I’m just not happy with a laptop as my new desktop computer
Early in December I finally transitioned from my old Airtop-PC to the aforementioned Lenovo P14s as my primary desktop computer. Over the holidays I received a USB-C dock that also serves as a monitor shelf. That allowed me to reorganize my desk.
The laptop stays tucked away under the shelf. One USB-C cable runs to the dock/hub, which feeds the monitor, connects to Ethernet and the USB keyboard. A Logitech MX Master 3 BT mouse rounds it all out.
I have to power the laptop separate from the hub. The hub doesn’t provide the wattage that the P14 demands. Since I had a spare USB-C power supply, that was not a problem.
The trouble is, I’m just not happy with this arrangement. It’s not really a good replacement for the old desktop.
The P14s is a decent machine. Powerful. The 3K display is nice…but its not 4K. If the laptop is open, the external display snaps to a 3K mirror of the built-in display. Since I prefer to use an external keyboard, I mostly work with the laptop closed.
The 1TB SSD means I must rely on external storage in a way that was not previously the case. I had to rework my Dropbox installation to not sync all the files in the account to my primary machine. That’s just weird. It basically pushes me towards a NAS.
My webcam, an Insta360 Link 4K, doesn’t seem to work when connected to the hub. It has to connect to one of the USB-A type jacks on the laptop.
My headset, a Jabra Biz 2400, connects to one of the front USB-A jacks on the hub.
Last fall, just after I purchased the P14, I was considering different docks. I really like the dock for the X1 Carbon. It’s what I consider a traditional dock. The laptop sits on it, locking into place. It presents a diversity of ports across its back edge.
In the case of the X1 Carbon, I didn’t really need a dock. It was not a machine to be used at my desk. I needed a second power supply. I bought the dock because it was actually cheaper than a second power supply.
The P14s is intended to be deskbound. Maybe I would be happier with the more expensive Lenovo Thunderbolt dock?
Since the P14 is a laptop, I tried to use it on the go a few times. That is, I took it into the house and used it as I would normally use the X1 Carbon, to do casual things, while watching TV and such like.
This is where I found that I’m spoiled. I prefer simply prefer the X1 Carbon. Sure, it’s slower, but the battery lasts longer. It’s so much lighter. The P14 is heavy enough to not really be something to be balanced on a knee or lap. It’s awkward to pick up one-handed. In reality, for writing and casual browsing, it’s simply more computer than I want or need.
In my past life, travelling extensively for business, the P14 would have been ideal. It’s a true mobile workstation in a 14-inch form factor. That would have been ideal. I really disliked the 15-16 inch laptops that were commonplace at that time. They were backbreakers for the road weary.
After I transitioned to the P14 from the Airtop, I repurposed the old desktop to take the role of NVR for our surveillance cameras. With a decent CPU and nVidia GPU it had the potential to support more cameras, and possibly object recognition. I’ll never know. A few days after I completed that task, the Airtop failed outright. I suspect it suffered an unfortunate static discharge. That happened once before when the unit was under warranty. The manufacturer replaced it without question.
Shifting back to the P14s, I’m not sure how this transition will play out. As of this moment, I’m more inclined to revert to a real desktop than tinker with different docks. But I’m in no hurry.