Wireless vs. Wired Title Bout

[GITANAJAVA]

And now, for something completely different....

Throwing science, statistics and caution to the wind, if you use your Mac laptop exclusively or MORE OFTEN than a desktop, please indicate a percentage breakdown of how often you use your laptop via Wi-Fi versus any other mode. As for me:

PB G4, 100% of the time & 100% Wi-Fi. Have laptop, will travel

 

[PSUchris]

Since I've gotten my macbook this summer, I've pretty much exclusively used that, turning my desktop into a file/webserver. I use wifi whenever I'm out of the apartment but when I'm at home I'd say 50% wired, 50% wifi. Pretty much depends if I'm sitting at my desk or not.

cb

 

[Westside guy]

At home I'm pretty much 100% wi-fi (802.11g WPA network). Only exception is when I need to move gigabytes at a time - for example, when I backup a machine for the first time. In those rare cases I will pull out an Ethernet cable and hook up.

At work I plug in to a gigabit line, because there's no advantage to wireless there - I'm pretty much always at my desk while I'm computing.

 

[mad jew]

I'm almost totally on wireless for all my machines, except when I'm transferring large files in which case I use my ol' iPod.

 

[chaslam]

When I had my MB, I used wired 90% of the time (as I would sit at my desk) and 10% wireless.

Now I have my MBP, and I must have plugged it in once to the wired system, as I move it around so much more I dont see the point. Ive realised that it doesnt increase the battery life enough to justify using it wired, so its not worth the effort, although sometimes plug it in to buy things off the internet, you know for security. You never know whos watching haha.

 

[Eraserhead]

At home I'm pretty much 100% wi-fi (802.11g WPA network). Only exception is when I need to move gigabytes at a time - for example, when I backup a machine for the first time. In those rare cases I will pull out an Ethernet cable and hook up.

At work I plug in to a gigabit line, because there's no advantage to wireless there - I'm pretty much always at my desk while I'm computing.

Pretty much the same for me, I have to use wireless in my room as the wired connection is plugged into a PC without wireless.

 

[GITANAJAVA]

I'm almost totally on wireless for all my machines, except when I'm transferring large files in which case I use my ol' iPod.

Hello, MJ! Thanks for checking in on this totally unscientific survey

Part of the motivation behind my query: laptops were once considered a luxury or a toy, the device you used to augment your desktop or because your boss gave you one to use on road trips or in the field. They weren't widely regarded or respected as a primary choice for one's computing needs. Thanks to the widening availability and awareness of Wi-Fi, the creation of laptops/notebooks with durability and versatility comparable to the average desktop computer, and the movement away from the industrial workstyle (fewer and fewer of us work in offices, at desks, or in factories), we are untethered.

We can work where we want and how we want and however we know ourselves to be most productive and creative: in the hammock, seated in our cars, in our pyjamas, power-dining with clients in a fine restaurant. We who laptop know our population is growing, we encounter one another and share ideas and questions across the Starbucks patio, our desk-bound colleagues and workmates enviously ask "so how does that work anyway?", and the multiplication of sites like JiWire demonstrate that our numbers are on the uptick. However, key parts of the technology are lagging: if you doubt this, see how many times the topic of "how can I improve my wireless reception on my laptop" in MR, much less any other forum open to laptop users be they Mac-heads or Brand X.

Mobility is the name of the game. It's driving the changes in cellular technology at a fever pitch, it should be doing the same for laptops/notebooks. The headcount here will be a tiny index to the bigger reality.

 

[mad jew]

I love it. The average laptop is more than enough computer for the average user. Even though I still use my iMac predominantly, I used to run exclusively from my iBook G4 and never encountered any major drawbacks other than maybe screen size. The performance gap between desktops and laptops is shrinking, plus our demands on the computer aren't growing at the same rate as technology improves our machines. Happy times.

 

[tejota1911]

At home my MBP uses 100% wi-fi 802.11g on a 6.0Mb connection. At work it stays wired because we don't have a wireless router installed yet. I'm half tempted to buy one myself and install it. Then I will be able to access the internet from anywhere, not just my desk.

 

[GITANAJAVA]

At home my MBP uses 100% wi-fi 802.11g on a 6.0Mb connection. At work it stays wired because we don't have a wireless router installed yet. I'm half tempted to buy one myself and install it. Then I will be able to access the internet from anywhere, not just my desk.

Laptop = Freeeeeedommmmmmm

 

[jhande]

At desk (60% of the time), wired. Otherwise untethered.

I became mobile last year when I bought an iBook G4. This was great, but I still needed my desktop for the occasional windows stuff. This year I got myself a MB. Now? The laptop is my only machine. With that, and an external drive for backup my entire electronic life fits in my backpack.

Now if only I could be untethered from the power sockets as well

 

[thewhitehart]

Even my imac is running wirelessly via Airport Express, I have two of them! I love the fact that I only have two wires connected to my computer: the plug, and the keyboard wire. Soon I'll get a wireless keyboard, and I'll have but one wire! The router is downstairs, and my friends are amazed when they see my wire free desktop environment. Some of them are mac illiterate, and say "Where's the computer?" when they see the imac.

My desk is pimpin' the wireless

 

[iñaki'sonMac'87]

I go wi-fi at home, at work and in both Universities I teach.

 

[GITANAJAVA]

At desk (60% of the time), wired. Otherwise untethered. ..... Now if only I could be untethered from the power sockets as well

True, there is the unrelenting requirement to re-juice.

However, I've found the shops, pubs, and restaurants where I most frequently hotspot at have been incredibly cooperative when the need arises, if one is courteous when asking. One shop owner even offered the use of his surge protector; in another instance, a restaurateur who was remodelling his drinks patio had the builder add several covered outdoor outlets because he noticed "those portables people (sic) stay longer, spend more, and they're no bother at all". Also, air terminals and public places hide more electrical outlets than you might think. Two years+ into laptop life, no one has forbidden me the use of their electric yet.

 

[GITANAJAVA]

Jhande, maybe the day we are unleashed from the electric grid is closer than we think!

From our own MacRumors' files, there's this:

"Apple Eyeing Heat-Electricity Conversion Chip?


The president and CEO of Eneco, a "development stage company" that claims to have developed a small chip that can convert heat into electricity, claims that he is in talks with both Apple and Dell regarding his company's technology.

First reported on an IT Week blog "Green Business News", Eneco claims that their chips can produce electricity from heat at up to 30% efficiency.

Quote:
The company says it is already in talks with both Dell and Apple about how the chips could be used in their devices. Initial talks have focused on integrating the heat conversion chips into the device so it can harness the heat generated by processors and turn it into electricity to power fans or other cooling technologies. By harnessing this power the devices, be they initially laptops and handhelds, or later even servers and PCs, should see improved energy efficiency, extended battery life and enhanced performance.
There are issues with the chip, as are to be expected from a development-stage product based on a new technology. At the present time, Eneco hopes to begin production late next year or early 2008."