What Technology Do You Use and Why? Desktop, Laptop, Cellphone?

Mine - gaming laptop, gaming desktop (using partner's GPU now), phone. Laptop is general use, desktop is hooked to television now, phone is for general use. Also a XB360 and a printer. And a Raspberry Pi for school.

Partner - two laptops, desktop, phone(s), tablet. One is older laptop kept at home, another is a new work one, he has a newer phone but some older ones lying around, tablet is for stuff before sleep. Also a Switch, WiiU, Wii, Gamecube, SNES, yadda yadda. He's a Nintendo fan.

We have a lot of technology here in this 1-bedroom. If we expand to a 2-3 bedroom it'll help a lot. Some people enter our place and while its otherwise nice enough, they definitely see that its a home for two tech geek men.

This year I hope to replace my phone, and next year replace my gaming desktop with a better one and/or replace my Xbox with a PS4 Neo. Laptop should last me until after next year. I can use this one through my school years.

I pressure my partner to hide away most of his Nintendo stuff he almost never uses.

One desktop (Dell XPS8500) which has mostly become a file server. I used to use desktops all the time, now barely touch it.

One "laptop" (Surface Pro 3 tablet 2-in-1) for nearly everything.

One smart phone for everything else.

Also: Xbox One controls all my TV (I still use cable, but also watch Netflix on it), as well as gaming.

iPad

An iPad isn't a computer. It's a toy. We're all laughing at you now.

I should of stated IPAD too. You are right.

Tablet and smart phone.

What are the chances that this will be a highly entertaining thread, with parts two and three to follow?

Zero, R6.

Zero.

1. None of your business.

2. None of your business.

I'm pleading the 5th.

Guys, my laptop died this morning, please recommend me a good brand! Not Mac, for use at home.

I had a Sony vaio for 5 yrs and it was perfect but they don’t make laptops anymore!

[quote]Guys, my laptop died this morning, please recommend me a good brand! Not Mac, for use at home.

Really? After all the threads on this subject, you still don't even provide the barest necessary information for anyone to make an informed recommendation?

What is your budget? For what do you use the laptop primarily? Do you need to transport it easily or do you just move it around within your home?

Mid tower PC (Windows 10) connected to my TV monitor. I use it for internet, playing games, small office purposes (emails, writing letters, updating my calendar, etc.) and media center (listening to music, watching TV shows and movies).

Smartphone (Sony). Portable music player and phone.

R11, 2k is my budget, just for home use. Not Mac, intel processor is a must. I do play games. I am pissed that most laptops don’t have dvd drive. I’m an elder gay and like to burn cds. Is it better to buy one built in or buy the drive separate?

I need to know what brands to avoid! I don’t want to buy another one after 1 year. I will not be traveling with this, for at home only, desktop replacement laptop! Please help!

[quote]I need to know what brands to avoid! I don’t want to buy another one after 1 year. I will not be traveling with this, for at home only, desktop replacement laptop! Please help!

As far as it goes, among the bigger brand names. Frankly, you don't need to spend close to $2K for a computer if your needs are that limited. You are sacrificing a lot to get one with a DVD/CD drive, but they still do exist - HP Notebook 15.6-inch, Lenovo Ideapad 110, Acer Aspire E 15, Dell Inspiron 15 5000

Your best best is to go with one of the bigger brands - Dell, HP, Lenovo, Asus.

Make sure you get: 1. at least a core i5 processor - 8th generation (these have some features not present on 7th generation. with your budget, it's worth spending the extra minimal dollars for it). Even though it doesn't sound like you'll need it, get a quad core, not dual core. Also, don't get an "M" processor.

2. an SSD for the drive that boots the computer - preferably m.2 pcie nvme. You can have additional storage that is a standard HDD, but the faster boot times are huge. Make sure you get at least 1TB of total storage.

3. You can get by without a dedicated graphics care, but there's no reason to do so.

4. You probably can't get a 2-in-1 laptop with a DVD/CD drive. In any case, it's probably not worth the price premium unless you really to use it as a tablet. Same for touch screen - expensive premium for little value, imo.

If it were me, I'd look closely at Dell Inspiron and Asus VivoBooks as a starting point, then compare others like HP and Lenovo for value for money to pick a winner.

Thanks so much!!! Im using ur checklist!!! 😍

HP 17.3” probook 470 g5 Notebook

1.8 ghz intel core i7-8550U quad core

16GB DDR4 RAM

256GB Ple M.2 SSD

Nevidia deforce 930mx graphic card 2GB.

Gigabit Ethernet port

What do u think r14?

r16 -

I think you can find a better machine in two key areas:

1. the screen is only 45% srbg - that means that color reproduction is very poor (also, make you you get at least the 1920x1080 and NOT 1600 x 900). Additionally, it's only 220 cd/m2 - that means the screen is not that bright. Look for something closer to 300.

2. Nevidia deforce 930mx graphic card 2GB: While this may be fine - you may want to look for at least Nvidia 1050ti.

Again, both these suggestions will raise the price. So, find a price point that suits you relative to the tradeoffs you'll make. Right now, Nvidia video cards are either cheap because there are expectations that new cards are coming and they are unloading stock or expensive because of high demand - it depends on the specific card.

oh, one other thing.

if at all possible, look for a thunderbolt 3 USB-C port.

I use a laptop primarily. It's running Linux Mint. I care about Free and Open Source Software, and to some extent (a 4 on the 1 to 10 scale of privacy/pseudonymity/anonymity).

I use the phone only for geocaching, until a cheaper used Garmin is available, and for finding addresses of gas stations, post offices, restaurants and amenities while travelling.

Earrings

iCaftans

Atom/Celeron CPU low power devices, mostly:

HP Chromebox net-top (surfing, banking)

Lenovo Q190 net-top (runs hobby software)

Lenovo 120S economy laptop (writing, hobby stuff)

Homebrew Linux server (audio editing, playout & storage)

Kindles, ASUS tablet, tons of old netbooks, etc.

My primary machine is a desktop that I built. It's fast, reliable and easy to repair myself if necessary. It has an AMD FX-4300 processor and 16 GB of RAM. The operating system and other programs are on a 256 GB solid state drive. To hold my media, the computer has one 2TB hard drive, one 1TB hard drive, one 640GB hard drive, and one 500GB hard drive.

I have a Macbook Air I use when traveling and it has has overall low specs as they all do.

I don't like using my phone as my computer because of low storage and poor screen real estate.

I've decided to buy this one R17. Do you approve? I can't tell how bright the screen is etc...

HP - ENVY x360 2-in-1 15.6" Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 12GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive

HP has good rep? It's not gonna crap out after 1 year? I'm not gonna buy extra warranty that best buy sells. it's cheaper on amazon but they have price match so it should be ok. should i buy extra 2 year warranty for 250 bucks?

r24 - I think that it's a fine machine. HP are solid, though not spectacular, machines. Customer service and support varies, but is not generally considered "worst in class" by any means.

However, here are a few things you may want to consider:

1. it's a 2-in-1. You are paying a huge premium for that. Do you really need one.

2. It's a touch screen (which often goes with 2-in-1s). You are paying a premium for that, as well. Do you need a touch screen.

3. 4.5 lbs for a convertible 2-in-1 is very heavy, so will have limited use. (see #1 above). Also, these types of machines have notorious low key travel. If you're finicky about keyboards and typing, you may want to investigate this further.

4. 12 GB Memory is an unusual number. If you need more than 8GB, you should get 16 GB. 12 is just odd.

5. Screen. 77 percent of the sRGB spectrum and 186 nits of brightness. Screen specs like that are going to be meh color and brightness. It does not have discrete graphics, but you may not find that necessary. You're not going to watch movies or view pictures and be blown away.

6. Only 256 GB storage. that is very limited storage. That's what iPhones and iPads have. Of course, if you don't need more, why pay for it. A few HD movies would gobble that up pretty fast.

7. Ports are serviceable, so connectivity should be fine for most people.

iMac desktop, large iPad, and plus-sized iPhone. I use the iMac and iPhone a lot for work.

R25, thank you so so much for your help! I bough it and so far, I’m happy with it! Thank you!!!

It came with mcafee antivirus, is it good? I usually use norton.

I've been spoiled by my 34-inch screen all-in-one desktop, I only use the laptop for travel. The small screen gives me a headache.

Are all in one desktops good? What are the cons?

I have one PC, 2 laptops, 2 iPads, and an iPhone.

I have one personal desktop PC, one desktop PC that belongs to my company, a printer, and an iPhone. I have all the technology I need for the life I live. Oh, I also have a Roku hooked up to my TV, so I can watch streaming programs.

iMac, laptop, PS4, iPhone

The iMac Pro is on my wish list.

[quote][R25], thank you so so much for your help! I bough it and so far, I’m happy with it! Thank you!!!

Enjoy. There's nothing like getting a new computer with new components that have a little more zip in them.

[quote]It came with mcafee antivirus, is it good? I usually use norton.

Macafee vs. Norton - comparable in terms of functionality. Depending on the individual, one may have simpler/better user interface. The only real issue may be pricing. Beyond pricing and interface, the actual protection is will only vary at the extreme ends of usage - for example, constantly download questionable stuff. For the average user, there ought not be significant differences in protection.

As far as antivirus, the only real recommendation is do NOT use Kaspersky. It is not knee jerk anti-Russian hysteria. It is known to have backdoors built into it.

Avira is a free to use one that is quite good - the basic version is free, but is more than sufficient. Also, Malware Bytes serves a slightly different purpose, but is also very useful, as is CCleaner.

R33 you are super awesome!!!!

iPad is like pad Thai? Sounds good to eat.

I have a desktop, an iPhone X, an iPad, and a laptop.

Macbook and iPhone, just got Fire tablet because all I use it for is watching movies and TV shows on airplanes and for that Amazon is fine and 1/4 the price of an iPad. I have big ass 24" external monitor and keyboard I hook the laptop up to when I am at work or doing work from home.

How do we stop the location tracking? I used to have windows 8 but now have windows 10. I have location disabled in browsers but when I log into fab or other websites, they know my location! I don’t have my city listed anywhere online on social media