What kind of computer device do you prefer using?

66Mustang

I used to prefer a "proper" computer with a traditional operating system, as applications seemed to have more functionality and customisation and you could more easily adjust and modify how programs ran as needed.

However these days I'm really enjoying using my tablet. It's so simple. I especially like using my fingerprint instead of passwords. Also, I am quite clumsy and am always dropping my devices; I have had my laptop repaired 3 times in the last 2 years but my iPad seems to survive everything.

There are a few programs I still have to use the PCs for but the tablet seems to cover about 80% of my screen time now.

I still only use a smartphone as a last resort when I'm out. I'm not too keen on the small screen for typing. I never got the hang of "texting".

I don't have a smart watch as I like mechanical watches too much.

I guess if I had to rank my devices now it would be tablet > laptop > desktop > phone.

What about you?

Sandy_123

I use my tablet for 90% use, my phone rarely, if I'm out, but don't like using small screen. 

poppy123456

My desktop computer is my main one that i use probably 80% of the time. Then my phone, if i have my feet up or i'm out but the small screen makes it more difficult. I have an apple watch that i use for voice texting if my daughter messages me.

chiarieds

My son has been building desktop computers since he was 17 or 18, so builds one to the specs I need. I became fairly good with software, & my daughter-in-law is good with phones (unlike me), so between us we can usually help each other.

I've never subsequently had a laptop. The only downside of my desktop PC is that my cat likes to jump on my desktop table, & sit in front of the monitor, arching her back if I try to look around her. Thankfully this only happens if she thinks I'm not paying her enough attention, or she decides she needs feeding!

I prefer my desktop, as I find it easier to use a keyboard rather than a fiddly smartphone, which is why I'm probably rubbish at texting.

OverlyAnxious

I prefer a laptop myself.  I like physical keys, a large wide screen and the fact that it can rest on my lap at any chosen angle without needing to be held.

Tried a few other people's tablets but never really understood the point.  I don't like touchscreens and they seem awkward to hold. 

I was a very slow convert to smartphone apps but now use them regularly for things like banking and utilities.  The ease of immediate access without waiting for a laptop to boot up, portability (one hand/pocket size) and the fingerprint security are fantastic imo.  I also pass time in the bathroom using my phone to read forums! 

Ross_Alumni

I wouldn't say I have a preference, because it will depend on what I'm doing as to what device is most suitable. For typing I always prefer having a physical keyboard so the laptop is much better, although voice typing on a tablet or phone has come a long way.

I like the comfort that using a tablet or phone brings, especially for doing things like watching YouTube or other media, but doing searches and shopping are usually much quicker on a laptop device.

Ross_Alumni

Username_removed said:

I am intrigued by the idea that you can’t do everything on a tablet. That was absolutely true 5 years ago maybe but nowadays there is nothing you can do on a desktop that you can’t do on a tablet or indeed a smartphone. 

I think the gap is certainly narrowing, but if of course will depend on the task you want to perform on the tablet, video editing for example could require greater power that a tablet might not provide. I find as well that while doing certain things like note taking or document editing is much easier these days, you don't always have the same amount of features on a tablet version of an application and it is instead reduced to the essentials, which isn't always a bad thing to be honest.

Gaming used to present a massive disparity too but with the emergence of cloud gaming that has made it much more accessible on a phone or tablet. 

Pricing probably comes into it too for many people, for the price of a high end tablet you can get a decent laptop, which would represent better value in many cases. I say this as somebody who would prefer a tablet if carrying out daily tasks was able to be done quickly enough on them.

rish

I don't like using the laptop much, I much prefer using my desktop computer. 

alexis39

My iPhone I use for everything rarely use my laptop as my fingers don’t work very well 

66Mustang

For me it is often down to bugs or the fact that some programs I use are just old and the developers haven’t redesigned them for the mobile age. The stocks and shares provider my family uses is one example which is on quite an old platform. I was trying to do something on it using my tablet yesterday and it kept playing up, switched to the laptop and it worked fine.

Of course the same thing can happen the other way round, too - not working on the laptop or desktop but fine on the tablet. I guess I like having different devices as backups.

Before I got my current iPad I had just a basic one, not a Pro, and it did me for 4 years and was still running apps smoothly - I only replaced it because I’d physically damaged it. I can well believe a Pro would last so long.

Durhamjaide

iPad 

Geoark

Laptop, though 98% plus of the time it is used like a desktop, plugged into a hub and connected to everything else. My own laptop has been upgraded to windows 11 and so now have three screens and with 3 different 'desktops' I can move quickly between different tasks without cluttering up the current desktop. 

Between the benefit of upgrading a desktop to the portability of the laptop the portability aspect wins for me.

Smart phone, though this is usually reserved as, alarm clock, accessing a code when making an online billing, team whatsap, or whats up as I prefer to call it and making calls, probably in that order of usage.

Tablet, rarely used since working from home, but was mainly used for reading books, listening to music. I find it easier to rotate one of my screens and change the orientation when reading books or documents. Using bluetooth to listen to music on my own laptop while working on the company laptop helps to keep me sane at times.

Biggest bonus, at the end of the day take the usb plug out of my work laptop and into my own laptop and its all set up to go.

Poppy_

I tend to stick to my phone and IPad for most things, but I do use my laptop for work and I do have a Fitbit, which I use everyday. 

Ross_Alumni

Blimey @mikehughescq, that's huge, 49 inches?

ladybugabloom

It all depends. Since I work from home and if I have a complex task I work over the desktop and if not then a laptop  

Geoark

@mikehughescq, no I haven't to be honest. Personally I would be reluctant to buy one at such a size considering I would be stuck in front of it for many hours each day. Though looking at some of the specs it would seem with the right features they may offer less stress to the eyes?

Geoark

Thanks for the feedback. At the moment the two screens I have are slightly different in size. The smaller one I use for reading and creating documents. It is easier to rotate depending on what I am doing. The larger one I mainly use for spreadsheets. 

I know many of my colleagues just use the work laptop on its own, which would drive me nuts as it is a much smaller screen, and hate the keyboard and pad. Even the headphones I have changed for something I can work with.

Work did provide funding for some equipment, but only the most basic stuff. Drove my manager mad that I would not use it. Though I was allowed to work from home before the pandemic due to my sciatica, so it just made sense to me to use my own money to make the office area I use at home as comfortable as possible for me. Plus when I leave the company I still have a set up which works for me. 

I stopped smoking this week as found in the last couple of months I have been smoking much more. I am planning to save the money I save to treat myself in November, so I might take a closer look at what the larger monitors have to offer.  

alex72

95 percent i use my lap top only use my mobile for text and face time saying that my mobile is connected to my laptop

Roddy123

I only ever use my desk top puter,and as for a smart phone,whats that.And I rarely use my mobile phone as i have no wish to be contacted day or night,and as for texting,no no never,and the fact is i am a techno-phobe and am happy to just use my landline for calls.
And when out socially i cant abide seeing people with their phone stuck to their ear instead of conversing with the folk they are with,its rude and ill mannered.
20 years ago i think the world was kinder and more caring than it is today with all the 'smart this and smart that.'