Do you prefer smartphone or desktop?

[Rolling Cattle]

I'm curious INTP users: If you had to make a choice between smartphone and desktop, which would you use, and which could you live without?

An elderly couple were thinking about getting a computer or tablet, and asked me which they should go with. Instead of directly answering, I named pros and cons of each and stated that it may be up to their personal preference.

I have a strong preference for desktops. I like the ease of the keyboard, and customizing everything to my liking. I don't use smartphones. I had one for awhile, and found it boring. I can't rage about smartphone users because I'm just as addicted to desktops as people are to their phones.

I get the impression that my preference is part of a minority.

 

[Gyppo]

phones are cheap and can be moved

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

I hate everything, i think all technology is just a confident trap to get people into a system of more control and less common agreement. And the internationally soul-less profit from it as long as they can keep you under the wrap of control via facejam etc.

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

VERY GOOD (KAWAIIIII), I VOTE FOR FACEJAM THOUGHT ASSISTANCE BECAUSE IT GIVES ME FWEEDUM TO HAVE TO THINK LESS ABOUT THE COMPLEX WORLD SURROUNDING ME AND INSTEAD PWIOTIVISING MY SPENDING HABBITS!!!11!

 

[The Gopher]

Soon the phone or tablets will be the desktop. Docking station with maybe a more powerful card similar to what the switch does will be how it works. My phone can already have a fully functional desktop if plugged into an adaptor and it's four year old tech.

I couldn't live without a phone for work but I much prefer desktop for use. However I fully welcome the day I have one device that is my phone and desktop.

 

[baccheion]

I prefer laptops, especially as I'm a Software Engineer.

 

[Reluctantly]

Both? Smart phones are hard to work on, but great as storage devices, entertainment, and for looking up information, including map routes, almost anywhere.

But I could probably create or buy a docking interface for a phone to use like desktop. So I guess phone wins.

Edit: oh Gopher already mentioned dock.

 

[Minuend]

If I'm to remain stationary for a long time, I prefer computers with 2 screens. I've never owned 2 screens, but I imagine they make playing puzzle games while watching movies or tv series more enjoyably, or being able to keep track on discord occasionally while gaming, or just take a quick break from gaming because there's a limit to how long you can play the same game sitting still and not engage in other tasks.

Smart phones can be pretty comfy, though, sitting under a blanket with tea and reading some weird book. I prefer reading books on my smart phone

I hate everything, i think all technology is just a confident trap to get people into a system of more control and less common agreement. And the internationally soul-less profit from it as long as they can keep you under the wrap of control via facejam etc.

Do you think this was better before pcs and smart phones? Or do you think they are contributing to continue the cycle of controlling people which was previously manipulated by other factors?

 

[Polaris]

Laptop because sometimes I need to take my work with me, and a smartphone wouldn't do the job. Because I have poor vision (from staring at screens and doing close-up work, incidentally), I also carry a 9.7-inch iPad Pro with me for reading books, pdf's, checking photos, etc. Also handy as an extra screen for work. Considering getting the 10.5-inch version next time.

 

[CogTheOtherCog]

Desktop for me.
I have a smarthphone but I don't utilise it a huge amount, at least not compared to my peers.

Whatever benefits that desktops give in terms of processing power and anything like that is less and less significant with every passing year, but the combination of a large screen + mouse + keyboard gives a huge advantage to the speed and efficiency of the connection to the ten-fingered ape sat in front of it, the efficiency of which a smartphone can't yet match. And of course desktops have some less-inherent advantages in terms of the increased control you have over the device itself.

Unfortunately, for 99% of people the convenience and simplicity of smartphones wins out. Now every website is being modified to suit the smartphone users, gmail, news websites, my bank statements, over the years they've all been updated to new styles where text is getting bigger and lines spaced further and further apart to make them touch-screen friendly, which for me means I'm scrolling four times as much to see the same amount of information.