Laptop is a small portable computer that includes most of the features of a desktop computer such as keyboard, display, speakers, pointing device and a rechargeable battery. All the features are covered in a light and small unit in a laptop. The battery is quite powerful to run the laptop for hours when charged from an AC/DC adapter.

The thickness of a laptop ranges from 0.7-1.5 inches and the dimensions range from 10×8 to 15×11 inches or more. The older laptops were more heavy than the recent models that weigh 3 to 12 pounds. The modern laptops feature the flip form factor in order to protect both the keyboard and the screen when the laptop is closed.

Laptop computers are also known as notebook computers now a days since the laptops are shaped like large notebooks. Laptops are actually thinner and lighter counterpart of the big and heavy desktop computers.

You must have heard about subnotebook and netbook. What are they? Subnotebook is nothing but a laptop designed with its main focus on portability. It is small in size and of low weight (0.8 to 2kg). It usually comes with long battery life. If you install a large battery you can run the laptop for as long as 10 hours.

Laptop computers that are energy efficient, economical and perfect for wireless communication as well as Internet access are refered as Netbooks. Netbooks are more suitable for Internet browsing and emailing. Netbooks usually features operating sysytems like Linux and Windows XP rather than Windows Vista with less processing power.

The question often arises whether laptop computers are more useful than desktop computers? The answer can be nothing but yes. The main reason is portability. Whether you are working at office or sitting at home, traveling in a flight or enjoying a coffee at a café you can carry your laptop along with you. It will save your time. If you carry a notebook you can have immediate access to useful information, personal files etc.

If you need to do the same work at office and at home and in two different desktop computers then it becomes difficult to update the documents again and again. However if you do the work in a laptop the files will remain updates all the time. Laptops support cellular broadband data services. So you can have easy access to Internet anytime and anywhere.

Since laptops are small and can be closed when not used they consume less space than desktop computers. Laptops also consume less power then desktop computers. In case of power outrage also a laptop can run for several hours.