Coffee break- no laptop case?
I’m working away in the local coffee bar and see something that I’ve been seeing more and more of lately and it puzzles me. A couple of people was working away at the tables and got up to leave to resume their work day. They each picked up their notebook with the papers they were carrying and headed out the door. Both of them were carrying their notebook naked, no case, sleeve, nothing. I am seeing this done more frequently the past couple of weeks than I have ever seen and I’m wondering why anyone would carry a notebook, especially a full-size one, around unprotective? It’s not safe, it’s not comfortable and if it happened to start raining while they were in the coffee shop they’d be toast. Am I missing something?
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Are you missing something?
Maybe a roof on your coffee shop?
All I want for the thing is a frigon handle. Totegrip is the only simple one I can find but I wonder if the hinges can take the strain???
I don’t even understand why people carry paper in addition to their notebooks, let alone why they lug all that around without a case. That said, I think John in Norway is on the right track; a roof on your coffee shop would help with a sudden rain. :P
Lower price laptop + Cloud computing, maybe?
If I’m just walking to my car to drive to Starbucks, I’ve gone without a case many times. There’s a whole lot to be said for “close the lid and go.”
What changed that in the just the last couple weeks is that I finally sprung for a laptop bag more appropriate for such short trips. Until then it seemed silly to use my (average sized) laptop bag just to walk to the car and a coffee shop.
What’s so portable about having additional pockets and bags to put things in. If you minimize what it is you carry, then you can concentrate more on getting work done.
And better, if you don’t take a power cable with you, then you are making the best use of the *mobile* aspect of your *mobile* device.
Seems pretty smart to me, and I get by with a N95 and Frogpad ;)
Maybe people aren’t quite as parannoyed as you :) I am guilty as charged on this matter, I simply think I have control of both quite easily. *Touches wood* (one day Josh, one day!)
I don’t even own a case for my netbook. To me, that’s one of the great things about these machines.
They’re so inexpensive, I don’t feel the need to spend even more money on a case. Also, a computer as small as my Mini 9 is so light that it doesn’t need a case to be carried comfortably.
I do, however, still use a case for my full sized notebook. It costs too much, and is too heavy to lug around bare handed.
Notebooks aren’t as easily broken as most people think, and bags can add a lot of size/weight. Dropping my macbook air on the floor damaged mostly the floor, and I have a laptop bag sitting on my desk that weighs as much as the computer. Rain isn’t really an issue either – unless it’s actually immersed or you leave it in the rain with the keyboard exposed the water will stay on the outside of the case.
I guess a lot depends on how it is you use the device and how large/heavy it is. For a simple sprint down to the coffee shop, I wouldn’t be taking a case either, since I know I won’t be staying for more time than a full charge would allow.
I recently took a 17″ HP dv7 for a spin. http://lgponthemove.blogspot.com/ It’s big, it’s nice, but not too heavy that I couldn’t carry it in one hand from the desk to the car and back.
My 2133 Mini note? I just whip it under my arm and keep both hands free for coffee and handshakes.
Going on an all-day trip, however, I would probably throw in the laptop bag with a car charger.
I agree with John though, a roof over your coffee shop does help when it is raining. :)
I carry my laptop around without a case to coffee shops and around the office park. While I can’t speak for others, I’ll say that I do so for a few reasons. I’m not so worried about what happens to my laptop – my own personal machine, and even less so for my employer’s machine; Naked is easier and lighter; most laptop bags are too dorky; I live in California, where it rains rarely and lightly.
I just throw my stuff in a bag these days… if I remember the bag, that is. Actually if we’re expecting rain, I make sure I have the bag.
My Fujitsu P7120 notebook came with felt on the bottom, which makes it significantly less likely to slip if I’ve got it clamped between my arm and my body. That said, I’ve usually got it in a bag that’s big enough for the notebook plus a couple of magazines. The shoulder strap makes carrying it long distances much easier.
Unless its raining outside I’m not worried. I carry my mini9 around without a case for short trips. For foul weather days i use a small messenger bag.
Get a ToughBook with a handle – splash-proof, unlikely to be and dropped, and will handle the drop if you do, and then you can actually use your notebook’s few pounds of weight rather than doubling or tripling them (or more) with a bag.
By the time I put it in a bag with a power adapter, padding, etc., my 2 lb. slate becomes 5-10 lbs. May as well buy a ToughBook 52 which is no heavier and has a big WUXGA display, faster CPU, and won’t notice if I spill the coffee on it when I’m sitting at the table!
“Unless its raining outside I’m not worried”
Has it ever rained inside?
I carry a bag for everything, but “everything” doesn’t mean much anymore. It’s an Eee 901, a 3G USB modem, and a couple of small notebooks. Why juggle stuff when I can use a bag, after all? I’ve finally reduced my loadout to just the bare necessities, and while there are moments where I wish I had a certain gadget, I’m never really *missing* it.
If I did just want to hop into a Starbucks for an hour or two, I’d still have at least the Eee 901 in its included slip case, which should be just enough to avoid a few drops of rain, a car hitting a puddle, or some flying coffee. Past that, there’s really no cause for concern.
It’s easier to show off your cool notebook with no case. A lot of Hollywood starlets are doing this with MacBooks lately.
for 10 years i carried my various dell laptops around without a case. when i purchased my first macbook three weeks ago i bought a case for it immediately. my macbook feels special, whereas the other computers just felt like computers to me.
For the same reason notebook docking stations sell. Simplicity.
Take notebook to cafe. Come back, put notebook back on desk.
Versus
Find bag. Put notebook in bag. Take notebook out. Find somewhere to put bag. Put notebook back in bag. Go home. Take notebook out. Put bag somewhere.
Take a look at some notebook bags. Some are not waterproof – there’s no zipper to completely close the bag.
I would think there’s less impact on the notebook carrying it like a book then it banging back and forth, pendulum like, swinging from your shoulder or constantly hitting your back. That’s why I pad my notebook bag with a towel.
The best compromise is the sleeve. That is why I think they are selling.