design Goods and Services, May 20, 2006 4:47 AM 11 comments
Staying Mobile: Desktop vs. Laptop Volume
My ongoing efforts to Stay Mobile include liquidating as many possessions as possible. There are certain asymptotes on the road to Nomad Nirvana that I'll likely not touch, however; i.e. things I can't live, work or study without, the most obvious as a web designer and student being a computer. Like spending money to make money, I'm convinced by first-person evidence and recommendation that I should get rid of my desktop and get a laptop.
To help justify replacing my desktop with a laptop I'll compare the two in terms of total volumes. I rendered up the components for both systems in SketchUp for comparison.
My complete desktop system with monitor in its original packaging and the keyboard and mouse in a box as well. In fact, I also fit my power cables and DSL box in there, too.
The Macbook inside a protective sleeve inside a shoulder bag with the power supply.
I've taken measurements of all the necessary components that comprise the proper operation, storage and shipment of my current desktop computer and have done the same with—ohhh, let's see here—a new 15" MacBook Pro.
By operation I mean all things needed for continuous use of a fully functioning computer over a period of hopefully a few years. On the MacBook, for example, that means always keeping the external power supply handy. With a desktop, that means always using a powerbar surge protector.
Storage and shipment are more complicated in this evaluation. I change housing situations often. In some cases I ditch a computer's original packaging (now I just toss my tower in the back of someone's car). My desktop LCD monitor, on the other hand, is a little more precious so I keep its original box and styrofoam around for my bi-annual migrations. Size really matters here. I had to hire a taxi last weekend to haul my tower to my new apartment.
In a fair comparison to a notebook I can assume I'll dispense with the original packaging yet rely on a protective sleeve. For years I've commuted by bike with a courier bag and so I would probably continue to do so with a laptop.
The following table lists these measurments. The shaded total volume for the desktop is a sum of the individual component volumes while the shaded MacBook total volume is just the volume of the courier bag. I also included the volume of the MacBook packaging for interest's sake.
| width | Height | Depth | Volume | Total Volume | |
| Desktop Computer | 5432.88 | ||||
| Keyboard & Mouse (in box) | 20.5 | 10.5 | 2.5 | 538.13 | |
| Monitor (in box) | 18 | 18 | 5.25 | 1701 | |
| Tower | 19.5 | 17 | 9.5 | 3149.25 | |
| Powerbar | 9.25 | 4 | 1 | 37 | |
| Powerbar cord | 6 | 1 | 1.25 | 7.5 | |
| MacBook Pro 15” (in shoulder bag) | 15.2 | 13 | 3.3 | 652.08 | 652.08 |
| MacBook Pro 15” | 14.1 | 9.6 | 1 | 135.36 | |
| Power Supply | 3.5 | 5 | 0.75 | 13.13 | |
| MacBook Pro 15” (in sleeve) | 14.5 | 10.1 | 1.5 | 219.68 | |
| MacBook Pro 15” (in box) | 19.5 | 19.5 | 7.6 | 2889.9 |
So basically--including the box for the monitor and keyboard--my desktop computer's total volume is 5432.88 cubic inches. Inside a protective sleeve inside a shoulder bag, a 15” MacBook Pro is 652.08 cubic inches.
By replacing my desktop computer with a laptop my total computer volume will be reduced 8x.
Download the SketchUp source files:
space-desktop.skp (37k)
space-macbook.skp (10k)
Download the spreadsheet files:
space-computers.xls (MS Excel, 9k)
space-computers.ods (OpenOffice, 12k)
11 comments on Staying Mobile: Desktop vs. Laptop Volume
1. Bradford Werner | May 20, 2006 9:00 AM
Jeff, don't buy small. Remember all your Oakley glasses? Anyway, that was very detailed, maybe I'll buy a laptop guitar.
2. Dave | May 20, 2006 1:02 PM
Hummm... if you want something bad enough it is easy to convince yourself that you should go and get it. But I imaging being a web designer you will also want to invest in an external keyboard and mouse. Using a laptop's for long periods of times I find uncomfortable. Dido with a laptop's monitor, who want a cramped neck from looking down all the time. Still, I think a laptop is the ideal solution for you to easily transport your work from location to location. But, I just see your small compact laptop growing like a bad fungas.
I also suffer from a transient lifestyle and have recently switched to a "desktop replacement" style laptop. I don't think that I would go back to the desktop. While I do suffer from short term battery life ~2h), it's not so bad to carry around the power supply. For me it's made a world of difference work -wise to be able to take everything with me everywhere. That and you may not have to pay for internet if your neighbours have an unprotected network. Were I you, something like the large screen macbook would be ideal...infact if you are purchasing such an item I would be very jealous. Have you thought about the mac mini...somewhat of a space compromise.
4. Jeff Werner | May 20, 2006 1:48 PM
@Brad: laptops ARE guitars now.
@Dave: Ya, I convinced myself I NEED a laptop. And yes, I may keep a keyboard around for working at home, and definitely a mouse (fits in the shoulder bag).
@Dan: Good to hear, more evidence for me. As for MacMini: not portable enough (still need monitor, mouse and keyboard). The 17" MacBook is too big to carry around. If I'm going laptop I might as well take it to school all the time. And the screen res on the MacBook 15" is good.
I switched from full-time desktop use to full time laptop use about 16 months ago. My current computer is a 12" IBM thinkpad (five months old). I have a couple of comments:
1. Like Dave said, you'll need a mouse almost for sure. I don't agree with the keyboard though. My laptop has a full size keyboard minus the number pad. It works great.
2. You'll still need the dsl box so it should be in excluded from your calculations.
3. Go as portable as you can. 17" is insane. I even think that 15" is too big. For me personally, 12" (11.5" wide screen) is ideal (the 10's are getting a little tiny). I watch lots of movies and also do CAD on my laptop and the screen is great.
4. Careful with the macbook - you should consider the macbook pro, especially if you are doing 3D/graphics. The graphics card is a bit hurting on the plain macbook.
5. Guaranteed that you'll want a second external hard drive (which you already have). Because of this you'll probably want a USB hub (iPod, Camera, external hard drive, mouse...). I got one and it's one of my best purchases.
6. Another consideration you should make when deciding the size is the weight.
7. You gotta get it. I think a macbook pro will be my next computer.
6. Jeff Werner | May 20, 2006 2:55 PM
@A: You're right, I don't need a second keyboard. I plan on jumping onto wireless connections (primarily at school), hence no DSL box needed. Yup, I wrote MacBook Pro not MacBook, for your reason and a few others (more on that later). External HDD: likely replace my existing with a 2.5" laptop version (fits in shoulder bag). I love it when you tell me to buy stuff, seriously.
7. Dave | May 20, 2006 8:51 PM
Right before my practicum I bought a fancy new laptop, the Gateway CX2610. It's a tablet so it includes a pen which allows you to write and draw on the screen. Maby something like this would be usefull for you too Jeff? And the thing wasn't that expensive to boot, 1500...
8. Graham | May 21, 2006 9:32 PM
My 15" powerbook serves my student life well, and I'm not sure I'll ever buy another desktop. I use it at home, at the lab, at the girlfriend's house, at the library, and in coffee shops. I carry around a little IR mouse with a short cord and transport the laptop in a wetsuit-like neoprene case (usually placed into a backpack). I agree that the 17" is too large (not really portable), but I really value the screen real-estate afforded by the 15".
It was an awfully expensive purchase, however, and I'm hoping that I will get several more years of use out of as a sort of justification for its cost. It helped that I was making substantially more than my current student income at the time of purchase.
I also worry about losing all of the data on it and I'm considering buying an external drive that I can make backups to.
Graham
9. Tobias Ottahal | May 21, 2006 11:22 PM
Jeff, you've seen my 12"
and I'm telling ya, I wouldn't
go any bigger than that.
It fits perfectly everywhere
and it is just heavy enough.
Besides, no person with his
head in the right place would
work on a 12" when it comes
to working professionally
with anything graphic nitty-gritty.
It's just for the portability right??
So keep your screen, but go for 12"
on the laptop.
Size, you can plug into, not
portability.
10. Dylan | May 23, 2006 5:18 PM
That last line from Tobias was so nerdy but so ACCURATE.
My compaq laptop (I couldn't make the switch to mac at the time, for a few reasons) has replaced my desktop, even though I have the space and the option for it at home. It's 13x9 (widescreen) and it's just about perfect for me. The few things I complain about is that I don't have enough RAM for the amount of (basic even) photo touchups I do and the programs I'm constantly running. And even then my lag is minimal. That and the monitor isn't capable of displaying the higher resolution my video card (designed to handle the bigger screened brother of my machine) is able to produce.
And the number one reason to switch to laptops? Environmental impact and energy use is greatly reduced.
11. sc0 | May 25, 2006 11:09 PM
Well Heffy... I'll throw in my two cents, and sway against the crowd on this one:
You've worked on my wide-aspect 15.4" dell 8500... and surely have noticed how nice the screen is. We know that you love it.
My laptop runs heavy 3d graphics like a dream bc of ram. The wide screen kicks ass when I'm doing design... solidworks, photoshop etc. I wouldn't go smaller. I may go bigger next time. I carry the charger with me always. I also use a mouse. Don't find the keyboard a problem at all. My laptop's been around the world now, back and forth to school, work buses, trains, bikes. It's never really bothered me. If I was that hung-up on weight/size, I'd get a high-end pda. bah!
word -s
PS. Party, my house, June 2.
I have learnt silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers.—Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931)
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