MSPoweruser: For laptops, is Long battery life or being Always Connected most important? Qualcomm reveals the answer

[gvv]

ARM-powered PCs offer two important advantages over x86-based laptops – up to 25-hour battery life and built-in cellular modems which offer data access wherever you go. Intel can of course attempt to replicate both features, but these benefits are native to Qualcomm’s processors and more tacked on to Intel’s devices.

At their Qualcomm event yesterday Qualcomm and Lenovo revealed which of these two features consumers are considering most important.

“More than 50 percent of the folks are buying it for the battery,” Lenovo VP Matt Bereda told Engadget.

He revealed most consumers did not take up cellular plans to get their device Always Connected.

“Maybe that’ll change, maybe once we get into January we’ll see a ton of [wireless] activations,” he noted.

Peter Burns, Qualcomm’s director of marketing for always-connected PCs, confirmed the data, saying:

“Battery life is the number one pain point, no doubt. Always-connected is also desired, but it requires attractive offers and data plans.”

The reluctance of consumers to buy extra data plans will make selling Always Connected PCs via carrier retail channels difficult but suggests that OEMs should perhaps focus more on the battery life advantages of ARM PCs in their marketing, especially now performance issues are increasingly less of an issue due to new, more powerful processors.

Which is most important for our readers? Let us know below.

[luisam]

I don't know what's the price range of these 25-hour battery powered PCs. Actually, I could find a reference in Google:

https://www.tbsdtv.com/launch/tbs-2910-matrix-arm-mini-pc.html

It looks really cheap but even so, I wouldn't feel confortable to spend, consideing that my current laptop is fairly new. Certainly I feel constrained using my laptop with a battery limited to less than 2 hours! As for a built-in cellular mdem, presume, connected to local 3G or 4G celular network, probably is not my  basic necessiity but of course, at some moment might be really convenient.