On Thu, 10 Jan 2019 12:20:25 -0600, VanguardLH wrote:


The most likely upgrades are CPU, memory, storage, and GPU. Most users
never consider replacing the CPU in their desktops, so they end up
having to buy a whole new desktop instead of upgrading the CPU (which
may require a better motherboard, too). Memory and storage is an easy
upgrade in laptops and desktops. To me, tablets, smartphones, and
netbooks are disposable devices: you expect them to last only about a
third, or less, that of a desktop.


Yes, I agree. Laptops start out being more expensive than desktops,
and that makes them even more expensive.


When my desktop died several times (PSU, video card, HDD), I used the
laptop as a temporary PC but with a real keyboard, mouse, and monitor
attached. It was still far less that I was used to but it worked in a
pinch until I got the parts to fix the desktop.


I still have an old laptop I could do the same with. Or I could use my
wife's desktop.

But what I would most likely do is use my phone and do less for a
while, as I do when traveling.

As an example of what I mean, I do Usenet every day when I'm home, but
never when I travel.


Obviously I'm not going
to disconnect all the cables to my desktop and tote it around on a
vacation, so there are scenarios where portability is needed (assuming
you really need a computer while on vacation - bringing one on a hiking
or camping trip just degrades the experience).


I don't go on hiking or camping trips. I never did much of it when I
was younger, and I'm much too old now.


When travelling, a Chromebook is more than sufficient.

For me, as I just said in another message, my smart phone is
sufficient. And it's smaller and lighter than your Chromebook.

Yes, if you can tolerate single-finger tapping on a screen keyboard or
trying to emulate a mouse with your finger while having to view and even
smaller screen.


I'm not good at any of those things, and I hate doing all of them. But
as I said, I do much less when traveling, so I manage.


I got a smartphone with a large screen (LG V20) but
that also means having to tote around a larger smartphone. Yet a
Chromebook sitting on a table at the resort room is much easier and
quicker to use and easier on the eyes than using a smartphone. The
Chromebook goes on vacation with me but it really doesn't do much
travelling at the endpoints of my trips. The Chromebook sits in the
resort room while I tote along my smartphone.


I know next to nothing about Chromebooks so I have no opinion of them
and don't know whether I should consider getting one. How big and
heavy are they? How much do they cost?

How does their size and weight compare to a tablet? I used to travel
with a tablet, but my smart phone is so much easier to carry around
that, despite the difficulty of using it, I greatly prefer it.


I'm sure there are folks that cannot afford both a Chromebook, laptop,
or netbook to use on their vacation (and yet they can still afford to
vacation), so a smartphone is probably sufficient. However, these same
folks will be buying cheap and slow smartphones with little memory and
tiny screens. My car came with a scissor jack and nut wrench (which I
replaced with an x-wrench to help spin on/off the lug nuts). That's
okay for rare-time use when away from home. In my garage, I use
jackstands, ramps, and a hydraulic jack - but I'm not toting all that
when I drive the car away from home.


I'm too old and frail to change a tire these days. If I get a flat, I
call service.


Not to mention that it's very difficult to travel with a monitor,
keyboard, and mouse.

True for the monitor but a 15.6" screen is still pretty good when
vacationing and a hell of a lot better than the screen in any
smartphone.


Of course. But again size and weight are very important to me when
traveling, particularly on an airplane, which is what I mostly travel
on.



Of course, all the points about serviceability and upgradability are
moot for the majority of users. Those are not the vast majority of
consumers. They don't visit here. They buy and later buy again to get
something better. They don't upgrade and few do repairs.


Yep! I agree. They are important to me, but not to everyone.