Small Notebook Computers

Technical inventions represent the fundamental structure of our modern world. Technology remains basic and we seem to be lost without it.

One of the inventions many of us cannot do without is the PC. The latest developments in the field of computers have brought us the laptops. When discussing about laptops, which are also called small notebook computers, we actually mean small PCs for mobile use.

We can virtually retrieve all the basic components in laptops from desktops. Thus, laptops have a display screen, a built in keyboard, a pointing device replacing the mouse and a battery power source. The difference lies in the fact that all these components are to be found into one single unit that is also portable. The rechargeable batteries of laptops get their power from an AC/DC adapter and their capacity enables them to be functional for several hours.

The thin shape of the devices definitely led to their being called notebook computers. Laptops thickness seldom goes higher than 1.5 inches and their overall size specifics range from 10x8 inches (13 inch display) to 15x11 inches (17 inch display) or up. Furthermore, laptops are built light, weighing between 3 and 12 pounds. Last but not least, the flipping feature allows for a good protection of the screen and makes portability possible.

Personal computers became feasible at the beginning of the 1970s and not long after those years the idea of portable PCs "small notebook computers", appeared. The person who imagined the transformation was Alan Kay of Xerox PARC. In 1972 took shape as a project under the name of Dynabook. By 1981, the first laptops were introduced on the market. The Epson HX-20 and Osborne 1 models were the first portable computers commercially available. Since then laptops have developed and become more and more proficient.

Unfortunately, there are downsides to the use of laptops too. First we need to see the good parts to be able to investigate the flaws. The main and most important advantage of laptops is evidently the flexible use they are suitable for. Moreover, laptops have the ability to work on battery power in the event of a power outage.

Small notebook computers are also more economical and do not produce as much heat as desktop computers do. Compatibility and standardization are the main flaws of laptops today. In spite of some international standards for the manufacturing the elements for the peripherals and add-in PC cards in desktop computers, the internal components are a lot more difficult to standardize according to a unique international code.