Multipurpose Vs. Dedicated Devices

[A Link In Time]

This is an argument that has popularly sprung up in many nooks and corners of the globe. Is it better to carry one device which does it all but at the cost of lesser quality or several which can perform one or at most two tasks particularly well?

Personally, it comes down to the question of your situation at a given moment and how you are able to travel as well as whether you require an all-in-one device and what level of quality you expect from your service or finished product. For example, if I'm going on a long trip and I know I'll be spending hours in a car, train, or airplane, it's certainly convenient to have a tablet or phone with Internet capabilities at hand, however, I'd opt for a true computer whenever possible. This also brings up the classic example of whether or not we need Internet with us everywhere we go. Some people argue Yes because you never know when it could come in handy and it's always convenient to look something up online in the rush of the moment while others hesitate to spend money on such a thing or simply believe that the urge to connect everywhere is a deep seated paranoia. Of course, the true example, I'd like to get down to is the classic do all device such as a tablet vs. cameras, e-readers, camcorders, etc. which perform the same functions but each individually, not as a small part of the larger whole.

What are your thought on this debate? When is it optimal to use each type of device? Which do you prefer? Will multipurpose devices ever fully make some dedicated devices obsolete? If so, which ones?

 

[Johnny Sooshi]

I don't need internet everywhere. Yes I do check up on the internet when I can but to say that we need it everywhere is kinda lame. As for multiple devices vs. a single device, I'm fine with having a phone and an mp3 player separate. It also depends to me on where I'm going. If it's traveling to a summer camp with little to no cell coverage then there's really no need to have a phone is there? Course I don't have one of those fancy-smancy smart phones with Blu-Tooth, 3G/4G, or wifi capabilities. It's just a plain old pay-as-you-go. And you know what? It's perfectly fine. I'd rather not have to worry about what happened on Facebook or what new videos were uploaded to YouTube. If I'm traveling, chances are it's because I want to get away from most forms of technology. At least that's the way it is when I go camping.

Carry my 3DS with me quite a few places. But usually it's when I'm at the store in town or something.

My mp3 is the one thing that I truly never leave. The reason for this is because I love music. I listen to about 4-6 hours easily every day. It's what I love. So that's probably the one exception.

 

[Emma]

It depends on what you want to do and how diluted the quality of the task is with a device. For example, I like digital readers. But reading on a multipurpose device severely cripples how and where you can read. Dedicated reading devices have better screens that are more suited to reading in bright light, but are unsuitable for more complex tasks like web browsing. Dedicated devices generally have one superior quality in common with each other over the multipurpose devices. Multipurpose devices generally have far shorter battery life than dedicated devices.
It really depends on a lot of factors, but generally I say dedicated devices are preferable where possible.

 

[Ronin]

Each of my [two] apparatuses have diverse utilizations, so I suppose they'd differ from Dedicated Devices and Multipurpose respectively. Can't speak for devices I've never owned, but I'll bring in some input on the two things I do have.

iPod Touch - I use my iPod when I'm on the go, mainly. I love listening to music on the way to a destination; it is my favorite pastime for a drive or a ride. But that's pretty much all it's used for, unless I'm in a waiting room and decide to play a game to pass the time. It could have many more features, but I stick to it like that, so it's not exceptionally multipurpose. Granted I try to save as much room for music as possible, and aside from listening to it on trips to or from town, I'll plug my earphones in when cleaning house or working outside. Rarely is it done just for leisure. I'd term this as a Dedicated Device because of its singular purpose.

Laptop - Rather than a particular application, my laptop runs numerous programs on a day-to-day basis. For the most part I have the internet up and I'll browse the web for business and spare time. After that Word stays open so that I can write on my story or short stories, or to make quick lists when I need them. Other than Internet and text documents, it really depends on what needs to be done. I also get on programs such a GIMP to edit pictures, Skype to keep in touch, iTunes to manage music or listen to it while I work (might as well use it if the songs are already on there), and more. Laptops, by default, are multipurpose devices, and this is certainly no different.

Now, I think it's most practical to use whichever device depending on your circumstances. Like I said, I use one while away and the other when I'm at home since that's my optimum preference. It facilitates my schedule also; very rarely will I take my laptop outside these four walls. I like having it fully charged and functional when I get back anyhow. My iPod works as a dedicated substitute that I rely on to go in its place.

 

[misskitten]

I am somewhat of a compartmentalizer when it comes to electronics. I prefer to have individual devices dedicated to individual tasks. Maybe I'm a bit of a weirdo, but I'd rather bring 3-4-5 devices with me each dedicated to a specific purpose than to have one device that do it all. I like to use my phone for calling and texting only, I like that I have an ipod dedicated to playing music and videos, that I have my 3DS with me for gaming, my kindle for reading and my camera for taking pictures (although I don't usually bring my camera with me unless it's for longer journeys where it might be useful). For longer travels, I also tend to bring my laptop along.

I like keeping things seperately for several reasons, firstly because each separate device is dedicated to its task. Sure, I could take pictures with my phone, but they wouldn't have the same quality as the ones I take with my camera. And yes, I could listen to music on my phone, but the battery would run out quickly and I'd wind up not being able to make a call when I need to. I could read on my ipod, but the screen wouldn't be as kind on my eyes (nor as big) as the one on my kindle... and so on.

There's also the matter of battery capacity. With an all-in-one device you would only have the one battery to rely on (no matter how good it is), and once that run out of juice, you have nothing left. There's no back-up, which not only sucks, but can land you in a tricky position should you find yourself in need to make a call and not be able to because you used up the battery playing tetris because you were bored.

As for your question regarding the internet and its accessability, I will have to admit to be somewhat of an internet junkie. I hate being unable to access it for long periods of time (read: a couple of days). Do I need it every minute of every day, however, not really. As long as I have reading material with me and some sort of media device, I can keep myself entertained for hours upon hours. However when I do travel someplace I do make sure to get some kind of internet access so that I can check my e-mail and such every couple of days at least. I don't want to fall off the grid for too long, lol.

 

[Honorable Hero]

I love multi-taskers, not uni-taskers. My cell lets me play games, take very high quality video/pictures, browse the internet, and read books, and in my opinion it does all of those things very well.