What kind of PC do you have in 2018 and why?

Other Games
1

I’d like to learn more about what kinds of PCs people here use in 2018 and how you use them? I thought it would make an interesting discussion topic since the landscape has changed a lot over the last ten years.

  1. What brand of PC do you have? Dell, Alienware, Razer, Microsoft, Apple, custom built, etc?
  2. Do you use a desktop or laptop?
  3. What operating system(s) do you use?
  4. Do you use your PC for gaming? If yes, is it your primary gaming device? If no, what do you game on most?
  5. How often do you upgrade/change your PC?
  6. Would you buy a similar type of PC next time you upgrade, or go for a different setup?
  7. Would you consider replacing your PC with a tablet or a 2 in 1?
  8. How often do you use your PC compared to other devices like smartphones, tablets, and gaming consoles? Not just for gaming, but for things like browsing the web.

I’ll post my answers once the discussion has started.

2

  1. My computer brand is Prostar. I did a lot of research and they are very well built machines.

  2. I have a vr ready gaming laptop.

  3. The operating system is Windows 10 Home.

  4. I use it for gaming of course but mainly for VR (Oculus Rift CV1) and emulators.

  5. I’d say I upgrade/buy a new computer every 6 to 7 years. And just had to recently because the motherboard burnt out! And I thought to myself: “Now’s the time to get into vr!”

  6. Yes I would.

  7. No. Too limited.

  8. I’d say everyday for browsing the web and watching tv shows and movies.

3
  1. Dell Laptop, older custom built desktop.
  2. Right now I’m almost exclusively using my laptop. The desktop gets used as a print server at the moment really. I had thought about turning it into a media server since it’s not getting much use but the power draw is a little higher than I want it to be.
  3. Windows 10 for both.
  4. I use my laptop most often for work and as a gaming machine. It’s really up to date and I haven’t had any trouble playing any games. My desktop is too old to play anything at this point. I haven’t played console game since the Xbox 360.
  5. I upgrade my laptop about every four years. I haven’t upgraded my desktop in about 8.
  6. I probably will continue to use my laptop as my primary machine going forward. I wouldn’t remind replacing my desktop at some point in time with a low-power media machine so that I can stream my movies to my other connected devices.
  7. No
  8. My laptop and my phone get equal usage. Obviously the phone usage case is for searching, looking up things, paying bills and stuff. Every once in awhile I play an emulated game on my phone but I’m not much for gaming on the phone. My laptop is my primary machine. I use that for everything including work and gaming.
4

Ermagherd servaay!

  • What brand of PC do you have? Dell, Alienware, Razer, Microsoft, Apple, custom built, etc?
    Custom build, because I wanted the freedom to build exactly what I wanted and not pay higher costs.

  • Do you use a desktop or laptop?
    Desktop.

  • What operating system(s) do you use?
    Windows 10

  • Do you use your PC for gaming? If yes, is it your primary gaming device? If no, what do you game on most?
    Even though I’ve just built it, it isn’t my primary gaming device. My last PC was until it got too old, and now I buy games predominantly for consoles. The exceptions being games that I want to play co-op with my PC buddy - I basically built this PC for Far Cry 5.

  • How often do you upgrade/change your PC?
    My previous PC was initially built in 2008, but had every major component replaced before I built this new one.

  • Would you buy a similar type of PC next time you upgrade, or go for a different setup?
    I would only ever build a PC. Chances are that the next one I get won’t be tasked with playing new games, so it’ll probably be some kind of small form factor.

  • Would you consider replacing your PC with a tablet or a 2 in 1?
    No, even putting gaming aside they’re just awful to use.

  • How often do you use your PC compared to other devices like smartphones, tablets, and gaming consoles? Not just for gaming, but for things like browsing the web.
    I use my phone almost all the time. I’ll only use my PC to game a few times a month.

It’s probably also worth noting that I also have a MacBook Air, but I only really use it for work.

5

1. What brand of PC do you have? Dell, Alienware, Razer, Microsoft, Apple, custom built, etc?
Dell

2. Do you use a desktop or laptop?
I almost exclusively use my laptop, though I do have a very old desktop I use for burning discs and managing scans.

3. What operating system(s) do you use?
Windows 10

4. Do you use your PC for gaming? If yes, is it your primary gaming device? If no, what do you game on most?
Yes, but rarely – I only use it for the occasional indie game or Square-Enix RPG. I usually spend my time with consoles from the 5th-7th generations. My Sega Saturn currently sees the most action!

5. How often do you upgrade/change your PC?
When its performance becomes insufficient or a physical problem occurs that is too costly to fix in relation to the price of a new PC.

6. Would you buy a similar type of PC next time you upgrade, or go for a different setup?
I was an Apple user until I replaced my last one with my current laptop. After this, I’ll probably buy another MacBook.

7. Would you consider replacing your PC with a tablet or a 2 in 1?
No. I’ve always found them to be rather clunky. My laptop has a touch screen, but I don’t use it. In fact, I forget it’s there until I go to wipe it off with cleaning solution!

8. How often do you use your PC compared to other devices like smartphones, tablets, and gaming consoles? Not just for gaming, but for things like browsing the web.
I use it daily. My phone is great for quick web searches, but all serious browsing is done on my PC. Additionally, my involvement with the Saturn community mandates its use a lot for things like article writing, streaming, and podcast recording.

6
  1. Apple
  2. Laptop. I have the mid-2015 15" Macbook Pro. I use it like a desktop sometimes with the Roost laptop stand.
  3. I have the system setup to boot into two OSs. Windows 10 for gaming, macOS for everything else.
  4. Given my large Steam and GOG collections, I would say that PC is my primary gaming platform, the most “permanent”, but mainly for previous-gen and indie games. I also have a PS4 Pro for exclusives and the occasional AAA title that doesn’t run on my laptop.
  5. When something breaks and it’s expensive to repair, or if I want to run something that doesn’t work on my current hardware. I think 5 years is a good timeframe, but a longer lasting laptop would be great too.
  6. I haven’t had a desktop PC in 10 years and probably won’t get one again. The laptop form factor has been so convienent, allowing me to travel to different countries, but even at home it’s great to use it in different positions. I would get a laptop with Thunderbolt 3 support next time so that an eGPU can be added (my current machine’s biggest weakness). I may consider a different brand if Apple hasn’t resolved the reliability issues with their newer keyboards by then, but otherwise I prefer macOS over other OSs, so I’ll probably stay with them for that reason.
  7. I don’t think trackpad/windowed interfaces work well on tablets and vice versa, and I have been unconvinced by attempts to converge the two so far. I have a seperate dedicated tablet for tabletly tasks like drawing and to use as a lightweight computer to carry around, but I can empathise with the point of view of just wanting to carry two machines (phone and laptop).
  8. These days it’s a mixture. I use the smartphone while out and about the most, and the laptop at home the most due to everything being available and it being set down while in use. The tablet and PS4 are used less than other two and for more specific tasks.
7

The base MacBook Pros with built in Intel GPUs run older games quite well, and even some newer games at reasonable frame-rates. For example, here’s a video of the Doom reboot running at over 30fps. Give it a few more years and you might be able to run any current gen games on them. IMO there’s not much advantage of going with a desktop if you don’t need the extra power for gaming and you use a laptop in some situations anyway.

8

I should probably update my answer to (8). I’ve been using my tablet quite extensively this year, about equal with laptop use.

The flexibility of laptops and desktops make them generally much better for work, and a larger screen is always appreciated for movies and gaming.

However, for general consumption and lightweight creation, the tablet has basically surpassed my laptop usage. I don’t know if I’d ever go tablet-only, but much of the time I don’t really need a laptop, and the all-in-oneness of the tablet is actually an advantage, especially when travelling. It’s always on and in a convienent form factor (similar size to a book - ideal for reading from comfortably), and the lack of background processes makes the battery life and performance soar.

So I think I was originally too dismissive of tablets because I was used to the flexibility of laptops, and taking away that power can feel like a disadvantage if you believe you need it all the time. But there’s also a lot to be gained in terms of minimalism, with everything working with a single touch UI (compared to a laptop/desktop where controls - either trackpad, mouse, or game controller are extras). I have the pencil and smart keyboard accessories, but these are not usually required for general use, and can be optionally carried around as lightweight extras.

Does anyone else want to answer the questions? I’m quite curious about the various setups people use.