Laptop Computers

Sunday, December 28th, 2008 at 8:56 am

The laptop computer is the companion of many a mobile worker. It allows people to work wherever and whenever they want to. Most of the information they need resides in the laptop, and there is also the possibility of connecting to the Internet to gain access to e-mail and other information available online. Primarily due to their large screens and full-size keyboards, laptops are great for data-input heavy activities, such as the creation of documents, spreadsheets, or presentations. They do, however, have some drawbacks that reduce their usefulness to mobile workers. The computers’ large size and often quite substantial weight still make them relatively cumbersome devices, especially to those users who need continuous access to a computing device while on the move. Although the laptop computer will remain the device of choice for many mobile workers who will be stationary at various intervals during the day, they will be less useful for individuals who need computing power while walking around—as is the case for a mobile field technician or a doctor making hospital rounds.

Laptops will continue to evolve, with the next generation evolving into Tablet PCs. Tablet PCs are similar to laptops but there is one major difference: the screen is placed on the outside of the device rather than on the inside (you don’t need to flip up the lid to access the screen). Tablet PCs have a touch-screen keyboard, which does make them less useful when writing extensive documents. Nevertheless, the capability to communicate and to have access to all the functionalities of a PC will be appealing to many users.

Some mobile workers will move from using a laptop computer to working with a highly mobile PDA that is linked to a stationary PC at the office. However, most “true” laptop warriors will continue to prefer working with fully functioning, large memory and processing power–bearing laptop computers that have bigger screens and keyboards than their lightweight PDAs.

Taken From : Enterprise Guide to Gaining Business Value from Mobile Technologies