Why Buy A Photo Viewer? Laptops are better..

[H33]

I don't understand the rationale of buying a photo viewer that costs $500, has a tiny TFT screen and 20-40gb of storage. For about the same price I can get a 2 GHz laptop with a 15" screen. These viewers are grossly over priced, when they have a tablet sized one that is 8"x10" for $400 I'll buy one.

[TheObiJuan]

they are overpriced, but laptops are inconvenient. I have been lugging mine around, and even showing customers their pictures on the tv screen, but one of those storage things with a 3.5" screen would be ideal. They could sit and look at thier convenience.

[Rhys]

Not all laptops are inconvenient. There are some sub notebooks such as some made by Fujitsu. IBM made a tiny laptop once with a 600mhz CPU. I believe it was a 7" screen.

I'm looking for a small, light laptop like the Fujitsu I saw in Frys in Atlanta, having been warned off Sony. I'd consider Acer if Acers weren't so grossly overpriced, (given their backup and after sales support).

[H33]

I understand the inconvenience part but do people carry around photo albums with 2 1/2" size prints? To me a photo viewer the same size as a photo album is no big deal to carry around.

[speaklightly]

H33-

There are indeed places such as the interior of Russia where a laptop is equal to a huge hassle becuse you are always getting "inspected and checked." The local authorities do not take well to travellers arriving with a laptop in hand.

Sarah Joyce

[DownByFive]

Epson p-2000 = ~1lb. Average 15" notebook = ~7lb. Hmm...Which one do I want to lug around Europe along with 10lbs of camera gear?

[Rhys]

Epson p-2000 = ~1lb. Average 15" notebook = ~7lb. Hmm...Which one do I want to lug around Europe along with 10lbs of camera gear?

Personally, in terms of weight, I'd carry a stack of memory cards rather than a laptop.

There are indeed places such as the interior of Russia where a laptop is equal to a huge hassle becuse you are always getting "inspected and checked." The local authorities do not take well to travellers arriving with a laptop in hand.

I've never had that problem when travelling in the former USSR. Having said that, my biggest problem has been the petty criminals. There are hundreds of thousands of them out there and they eye everything that's remotely usable with greedy eyes. Heck, one year they even stole my toothbrush - and it wasn't even an electric toothbrush.