Replacement laptop, do I want touch screen?

My old Dell Latitude (xp pro) has just about run its lifecycle. Over the years I've replaced various parts on it to keep it going but I think it may have an aliment that is progressively fatal at this point.

I use a laptop as a laptop (actually in my lap) around the house and while on vacation or while camping. Mostly web/forum surfing, but also spreadsheets and word documents several times per year. The unit stays plugged in most of the time. My wife has a tablet so I'm somewhat familiar with them and I'd like to stay with a laptop for now as I do enough keyboard work that the hunt-and-peck entry on a tablet would make me crazy.

The last two laptops have been dell business class machines I've purchased from their refurb center and these have worked out ok for the most part, though they are still pretty spendy when fully optioned out. There are several things I really like about the latitude.
- it is a robust/tough machine. I think it has a magnesium chassis and there is no flex in the unit when it's open and you pick it up by the corner. It tends to get pretty beat up with being knocked about, kicked while on the floor, the dog racing across the keyboard (on my third keyboard now).

- the 15" (non widescreen) size seems just right. I tried a 17" machine before but it was just too big for lap use.

- the lighted keyboard is almost a must as I do some computing in the dark.

- the bright but adjustable led screen is really nice for my old eyes, although it's just a matt finish. It gets brightness adjusted 2 or 3 times per day.

- the touch pad is set in a bit from the edge of the keyboard instead of being right on the edge like a number of laptops. This seems to make it easier to use for me.

As I look at new laptops I see that they are running win 8 and at least half of them have touch screens. While I understand a touch screen on a tablet, I don't understand the advantage on a laptop? It seems strange to me to have to touch the screen when using a laptop. What am I missing here, maybe that win 8 is designed using the tile interface and requires touch screen input? Can a win 8 machine be used like an old style laptop with keyboard and touch pad entry?

Do you have a touch screen laptop and if so how do you like it?

Can a win 8 touch screen laptop be changed to win7 and used as the typical keyboard/touch pad interface or is the hardware somehow locked into win 8?

Thanks

21 Replies

camperforlife
Explorer
Dec 04, 2013
You need to sit down and try both. I don't mean 3 or 4 minutes either. I went to the Microsoft store and spent almost 2 hours on several computers. I bought a touch all in one desktop with 8.1 for work. I do a lot of walking between my desk and my lab bench and use both the touch and standard desktop. Its perfect for me, you need to spend the time to find what is perfect for you.
FlatBroke
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2013
Learn to use an iPad without the key board. The voice recognition works great writing emails, answering forum posts, searching. Faster than typing and a better speller. However I am using a lap top right now cause I have both. Just dont let the lack of a key board make your decision.
tplife
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
I wouldn't make a touchscreen feature my first priority, but it really depends on your own preference of interfacing. One thing I want to see in laptops is an SSD slot. Loading programs now into our "flagship" Lenovo Y510P laptop, and it is a great option for speeding hungry programs like Photoshop.. Sadly new shipments from Lenovo show this slot is not there - darn corner cutting!?!
JaBob
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
Love my IPad

Bob
strollin
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
I've used Win 8 extensively with a mouse and keyboard without issue on laptops and desktops with no touch capability.

I've owned/used Android phones and tablets that only use touch and since the OS was designed from the get go to use touch, it works very well.

Yesterday, I got a Windows tablet that uses touch only (unless I want to hook up an external keyboard). I'm finding it extremely difficult to do some things via touch that are extremely easy to do with a mouse/keyboard. There are things I haven't been able to figure out how to do via touch, yet. One example is customizing FireFox, with a mouse I can drag an icon up to the toolbar and drop it and it adds it to the bar. Using touch, I drag the icon to the bar but can't figure out any kind of gesture to drop it and leave it there.

Personally, I think touch on a Windows machine needs lots of work. I wouldn't want to use touch on a machine with a large monitor like a laptop or desktop since it would require too many exaggerated arm movements and the constant need to move back and forth from tapping the screen and typing on the keyboard. Touch is OK on a phone or tablet (with an OS that was designed for it) but not worth the effort on larger machines.
docj
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
AlGreg wrote:
I would not get the touch screen on a laptop unless you are getting one that folds flat and looks and feels like a tablet.

My DW has a touchscreen Dell Inspiron running 8.1 and I have not "defeated" or hidden the tiles screen for her. She uses the touch screen for some things, but she often forgets and goes back to using a keyboard. Mostly the touch ability is used for games and the Facebook app I loaded for her. Reaching across the keyboard to a vertical screen is not a "natural" motion for a person; it feels awkward.
docj
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
wildtoad wrote:
I have Windows 8.1 on a non-touch screen laptop. Every application I have is a standard windows app and runs on the old desktop mode. 90% of the time I run in desktop mode, only use the tiled screen as the start screen. I do not see the need for touch. I personally wish MS would give the option of totally eliminating the tiled interface from a laptop/desktop.

You can configure 8.1 to open directly to the desktop; that's how I have mine set up. I also run Classic Shell so the START button has its full functionality. I only encounter the tiles screen if I need to access the few Windows 8 apps that I use.
AlGreg
Explorer
Dec 03, 2013
I would not get the touch screen on a laptop unless you are getting one that folds flat and looks and feels like a tablet. I got a Lenovo twist. It converts to a tablet by rotating the screen and closing it with the display on top. It's like a 1/2 inch thick tablet. I do not use it that way very much and it is a lot more expensive than a non touch screen. With the Lenovo Twist I have Windows 8.1 with a 500 GB hard drive, USB 3.0 ports, HDMI output WiDi (wireless display) and a i7 processor. It's a great little laptop and all I have to do is open it up, twist the display 180 degrees and close it. Now I have a tablet.
mlts22
Explorer II
Dec 02, 2013
I'd probably consider a MacBook for a computer used for years and the AppleCare warranty. Pricy, yes, but if something breaks, Apple's CS is top notch compared to waiting on the phone for hours, only to get someone sending you a box to put your laptop in, and then waiting for 2-4 weeks for them to fix it and send it back.

Plus, you can choose to run Windows... or not. Malware like CryptoLocker doesn't exist on Macs (yet), so it is a cleaner environment to run stuff under.
bob_nestor
Explorer III
Dec 02, 2013
Fizz wrote:
Sounds like you keep your computers for years.
Touch screens are the future. You can be sure in the near future many programs will need or at least make good use of touch screens.
Why shut yourself out. Chances are this new one will be with you for years.

Boy, I sure hope the future also comes with no greasy fingerprints then!