laptop size

peterr · Mar 3, 2011

Excuse the subjective nature of the question but would you say 14" is a bit small for a latop.
Dell offered great "guts" for the $ and I think I awoke to find the small size is the reason.
I have not yet ordered one. It is hard to leave the house and "try one on".
Perhaps 16" is an average if there is one?
Thank you

plodr · Mar 3, 2011

I'm using a 7" netbook with my "senior" eyes. I attach a 17" LCD monitor when I use it at my computer desk. When I roam with it, I have a Firefox addon called nosquint which allows me to change the size of things on a website, site by site and it remembers my settings. I up the settings to 120% and can read the forums here fine. I bought it because it weighs under 2 pounds and is very easy to travel with because of the small size and weight. I also watch movies on it when I have to sit and wait for an appointment anywhere.

You do have to see if 14" is comfortable or 16" would be better for you personally. No one can pick for you. Make a cardboard template of both diagonal screen sizes to give yourself a feel with what size you would be dealing with.

My old HP laptop, that I use in bed to watch movies has a 15" diagonal screen. When I get another laptop to replace this, I will go with something 15" or smaller.

Wyatt_Earp · Mar 3, 2011

I would say that 15" is probably the typical size for a notebook, so 14" is not too small. I'd suggest going to the store and looking at 14" laptops to decide whether that size would work for you or not...

Keep in mind that larger screens drain the battery faster and aren't quite as portable, so there are advantages to a smaller screen size...

peterr · Mar 4, 2011

Thank you all very much for the information; we can now make a better decision.

gman863 · Mar 7, 2011

It also depends on how portable you want it to be.

If you'll be carrying it in a briefcase or backpack, some 14 inch models may be thinner, lighter and have longer battery life than 15.4" screens.

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laptop size

peterr MajorGeek

plodr MajorGeek Super Extraordinaire Moderator Staff Member

Wyatt_Earp MajorGeek

peterr MajorGeek

gman863 MajorGeek