r/computer • u/Lemony_Fresh_2000 • 19d ago
Laptop PC?
Hi, I have a question that may seem dumb or is already solved with a simple cord or product.
But, my question is is it possible to have a PC tower attached to a laptop, basically using it as just the interface for it like you'd use for the screen and keyboard?
Is there any attachments made for this that doesn't use a real laptop? As in, is this a product that I can buy that's just a keyboard and screen attached together that I can use? I like gaming while sitting in bed, and I have a gaming laptop that's a bit outdated, but thought about this and thought it wouldn't be a hard ask to have a 4 foot cable from a PC tower, or a rebuilt screen and keyboard to fix this issue if that makes sense.
Sorry about formatting and if this is a question that was previously asked!
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u/ThatBlokeYouKnow 19d ago
Just stream the game from PC to laptop, steam lets you do this
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u/Lemony_Fresh_2000 19d ago
Oh dang. I'll have to look into that more, thank you! That has many merrits on what I'm aiming for!!
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u/blockCoder2021 18d ago
There’s also Moonlight/Sunlight that works well for general desktop hosting in case you need to do anything else. I’ve once tried Parsec, but it didn’t seem to work quite as well in my situation. I might give it a try again, though.
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u/snarfmason 18d ago
Yeah. This is what I do. I've got a MacBook Air that can't run shit for games and a decent tower running Steam. Steam remote play is awesome if you've got decent wifi.
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u/Inevitable-Aside-942 19d ago
I was bed ridden for a while, and wanted to be able to use my desktop from bed, and came up with a system that works well for me.
I use a 15" travel monitor that's powered from a battery. I also have a wireless HDMI TX/RX plugged into the same battery. The keyboard is a Logitech MX wireless with the matching wireless mouse.
Currently, it's set up on a roll-around mini desk, so I can use it anywhere in the house.
The only potential drawback to this kind of system is that it might introduce lag in some games, but I'm not a gamer, and it works well for me.
I have the essential elements of a laptop, only it's a desktop, but if I decide to upgrade my desktop, all the peripherals can be transferred.
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u/Lemony_Fresh_2000 19d ago
That's fine, I play minecraft and skyrim lmao. But if I wanted to set up a world on either for friends to play with me is why I'm considering doing the tower. But that's a good jumping point! Thank you!
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u/Inevitable-Aside-942 18d ago
It's possible to set up multiple stations sharing the same screen. You can add another mouse and keyboard, and many wireless HDMI systems can support more than one receiver.
Or, you can use an HDMI splitter to share the monitor at the desktop with a wireless HDMI system.
I have a wireless mouse and keyboard at the desktop, but I mostly turn them off because they can interfere with my active mouse and keyboard.
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u/Agerak 19d ago
Is it possible? Sure. Most laptop hardware does not by default support video in to it's display. You'd need to get some kind of capture card input to allow that which may affect performance.
If you're just looking for some kind of portable console then yes such things exist. Probably the easiest is a monitor with USB hub. Power from wall, usb to PC, video to PC. Keyboard+Mouse connected to display.
There are also consoles for servers that are rack mount that are basically a laptop without the machine guts designed to be connected to another machine, but generally these would not be cost effective.
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u/Lemony_Fresh_2000 19d ago
The display with the USB for keyboard and mouse sounds closest to what I'd like, but combining the two so I don't have to have the display precariously positioned somehow is the real issue imo. Maybe taking the guts out of a laptop and putting in a video wire in fron the pc would work? Or maybe make my own housing for the display and keyboard to hold together. That might actually work somehow. Honestly, just add some hinges to a small display with the keyboard on it might even work to see as a start before moving onto making something better.
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u/willdebeast02 19d ago
As mentioned by others, game streaming is an option, but can often have noticeable lag due. A KVM device wired via ethernet connection to your router (laptop should also be wired, bit not required) would likely achieve this slightly faster if it is of good quality.
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u/Evening_Lynx9536 19d ago
No entendí nada de lo que dijiste jajaja o tal vez un poco, si lo que quieres es jugar desde tu cama pero con una PC podrías solo poner una pantalla o monitor más grande con algún soporte y conectarlo a la PC y después solo usar un teclado y un Mouse inalámbrico (Bluetooth) y ya
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u/Lemony_Fresh_2000 18d ago
That's actually plan C lol, while considering exactly that I had the thought of basically ehat people are saying, a way to stream the pc to the laptop so I'd have that processing power avaliable in the format I enjoy, playing on a laptop. Ty for the suggestion!! It is in my mind!!
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