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    More laptops coming with 3:2 screens?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by GregL65, Mar 13, 2015.

  1. GregL65

    GregL65 Newbie

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    The Surface Pro 3 and the Chromebook Pixel both have 3:2 screens. That works out to close to 16:11, almost exactly in the middle between 16:10 and 4:3. That's great for those of us who like taller screens on small laptops.

    Are more laptops on the way with 3:2 screens?

    16:9 is great for desktop, but not great for spreadsheets on small laptops at business meetings. I often meet clients at coffeehouses, and if I take anything bigger than 12", it's likely to have to stay on my lap rather than on the table. I much prefer having it on the table.

    For meetings like that, the only laptop dimension that matters is width. Depth and thickness are all but irrelevant. If a person brings a 14" or bigger, they often have to keep it on their lap. Those who bring 12" laptops more often have space to have them on the little table.

    But spreadsheets on a 16:9 screen on a 12" laptop are a form of torture. There just isn't enough vertical space. They remind me of my very first laptop, a 386SX in the mid 1990s that was about 3" thick at the rear, and had a small, short screen. I don't miss it.

    I have a 12" Lenovo X201, with a 2.66GHz i7. As far as I know it's the fastest 16:10 12" laptop ever made. I had planned to used it as many years as I could hold out, not wanting to downgrade to a newer 16:9. But these two 3:2 models give me hope that I won't have to try to use this X201 for another decade.

    So -- are more 3:2 laptops on the way, or are the Surface Pro 3 and Chromebook Pixel just anomalies?
     
    GregL65, Mar 13, 2015
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  2. HTWingNut

    HTWingNut Potato

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    Check out Samsung's new 2015 ATIV Book 9 NP930X2K 12.2-Inch Laptop:

    http://www.amazon.com/NP930X2K-K01US-12-2-Inch-Laptop-Imperial-Black/dp/B00RBDB2EM

    http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/pcs/NP930X2K-K01US

    It's not an i7 but still faster than that i7-620m and it's a fanless laptop, with a 16:10 2560x1600 display. Most small form factors have moved into the 13.3" range where they include all the power and I believe Samsung offers a 16:10 variant of that. 3:2 is more for a tablet I think. Laptops will likely stay with 16:9 or 16:10 only because they want the extra width for the keyboard. 3:2 would restrict the size of the keyboard and/or create a thick bezel around the LCD.

    I don't mind 16:9 so much for spreadsheets because I run two side by side, but you can with 16:10 as well, and I do miss having more vertical space.
     
    HTWingNut, Mar 13, 2015
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