Are laptops getting heavier?

Looking at the new Envy 14, its got the aluminum cover I like, but its over 5 pounds I've read. Even the Apples, with their thin forms and sleek designs feel like they're made of lead inside. I have a 7 year old laptop, 15", aluminum cover, and its under 5 pounds. Even my 2 year old current 15" asus is only 5.5 pounds. Is the premium market like the Sony Z the only way to keep from buying a hefty, thick brick of a laptop these days while keeping any hope of gaming? Is this largely a result of the new discrete video requiring heavier heatsinks and more cooling compared to the ATI 3650 and ATI 9000 in my older laptops? Or is something else making them heavier? And how are the premium laptops like the Sony Z able to keep the weight down?

Or is it all in my imagination?

 

I don't think so, these Compaq nx9110 and nx9600 on work desk my are both 15" laptops yet they're over an inch thick and weigh like 7.5lbs each .

Let's not even talk about their power bricks which are twice the size and weight of current power bricks

 

Yes and no. Certain laptop lines (especially gaming series lines) are getting lighter compared to some of the previous 12lb monsters, mainstream stuff is getting heavier because they are using cheaper/heavier components to keep costs down. If a mainstream consumer is really worried about weight, companies figure they'll buy a netbook.

 

I think laptops are getting lighter. For example:

Acer Aspire 3820TG-434G64n:
- Intel Core i5 430M (2,27 – 2,53 GHz)
- ATI Mobility Radeon HD5650 (1 GByte GDDR3) / Intel HD Graphics
- 13,3" HD-ready Display (1366 x 768 Pixel); verspiegelt
- 4 GByte DDR3 Arbeitsspeicher
- 640 GByte Festplatte (5400 rpm)
- 3x USB, LAN, HDMI, VGA, Audio In / Out, Kartenleser
- Weight 1.820 Gramm

These are available is 14" too (and maybe 15" not sure).

Carbon Fibre.

 

I think it really depends what you're comparing. Like I stated, laptops from the beginning of the life of laptops were big, bulky and heavy for the most so in that regard, I think laptops have indeed become smaller, lighter and more efficient.

You also have to take into account that bigger and badder hardware is being crammed into a similarly sized notebook(if not smaller if you compare the Compaqs I was talking about earlier) so they need bigger heatsinks sometimes and stuff.

 

If you look at a certain line of laptops (disregarding new ones), yes they are getting heavier every year. The point of "laptops" seems to have disappeared for a year or two. Until well, netbooks came along and Intel started making some affordable CULV CPUs for lighter notebooks.

And I agree, my Pentium M and MR9700 15.4'' notebook was 5.6lbs, now most comparable 15'' notebooks with a mid range GPU is over 6lbs. That said those Pentium Ms ran very cool.

Lighter? Nah, 4lbs (1.8KG) is average for a notebook in the 13'' range. Think the Sony SZ (6/7 series). Same weight (just about), the 7 series had HDMI IIRC, dedicated graphics, the 8400M probably ran just as warm as the HD56xx anyway. Don't forget the 65nm T7xxx CPUs either.

 

Nah... this is a budget notebook with Core i5 and full blown GPU (Ati HD5650). 1.8 KG is very light considering the price and specs.

Sony makes light premium laptops in another price category. Not comparable imo.

The SZ weighed 1.7KG, the Z weighs 1.38 KG. Another example that laptops are getting lighter.

 

Aren't computers supposed to get faster over different generations? Can I not expect a faster computer in the same form factor and weight for a similar if not cheaper price after skipping 2/3 generations ahead? Also, have Acer ever been expensive? And Acer quality? Ok I am not here to talk about Acer "quality" lets end there right here.

Also, if you strip down all of the SZ's features, I wonder what price it would become. Mind you the SZ was one of the early notebooks with switchable graphics and LED backlit screen (on premium models). Are there similar "firsts" with the Acer? Nope, just existing technology cramped into a smaller shell no?

And the Z is physically smaller.

 

It's an example that computers are generally getting lighter. I can't think of a 13" budget laptop with full powered CPU, GPU, DVD drive and 6 cell battery that weighed 1.8 KG.

The fact that the Sony premium 13" model went down 300 grams is another example.

Comparing the Acer to the Sony Z or SZ doesn't make much sense to me. One is a premium product with carbon fibre, Acer is a mainstream plastic product.

To me Acer Timeline and Asus UL series are more examples that computers are becoming lighter.

 

You have to define "lighter" and "heavier" within context though. I mean, a G73JH is definitely heavier than an Inspiron 17 from 3 years ago, but it's also worlds more powerful.

 

By switching to a 16:9 and having a generally smaller chassis. They are two different sizes. No?

 

I don't think that accounts for more than 300 grams but I'll let you do the maths

Let's take two models that have the same dimensions: the previous Sony VNG-Z and the latest VPC-Z. It's 100 grams lighter.

 

I'd just like to point out that the Envy has a 14.5" screen, which isn't entirely comparable to the standard 14" screen laptops, or for that matter the Z which has a much smaller 13.1" screen. It is like comparing a 17" laptop a 15.6", a 1.4" screen size difference can make quite the difference in weight!

I think laptops in general have been improving. For example, my 16.4" Sony FW 490 is about the same weight as my old 15.4" Dell Inspiron 6400.

 

I don't know, you seem to have it all figured out. How about you explain it to me?

 

If I want a laptop to travel with I would get a 13" or 14" one. Course not all too powerful to keep the weight low.

At the other hand you've got the so called desktop replacement notebooks like the Alienware M17x and the XPS M1730. Heavy systems cause of the powerful hardware. These kind of notebooks almost never leave the desk.

So yeah, overall in the end the average notebook system is getting heavier.

 

In general they're getting lighter. However, you should keep in mind that laptops today a significantly more powerful than they were just a few years ago. If you look at it from that perspective, some of what you perceived to be a single increase in weight, may in fact be the result of the many additional components which serve to enhance and increaase computing ablility. Given that, you should look at it as being a ratio (power to weight increase), and not solely weight alone.

 

I've been using for a long time an Aopen 1557, a 15" (4/3) with Dothan 1.8 and MR9700 (I'm finally getting a 6930p this afternoon).

Interestingly, it weights the same (6.3lbs) as an i7 Dell XPS16 and also cost exactly the same (the XPS16 is cheaper when you factor in inflation and the aopen was a barebone).

 

VGN-SZ71WN/C, H x W x D (in mm): 35 x 316 x 233 = 2576980 mm3 1.8 kg
VPC-Z11X9E/B, H x W x D (in mm): 34 x 314 x 210 = 2241960 mm3 1.388 kg

Difference in size 335020 mm3 = 13 %
Difference in weight 0.412 kg = 23 %

Data from Notebookcheck.com