Ask HN: Does anyone make portable PCs?

[mike-the-mikado]

If I always use my laptop with an external keyboard and display, why do I need to carry these around with me? They largely determine the form factor of the PC. A suitably robust box, housing CPU and storage, could be much smaller and do the job just as effectively. Does anyone sell such a device?

[haspoken]

Something like https://mind.khadas.com/ ?

https://www.cnx-software.com/2023/07/22/khadas-mind-raptor-l...

[mike-the-mikado → haspoken]

It looks they have spotted this gap in market. It will be interesting to see prices when it becomes available.

[jqpabc123]

Go to amazon.com and search for "mini PC'.

[milsorgen → jqpabc123]

This but on eBay. Depending on hardware requirements there are some fantastic deals to be found compared to Amazon.

[simonblack]

Portable PC have gone out of fashion. The 'Notebook' design took over.

But we used have these: https://medium.com/geekculture/the-1983-compaq-plus-portable...

[Finnucane]

There are pc cases made to be carried around—you could diy it.

[gregjor]

Apple sells the Mac Mini.

Intel and numerous other companies sell NUCs.

[mike-the-mikado → gregjor]

These are small, but I don't see them specifically marketed as portable - i.e. robust enough to withstand the sort of treatment a laptop is expected to withstand.

[ThrowawayR2 → mike-the-mikado]

Any bump severe enough to significantly damage a micro PC would also be enough to crack the screen or otherwise damage a laptop too.

Shock resistant, dustproof, etc. industrial computer modules do exist but you'd be paying something like 10x the price of an ordinary computer so it's not worthwhile.

[gregjor → mike-the-mikado]

Because not many people carry a PC, monitor, keyboard, etc. around. We have laptops for that. You can get a sturdy case like a Pelikan if you want to protect it.

[linusg789 → mike-the-mikado]

I have one of these, they are just as durable as an actual laptop. Even more so, as a matter of fact.

[RetroTechie]

Raspberry Pi?

If needed, RPi-like computers come in x86 flavour too.