Clueless Consumers Favor 15" Notebooks, Ruining Market

bbvdd2 said:
What a douche. What this bag doesn't seen to realize is that many people and businesses are opting for larger notebooks to replace a desktop. Less clutter, lower power consumption and if need be, portable.

I'll never buy a another laptop with a screen smaller than 17"
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And this is another consequence of the cheapening of the laptop market.

Docking stations and external monitors are apparently foreign concepts to people since the shit-tastic 15in mainstream laptops don't have any made for them.

Instead, people settle and compromise and wind up with the worst of both worlds.
 
computerpro3 said:
Seriously, people need to stop talking about power. My 14in laptop is faster than your 15in, and Lenovo makes 12in models that will destroy yours in everything except gaming.
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Actually, make that including gaming - you only have a 8400M.
 
FWIW i game on a Gateway FX series laptop, it's held up well since I purchased it in 2008 and I have no druthers and bebothers about getting another gaming laptop.

I also bought a hard drive dock for my laptop that has a Samsung 500 GB hard drive that I put in it that holds all my extraneous data that doesn't have to be on my laptop. That allows for me to run a neat lean mean machine.

I really have no complaints about my computing experience.

I do think that a desktop that is built to spec is truly a better computing experience for the gamer, but if you have no choice and you have to go places, then really all you can do is get a damn good laptop.

BTW, notebook review has a useful website and a great forum for finding out more information about laptops you might be interested in. it has a huge community that helps each other. I'd check that out if any of you are interested in purchasing a laptop of any kind, gaming or otherwise.

I am thinking about buying a new laptop next year since i think about 2-3 years is the shelf life of a gaming laptop, the parts become dated quicker than your average desktop, but if you buy the best you can afford, it lasts a lot longer.
 
So, consumers are wrong because they don't agree with industry analysts or nerds with their panties in a bunch? Now, if only we could outsource customers...
 
There are loads of cheap 15" notebooks, 12-14" models are generally more expensive. Joe Blow is only capable of thinking "why would I pay more for a smaller screen?"
 
This article embodies everything that's wrong with IT journalism, which I is mirroring regular journalism more and more. Instead of reporting on facts and actually understanding the products they talk about they have gotten so lazy and inept that all they can do now is tell people what they think they need or should buy.

I REALLY can't stand most IT journalism these days, factual error after factual error, shocking lack of knowledge of technology and in particular the technology they ACTUALLY cover and review.
 
I think 14.5" is the perfect laptop size/performance you can get right now. The reason netbooks don't sell more is because if I wanted to surf the web on a small screen I'll use my iPhone which I'd rather have then an almost useless 9" netbook. You get no performance out of super small / slim laptops and netbooks and the ones that do give you decent performance have crazy prices attached. I've never been a huge fan of laptops anyway since I can't build them myself!
 
I agree with the sentiment, but not with the "you're all stupid" tone.

I personally wouldn't want a huge laptop. My wife has an awesome 16" Toshiba with a decent graphics card, backlit keyboard, dual SSD+HDD, and a huge battery. It gets better battery life than my 12.1" HP touchsmart TX2 thanks partially to the huge battery.

But I prefer something more portable. I have my desktop for "real" usage and to-go, I want portable. Weight isn't hugely important, but size is. The laptop is really my wife's only computer, so she prefers big and powerful. Different requirements.

If only I could graft a backlit keyboard onto my TX2...but at least I can use the onscreen keyboard or tablet mode in the dark ;)
 
heatlesssun said:
This article embodies everything that's wrong with IT journalism, which I is mirroring regular journalism more and more. Instead of reporting on facts and actually understanding the products they talk about they have gotten so lazy and inept that all they can do now is tell people what they think they need or should buy.

I REALLY can't stand most IT journalism these days, factual error after factual error, shocking lack of knowledge of technology and in particular the technology they ACTUALLY cover and review.
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I had to go back and read the article again to try and find the blatant lack of facts you seem to think he is avoiding. Unless you go back through each and every number or chart that he puts up as facts, then I don't know which article you were reading. The thing was full of numbers from production to sales presented as facts. He inserts his opinion quite a bit and I do agree that a lot of IT journalists don't realize they are writing within a bubble but don't say he is without research. That simply isn't true.
 
Kenworth said:
He inserts his opinion quite a bit and I do agree that a lot of IT journalists don't realize they are writing within a bubble but don't say he is without research. That simply isn't true.
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What ever facts he may have he's trying to use them to prove that people should prefer purple to lavender. Pointless.
 
heatlesssun said:
What ever facts he may have he's trying to use them to prove that people should prefer purple to lavender. Pointless.
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But he is unfortunately right, you can see that on how big the netbook market is. People like smaller laptops - but they must be cheap too. And in case of 15" laptops, it is like a catch 22 - people buy 15" laptops because they are cheap, and they are cheap because people buy 15" laptops.

If you would have a 13" and 15" laptop with same specs, same price and same resolution, many people would choose 13". But because 13" are usually ~200€ more expensive than 15" laptops, people ignore them. On other side netbooks are cheaper or at same price as 15" laptops - and they are selling well, even when having much worse specs.

In the end - people like smaller displays and laptops, but not at expense of price. By the way, the final note made me laugh - who cares about MSI, which is equal to junk in laptop category. They make good motherboards, graphic cards - but their laptops are simply junk.
 
faugusztin said:
But he is unfortunately right, you can see that on how big the netbook market is. People like smaller laptops - but they must be cheap too.
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I think this analysis is flawed. People like what they like and the idea that people would buy smaller laptops if they were cheaper implies that people buy laptops primarily based on portability concerns where cost isn't an. I simply don't see this, plenty of people I know WANT bigger screens and don't carry their laptops ANYWHERE. Also netbooks are SECONDARY machines so they have to be cheap otherwise few would buy them.

Ironically I might fit the profile of what he THINKS most people want better than than most people actually do since I'm a huge Tablet PC user. Smaller and lighter is a big deal in this market however. But if it didn't need be a tablet I'd buy larger laptops.

That said I love my Libretto W100 but this thing is MUCH smaller and lighter than even a 10" netbook so I don't think that a device like the W100 is anything that this author was even thinking about.
 
And most people i see on forums don't want "bigger screens", all they want is a gaming laptop for 300€ :). Then when you explain this to them, they usually remove the "gaming" part and then try to get the cheapest one. And the "cheapest" is the area where nothing can fight with 15.6", except the netbooks. Same spec 13.3" laptop with IGP vs 15.6" laptop with IGP will give you a 100-150€ difference. Once you move to the performance area (800€), the price for 13.3" is usually equal or often even smaller than 15.6" with same components.

I wouldn't say that 13.3" market is small - it is the sub-600€ market where 15.6" laptops have no enemy. You put in the laptop a cheap 1366x768 display, Core 2 T6xxx, Celeron 900 or their AMD counterparts, IGP board, 2-4GB RAM, a 320GB HDD, DVD drive, cheap plastic body, average or bad keyboard, small battery with 2 hour battery life at best - and here it is, a sub-500€ laptop. Doing this in mass, the manufacturing price drops significantly. Just look the price difference between 1366x768 and 1920x1080 display option for Dell Studio 15 as a example - price difference is $100. I know so many people who would buy smaller laptop than 15.6", but when the budget is small, they settle down for a bit heavier, a bit bigger - but cheaper laptop.
 
Doesn't matter, tablets will kill off stuff below a 15" laptop anyway.
 
I own both extremes, a Dell 10v and a Sager 20lb monstrosity. :)

They both have their uses and I'm glad for the choices out there.
 
I have an Acer Extensa 4620Z that I got for ~$400 nearly 4 years ago. Love the 14.1" 1280x800 screen and would go to 13.3" if I could.

Personally, I classify laptops as :
1) Desktop replacement : get the biggest, baddest, motherf*cker you can afford (weight and batt life be damned!)
2) Supplementary system : get something as small as you can, that's reasonably priced while maintaining a decent resolution and computational power.
 
Ultimate in portability. Buy 3 desktops and put them in the 3 places you go most. Put files on a USB external. I go to home/studio/other studio. I use desktop at home, but I can buy a desktop for the other 2. weight 0g battery life 100000hours (mhbf)
 
I personally prefer 14" notebooks, seeing 15" as just too big, and the 17" monstrosities as simply ridiculous.

What I'd like ot see is more offerings similar to the Alienware M11X, a "tweener" between it and a netbook would be amazing....put some modest 3D capabilities, modest power, and about 4gb of ram, and a very nice battery life....I'd be sold.
 
mustang_steve said:
What I'd like ot see is more offerings similar to the Alienware M11X, a "tweener" between it and a netbook would be amazing....put some modest 3D capabilities, modest power, and about 4gb of ram, and a very nice battery life....I'd be sold.
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The HP tm2 convertible tablet is very much what you're describing, it's very similar to the m11x, the biggest difference being that the m11x has a faster 3D GPU.
 
lol - I have a 17" laptop and loving today's TD deal on a giant back that will actually carry this thing.

Portability? Not so much.

My wife not liking portability? Yes

Me liking gaming in my living room on a screen I can see? Yes

If we ever need daily portability I'll be going with something 13" or smaller.
 
the cheapest notebooks sold around here are 15"-16" in size... i think consumers favour the low price rather than form factor, etc..
 
heatlesssun said:
The HP tm2 convertible tablet is very much what you're describing, it's very similar to the m11x, the biggest difference being that the m11x has a faster 3D GPU.
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It's the "tablet" part that I dislike...touchscreens and replacing two solid hinges with a potentially more fragile single hinge are not what I look for in a portable.
 
mustang_steve said:
It's the "tablet" part that I dislike...touchscreens and replacing two solid hinges with a potentially more fragile single hinge are not what I look for in a portable.
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The tm2 is my sixth convertible Tablet PC and I've never had a problem with the hinge on any of them. After following TPCs since day one hinges on the better units just don't have problems. I still have a 5 year old Toshiba R15, well I actually gave that to a friend but that machine is still kicking it and the hinge after 5 years is just fine.

I'll probably never again buy a laptop that isn't convertible, the form factor is SOOO much more useable that a standard laptop.
 
ShadowVlican said:
the cheapest notebooks sold around here are 15"-16" in size... i think consumers favour the low price rather than form factor, etc..
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That's what is said, the generic user doesn't care about cpu/gpu/ram/hdd, they just want a cheap laptop. And the most laptops are sold in the cheapest categories :
- <400€ laptops - mostly 10" netbooks, and the ultralowend laptops with very poor CPUs
- 400-600€ laptops - 15.6"-17" laptops, due mass production and cheaper display costs
- 600€-700€ laptops - lowend 13.3-14", a bit better 15.6" laptops.
- >800€ laptops - here the price of the display doesn't make difference anymore, and same specs end up usually in same price or even in favor of smaller size.

If people don't have specific needs, they buy in 1st two categories, because they decide by their wallet size, not by looking at specs.
 
I honestly prefer the 15 inch screen...portable to me(though i dont mind heavy shit).....i hate my tablet screen size for average use, though for writing it is perfect(12.1 inch)
 
This is yet another example of an article written in response to a non-issue. It's not what the manufacturer wants, it's what the consumer wants. If we want 15" laptops then so be it. Writing an opinion article about it isn't going to change anything. "Journalists". :rolleyes:
 
W.Feather said:
I honestly prefer the 15 inch screen...portable to me(though i dont mind heavy shit).....i hate my tablet screen size for average use, though for writing it is perfect(12.1 inch)
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So how are you liking that 2740? I actually have grown fond of 12.1" 1280x800 screens. It seems to be to be the best combination of size and resolution and as you said it's perfect for writing.
 
keenan said:
Honestly all you people touting this, I don't get it. Exactly what functionality do you lose with a 14" laptop vs. a 17" (or 24"...)? Aside from the fact that high-resolution small laptops aren't really available, what is it? A numpad?
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In all honesty? Call me weird, but I can't type for crap on anything smaller than a 15" laptop. And the concept of carrying a full sized keyboard just so I can type, just kind of seems like it defeats the purpose to me.

Second of all, yes, I like my screen resolution. I like actually being able to see what i'm doing, and more importantly, screen real estate matters to me.

I wear glasses, and its hard to see text on smaller screens for me without smashing my face into it practically. I had to do this with some 10-12" netbooks I've seen displayed, no matter what resolution I put it to. Again, 15" seems to be the starting point for me where I can see without having to get close.

Before you ask, yes, my glasses are good on the prescription. But I'm also probably some measurement short of being legally blind.
 
GilmourD said:
And here I was complaining that there aren't more nice 17 inchers. LOL
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this, i was thrilled when one of the companies was talking about a 19 inch.

i get the ultraportability. But in this day and age I have a smart phone and a laptop. for ultraportable stuff i can pull out my smartphone. for any actual computing i have an actual useful computer that doesn't give me a headache using.
 
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