No wonder PC sales are dying - look at the latest specs

[Ray8]

But you could go to DOS if you wanted, that option wasn't removed, you didn't need to find a third party program to go to DOS.

Actually, the webs are full of people who do care and absolutely hate the new interface, the very fact that Microsoft is saying things like this, proves it is a major issue:

"We have heard that, we definitely have heard that and taken that into account," she said, before adding: "We've really also tried to understand what people are really asking for when they're asking for that"

You clearly have a different view as to what 'choice' means. Some are happy to be Windows 8 lemmings, others are not.

Finally, the average person wouldn't know where to get 95, XP or Vista. Do you think the debate is just about those who are tech savvy?

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there
Even on a 12 inch screen it's easy to see the difference between 1080 X 1920 and 768 X 1366 --If you can't I'd seriously suggest a trip to the Opticians -- and remember even in a work place I can easily plug the HDMI into a nice large monitor.

I'm not seriously worried about long battery times --I'm almost within easy reach of a power source even when travelling - and what's wrong with wanting a machine that's capable of doing photo shop on the road or other apps --I'll bet some developers also work when travelling too -- and it's a lot easier with a reasonably portable machine than a 17 - 18 inch monster Alienware type of laptop.

The whole point of this was to say if I just wanted a portable device for surfing the web there are plenty of gizmos that could do that -- even a decent smart phone is probably good enough - but I want a cheapish reasonable specced Computer - and currently there AREN'T ANY within a reasonable budget -- so No sale -- another PC NOT SOLD.

The surface pro as some have suggested - by the time you add a PROPER decent keyboard and mouse is going to set you back over 1100 USD (inc Tax) so you might just as well go for a high end Ultrabook - which is what I was trying to avoid.

Strangely enough If I was in the market for a desktop - especially without a Monitor - there are some incredible bargains out there now -- but for laptops -- seems about 90% of the NON MacBook ones are normally 15.6 inch (too big for what I want) with a relatively poor spec.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[goodintentions]

Hi there
Even on a 12 inch screen it's easy to see the difference between 1080 X 1920 and 768 X 1366 --If you can't I'd seriously suggest a trip to the Opticians -- and remember even in a work place I can easily plug the HDMI into a nice large monitor.

Oh my god man, you're not listening to me. I never said people or me are incapable if telling the difference. What I'm saying is people don't care about such high resolution to tell the difference unless pointed out. That's why it's a gimmick. Studies have shown that people run out to get the latest iPad not because of the specs but because of marketing. When presented with the iPad 2, everyone thought it was an iPad 3 just because they were told so. It's not because they are incapable of telling the difference. It's because they don't care about it enough to. I've yet to find a real live person that could tell the difference between the envy x2 screen and their iPad 3 without having me pointing it out. That's why it's just a gimmick.

I'm not seriously worried about long battery times --I'm almost within easy reach of a power source even when travelling - and what's wrong with wanting a machine that's capable of doing photo shop on the road or other apps --I'll bet some developers also work when travelling too -- and it's a lot easier with a reasonably portable machine than a 17 - 18 inch monster Alienware type of laptop.

I already told you. There's an option for what you want already. It's the Asus transformer book tx300. It's not selling well at all despite having all the gimmicky specs you wanted. Most people in the market for hybrid devices just don't care for it.

The whole point of this was to say if I just wanted a portable device for surfing the web there are plenty of gizmos that could do that -- even a decent smart phone is probably good enough - but I want a cheapish reasonable specced Computer - and currently there AREN'T ANY within a reasonable budget -- so No sale -- another PC NOT SOLD.

And my point is I haven't found anything I really wanted to do that I can't do with my clover trail. I used to think exactly like you. Trust me. I used to think I needed at least an i5, ridiculously high resolution, etc. Then I realized all my life of using a laptop I've always had to seek out an outlet to plug it in. That's the ridiculous part. You should seek out and buy the tf book that I mentions if you think you really need it.

The surface pro as some have suggested - by the time you add a PROPER decent keyboard and mouse is going to set you back over 1100 USD (inc Tax) so you might just as well go for a high end Ultrabook - which is what I was trying to avoid.

Strangely enough If I was in the market for a desktop - especially without a Monitor - there are some incredible bargains out there now -- but for laptops -- seems about 90% of the NON MacBook ones are normally 15.6 inch (too big for what I want) with a relatively poor spec.

Cheers
jimbo

Are you for real? The reason hybrid like devices still cost a bundle is it's new and there aren't adequate mass productions of their parts yet. Classic supply and demand. Hybrid devices require specialty parts that aren't properly mass produced yet. I'm just old enough to remember when a typical pc was 4 thousand dollars. Nowadays I can get an i7 pc for about 700.

 

[sygnus21]

it comes down to what you need and want you want to do

The specs are out there for small powerful laptops/ultrabooks, but the pricing is a bit high.

That said, I myself was in the market for a small powerful utrabook and settled on a 13.3 inch Asus Zenbook Prime. Mine came with a 3rd generation Core i7, HD Graphics 4000, 4gig of DDR3, a 256 SSD drive, 2 USB 3.0 ports with built in charger, and…. a 1920 x 1080 non-gloss screen. (Win 8, non-touch). Also comes with a Micro HDMI port, a mini VGA port, and an SD card reader.

I find the battery life on this thing to be hype, it’s reported to get 7 hours, but I usually get around 4, maybe 5, but that’s good enough for me because I’m never too far from a power source that long anyway.

The size and specs above, especially the high res non-gloss screen is exactly what I needed. Great for photo work out in the field, or for school. And Adobe Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6 flies here on Win 8.

As a side note: While it is nice having a large res screen such as 1920 x 1080, bear in mind, this is a 13.3 inch screen… meaning the text size is awfully small when running certain apps…. Photoshop comes to mind. While this may be perfectly fine for the young, we middle-aged folks have to reach for the reading glasses quick.

That’s the downside of having a large resolution on a small screen - Just something to think about.

At any rate, the hardware is out there, but you pay a premium. My ultrabook set me back $1300 USD.

Yes, you could find some cheaper, but getting everything in one package may prove differently. It comes down to what you need and what you want to do. Not everyone needs a 1300 notebook, nor does everyone want a budget notebook.

My two cents.