Are you confused and frustrated not knowing which one to buy? A cheap desktop PC or a great value laptop? Well let me offer you my thoughts about the differences between a laptop and a desktop PC.

My aim is to make it easier for you to make the right choice and buy a PC to be proud of.

There are many different factors that should be considered with regards to your purchase.

Let's have a closer look at this:

Portability – It does not take a rocket scientist to work out that buying a laptop will give you greater mobility. The laptop is very portable. Perhaps a better question to ask you is … where do you plan on using this computer? Are you going to be home based or would you need to take it away from the home. Would it be an advantage to be able to take it away from the home? Personally I always choose a laptop. Why? Because it gives me greater flexibility in the working environment and it is nice to work in the garden in the summer! So for portability the laptop is preferred.

Perhaps you are not fussed where you're computer will be located. If that's the case and your happy sitting at the same desk in the same room, the desktop computer is the choice for you.

Hardware Capability – There used to be a huge difference in the hardware capabilities between a desktop and a laptop PC. A few years ago if you wanted a powerful PC you never considered a laptop. These days technology gets more powerful and smaller so there really is not much difference. The only difference is the size of the hard disk. To me this does not really sell a desktop PC as laptops typically have more than enough disk space to cater for my needs.

Desktop PC's are great for heavy processing activities. If you are passionate about your music, video, photography or games then you might want to take advantage of the desktop PC's larger storage capacity.

The other great thing about desks is that you have plenty of scope to upgrade the components.

You could add an external storage unit to a laptop but it compromises its portability.

Processing capabilities – If you are a die hard gamer then a desktop is the only real answer. Many games put a tremendous burden on the processing capabilities of a PC. With a desktop you can always upgrade your graphics card, something you can not do with a laptop.

So if you can not live without your games and you want to be able to play them effortlessly for the next couple of years then I suggest a desktop PC with a support hot graphics card installed. As companies aim to take software to its limits they place more more demands in having the hardware to support it. Technology gets smaller and even more powerful.

Cost – Laptop PC's usually cost more than the equivalent spec desktop PC. Laptops do come with other external periphers such as built in monitor mouse and keyboard.

OK let summarize:

Laptops are great for portability and for traveling about. So if portability is important you really have no choice but to go with a laptop.

If you do not mind working on your PC in one place then ask yourself if you're likely to play games. If gaming is something you are likely to do then a desktop PC is the choice for you.