Morris Randall. - Explanations and Advice for the Tech Illiterate

Desktop: One of the oldest forms of computer still used today is the desktop. A desktop is a computer tower that sends a video signal to a monitor. The computer tower contains a motherboard, RAM, a power supply, a graphics card, a hard drive and possibly some other parts like a CD/DVD/BluRay drive, extra cooling fans, etc. Desktops generally have the best specs for your money because you sacrifice portability to gain performance. Desktops are the only form of computer that can upgrade to a better graphics card. The reason the desktop is still around is that you cant beat it in terms of performance by going smaller in size so the fastest computers with the best graphics cards are likely going to be desktops.

Laptop / Notebook: With a notebook, you have all the same components as a desktop but a laptop is portable. A laptop will have its own built in screen, mouse, webcam, and speakers. While a laptop has all the same parts a desktop has, it will generally have less RAM and hard drive space for the money you pay for one. The graphics card cant be upgraded. Youre generally stuck with what you have because the parts inside a laptop are a lot harder to get to and replace compared to a desktop. Laptops generally have more heat related problems as well since the components are all a lot closer together and the fans inside are generally smaller.

Netbook: A netbook is a smaller version of a laptop / notebook. Netbooks generally have a screen size of 10 or smaller. Theyre easier to carry and more portable than a laptop due to their smaller size but you wont have a CD/DVD drive on a netbook. If you want to play a DVD, youll have to hook up a CD/DVD player (generally with a USB cable). Netbooks have less RAM, smaller motherboards, and smaller hard drives than laptops but theyre good for basic tasks like surfing the internet and running most basic programs and theyre also very affordable compared to desktops and laptops.

Tablet: Tablets are a lot like netbooks except they dont have a standard keyboard. Tablets are touch-screen devices that offer a lot of the same benefits of a netbook but they rely on apps instead of more complex programs. Apps are generally inexpensive programs that allow you to do one thing (or sometimes a few things). A tablet will have an app for watching videos, one for listening to music, one for word processing, etc. When you need to type something out, a keyboard will appear on the screen or you can hook up a compatible keyboard and essentially turn a tablet into something more like a netbook. Like a laptop or netbook, tablets generally have cameras and built-in speakers.

Smart phone: A smart phone, believe it or not, is a phone that is also a small computer. Smart phones run like tablets in the sense that they have apps that allow you to play games or do more productive things. Smart phones have processors, a set amount of RAM, and a camera. They generally have a removable memory card that can act as a hard drive. When you use apps on a smart phone, the battery life will drain much quicker.

All-in-one: All-in-one computers are like desktop computers but they dont have a separate monitor and computer tower. All the components of the desktop are built into the monitor and the USB ports, headphone jack, CD/DVD drive, etc. are all on the computer monitor. These tend to be more like a mix between a desktop and laptop in the sense that it leaves less pieces to carry but the internal parts wont be as fast. Since all of the parts are built into the monitor, all-in-one computers can have overheating issues like laptops.