Is The Desktop PC Dead? [Ask The Readers] - 3409th Edition

Desktop sales fell by 23 percent last year across the computer industry. In the U.S., 80 percent of sales went to notebooks. Gizmodo declares the desktop dead, but we’re wondering if you see a future for non-mobile systems.

Photo by coda.

Our gadget-focused sibling argues that a laptop can now do everything a desktop can do, only more simply, wirelessly, and with a negligible price difference. While they concede that graphics and hard drive performance, for the most part, are generally less costly across desktops, these differences are becoming less pronounced, so much so that “in virtually any scenario, a laptop is the sensible buy.” We’re going out on a limb and assuming that they’re factoring laptop-to-bigger-monitor hook-ups in their world view.

Given how rewarding a built-from-scratch PC can be, we’re curious to hear how our own—perhaps less shiny/new-obsessed—readers feel about the desktop computer. Can any application keep it a viable market force? What would it take for you to consider one over a laptop? Share your declarations, prognostications, and/or eulogies in the comments.

By Azadeh Ensha
Yaab