Lightening the Laptop Luggage
December 11th, 2006 (3:35pm) Jackson West 4 CommentsTweet This
A survey by MetaFacts of over 7,000 American computer users which focused on mobile computing came to some interesting conclusions. To quote the press release, “Mobile PC users enjoy their nomadic lifestyle, being twice as likely as desktop PC users to be using a handheld GPS, Apple iPod, other portable MP3 player or digital camcorder.” They gamble, blog and buy more online as well. Another recent study showed that over 30% of home machines are notebook PCs.
But it was also found that work-issue laptops aren’t nearly as mobile as personal machines, with personal users more likely to log in at libraries and cybercafes and workers at hotels and client offices, if at all. In other words, workers may be wireless, but are still somewhat tethered to their workplace, at least with the company laptop.
InformationWeek blogger Barbara Krasnoff wonders if the size and weight isn’t an issue for workers on the go, and asks for suggestions on a lightweight solution for her upcoming trip to the CES in Las Vegas. I just loved the ultra-light PC-MM20 from Sharp even if it was getting long in the tooth, and find the Lenovo ThinkPad X41 to be eminently luggable. But other than a brief caress of an OQO 01+, I’ve never tried one of the sub-notebooks, with or without a portable keyboard. Any thoughts?
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Great post Jackson – I’ve had just this experience myself. My work-supplied Dell Latitude D620 notebook is portable but it’s quite heavy and rarely inspires me to consider taking it along as I’m out and about. My personal MacBook (white 13″ model) on the other hand is lightweight, fast to wake up from sleep, gets very good battery life, and goes just about everything with me.
Another nice mobile device for surfing, e-mail, and IM is the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet which I have been working with for a few weeks. Truly portable, built-in WiFi and Bluetooth and, unlike the OQO, there’s no oven mitt required.
I’ll second the Mac thing. Even the MBP 17 isn’t too bad. I’ve compared to some 15″ Dells, and it’s lighter. The MacBooks are are great for portability.
I wish they’d bring back a 12″ MBP…
Panasonic rocks all the way.