
Maybe the Intel Skylake CPU will be in some of the already built computers by then & I will buy one of those.

I have considered building a mini HTPC but I haven’t.
I don’t have a Smart TV . I do have one that USB from a hard drive plays well on.
That is how I watch most movies but I still also use a DVD player to watch a lot of movies.[/QUOTE]

I recently rebuilt mine with Asrock Extreme z97 already this last summer so I won’t need do so anytime soon. I will upgrade my GPU but memory is 16gigs and 256gig SSD and 14 - 3tb HDD is plenty of usage for my needs. I might upgrade my CPU from i5 to i7 if cost permits. As for streaming my Desktop is the NAS HomeGroup network so I can access and watch it that way already. Upgrading can be a costly venture to do especially when you have to budget your cost.

[philamber]

[QUOTE=Kerry56;2756890]^Last year I decided I’d try encoding a complete Blu-ray movie into a smaller H265 file. My equipment is nowhere close to cutting edge, but still plenty fast for most things. It was going to take 31hrs to complete that task…that’s over my patience limit. H265 is truly a different beast.

And then think about 4K resolutions and H265. I don’t know how many days that would take.[/QUOTE]
Hmm, 31 hours? Would probably take 3 days + on the faster of my laptops; think I’ll pass on H265 for the time being.

[G_Ivan_Awfulitch]

It is really hard to get 7 to 10 BD/DVD burners into a laptop. LOL

[MJPollard]

For most people, who mostly surf the web and send/reply to email, a tablet will do just fine. Some tasks, however, will still require the power and flexibility of a desktop computer (or a laptop). Video editing and conversion, as others have pointed out, is one. Another is software development. You simply aren’t going to be able to write and compile software on a tablet with anything close to the ease of a desktop PC. I have a 16GB Core i7 screamer with a 2TB drive (data) and a 250GB SSD (Windows and apps), with a Linux VM set up so that I can compile custom Android OSes (just getting my feet wet there). There’s no way I’d ever be able to do that on a tablet!

[tmc8080]

When considering the real uses for a desktop (and laptop)… you have to think about what your going to use the machine for… encoding video? gaming? media server? htpc? That would determine if you really need one or how expensive the specs might be…
There are still great reasons to have a PC… most of us understand that, but can’t deny that more and more functions of the PCs from 10 years ago are being usruped by hand-held tablets & phones. Another complicating factor is that our assistive tech accessories are now vastly improved computing devices in and of themselves. Everything from routers, to hard drive arrays, to voip boxes, smart tv and/or media set-top boxes are virtual mini PC’s in and of themselves.

So, with all that great technology being computer devices… the question needs to be delved into deeper… how MUCH PC do you actually need? When I keep revisitng this question, my answer is not as much as most might think. An i5 quad core (~3ghz) with 8gb of ram is plenty… the additional specs of HDD and graphics depend on need as well… 2tb is perfect for a system hdd. If you need more space you buy another drive. As for video… I ponder one day I might buy a 4k screen and NEED a 4k video card… but I’m not an early adopter here… It is common knowledge with the way Asia export goods… it will be difficult to not upgrade equipment when prices are in the clearance range… and those specifications will be plenty good for a decade (or until the product dies, or becomes obsolete).

I run my PC less than 5 hours on the days I actually use it… and then it is deluged by software updates… ugh! The traditional tower case model of pc’s might be going the way of the dinosaur… I say this because computing technologies have been ACCEPTED by the consumer. No longer is it an obscure geek domain. The killer app of HD & UHD video will take the pc from a personal computer to a thin client model supporting a TV instead of a monitor— so the caveat is traditional PCs are seeing a downswing… because something is coming along to replace it… and I bet it’s the thin client pc… and we will be able to do the same computing in that thin client space. We already see this with i5 and i7 NUC computing… that have 2gb video memory cards built into the m/b or are mini pci-e slot addons. Somewhere between the tower case & the NUC is the THIN CLIENT pc… basically 1/2 to 1/3 the size of a traditional mid tower case (17" x 20" x 8")

[Dee]

Sadly, the consumer desktop market is driven by the masses, not by a tiny minority of [B]us[/B] enthusiasts, who want a powerful PC, or indeed build one ourselves.

The fact is demand for desktop PC’s is in decline. That reduces the incentive for people like Intel to invest in desktop PC technology. There are already rumours going around that Skylake will be the last consumer grade CPU to be packaged as an LGA part, and that future parts may only be available in an BGA package (laptop package).

It’s certainly possible to build a desktop PC from a BGA packaged CPU, but that will probably mean you can no longer purchase a CPU and a motherboard separately.

[Zod]

I still prefer a PC (and sometimes a laptop). The things that makes me buy less it the tech seems to be evolving slower. I just hit 4 years with my current PC and still feel no need to replace it. The PC before this made it 4.5 years before I got frustrated. This one will probably last longer. There used to be a time I was upgrading every 2 to 3 years.

[blackened2687]

It’s certainly possible to build a desktop PC from a BGA packaged CPU, but that will probably mean you can no longer purchase a CPU and a motherboard separately.

I should also note that BGA technology is much less reliable than “traditional” types of microchips packaging (TQFP, PGA, LGA).