The 'I need Windows to run $application' argument doesn't stand anymore, imho. Not since we have VirtualBox (as 'easy to use' as Ubuntu) out in the open and virtualisation support has been officially added to the kernel. And yes, it runs very smoothly even on my crappy (1.5GHz, 512MB RAM, onboard Intel Graphics) laptop!
Almost any Windows program can be downloaded, installed and used in Virtualbox (except graphically intense games, obviously... the emulation isn't that good yet). You can share files directly between Windows and Linux without rebooting. You get the best of both worlds at the same time!
Oops. Sorry, that was supposed to be a 'megawatt hour'. So the breakeven point is significantly further off.
Let's say the running costs are $0.13/kWh without any annual fees. We buy a fairly economical (20W) (maybe even old, for the environments sake) laptop for $480. The desktop is still at 140W. Both are used a lot and run 24/7.
The laptop costs $0.13*0.02[kWh]*24*365 = $23, whereas the desktop costs $160. So when taking into account the $480 initial investment, the thing pays off after a 3.5 years of use (provided you leave the desktop off and possibly give it to someone else who doesn't own a computer yet and only wants to do some office work once a week on it).
Looking at the total energy required, it gets even worse. If we say that the failure rates for desktops and laptops are the same, though, and assume that the desktop needs just as much embodied energy, then I think it's safe to recommend for anybody who's never had a computer before to get a laptop.
While it is true that laptops generally use a fraction of the power that the average desktop requires (my laptop needs 20 watts compared to my 140 watts desktop) if you're going to buy a new one, you should always consider the embodied (gray) energy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embodied_energy) required to build a laptop. An estimate I've come across is about 1 megawatt. Also, the lifespan of the average laptop depends on the make & model (IBM Thinkpads are known to be the most robust).
Hopefully laptops will become more modular over time so things that tend to fail (fans, drives, screen, keyboard, trackpad) can be replaced more easily.
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The 'I need Windows to run $application' argument doesn't stand anymore, imho. Not since we have VirtualBox (as 'easy to use' as Ubuntu) out in the open and virtualisation support has been officially added to the kernel. And yes, it runs very smoothly even on my crappy (1.5GHz, 512MB RAM, onboard Intel Graphics) laptop! Almost any Windows program can be downloaded, installed and used in Virtualbox (except graphically intense games, obviously ... the emulation isn't that good yet). You can share files directly between Windows and Linux without rebooting. You get the best of both worlds at the same time!
Oops. Sorry, that was supposed to be a 'megawatt hour'. So the breakeven point is significantly further off. Let's say the running costs are $0.13/kWh without any annual fees. We buy a fairly economical (20W) (maybe even old, for the environments sake) laptop for $480. The desktop is still at 140W. Both are used a lot and run 24/7. The laptop costs $0.13*0.02[kWh]*24*365 = $23, whereas the desktop costs $160. So when taking into account the $480 initial investment, the thing pays off after a 3.5 years of use (provided you leave the desktop off and possibly give it to someone else who doesn't own a computer yet and only wants to do some office work once a week on it). Looking at the total energy required, it gets even worse. If we say that the failure rates for desktops and laptops are the same, though, and assume that the desktop needs just as much embodied energy, then I think it's safe to recommend for anybody who's never had a computer before to get a laptop.
While it is true that laptops generally use a fraction of the power that the average desktop requires (my laptop needs 20 watts compared to my 140 watts desktop) if you're going to buy a new one, you should always consider the embodied (gray) energy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embodied_energy) required to build a laptop. An estimate I've come across is about 1 megawatt. Also, the lifespan of the average laptop depends on the make & model (IBM Thinkpads are known to be the most robust). Hopefully laptops will become more modular over time so things that tend to fail (fans, drives, screen, keyboard, trackpad) can be replaced more easily.