Getting an entertainment laptop, or a desktop PC for watching TV

Jack Williamson's Toshiba is on the way out, but should he get another laptop (from the category known as "desktop replacements") or a desktop or something else? I've got a Toshiba Satellite Pro M70 laptop. It's now four years old and, basically, it's full. (I got a 500GB external hard drive but I think the issue is bigger than that.) My partner has a two year old Samsung R60 Plus: it's not full. We would like to be able to watch TV in our study, including downloaded programmes. Should I buy a bigger laptop with Windows 7 -- I was thinking of the HP Pavilion dv7-2215SA -- or should I carry on with my current laptop and buy a new desktop PC? Jack Williamson PS I've always liked your column and I really miss the Thursday tech section first thing. Going online is just not the same. There are a lot of different options, and picking the best one for you is probably a matter of taste. My preference would be to get a decent desktop PC running Microsoft Windows 7, which has outstanding media centre software, and plug it into a big monitor or LCD monitor/TV (see below). Desktops are better value than laptops. However, I fear the Toshiba Satellite Pro M70 is approaching the end of its useful life. It was never the snappiest PC (1.73GHz Pentium M 740) and if yours has the 60GB hard drive, it's no surprise if it's full. If you need to replace the old Tosh, then the HP Pavilion dv7-2215SA would be a good choice. It might not be quite as solidly made, but it has a very big screen (17.3 inches) and a decent specification for a low price. However, it's being replaced by the HP Pavilion dv7-3101sa (£599.99), and you should be able to get one from 15 March. I'd wait for that. If you do not need to replace the old Tosh, then you could get a touch-screen all-in-one PC with a built-in TV tuner.

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Getting an entertainment laptop, or a desktop PC for watching TV