I've played a bunch of times with guys using a laptop connected to the big HD screen

These are old business laptops with Intel integrated video accelerators and VGA out only. They'll not be playing HD anything any time soon with them.

I'm not saying it cannot technically be done, I'm saying that, for a user who otherwise has no interest in purchasing a computer, it's a hard sell to convince them to buy one at a price that would get them a more capable console that all their friends will be purchasing. Even if I could convince them to pay $500 for an okay laptop, I don't think I can convince their 50 friends on Xbox Live to also buy one. The community is just as important as the hardware.

I do understand that many console users are trapped in that situation, so I view laptops as the way to the greatest freedom. Eventually we grow up and outgrow the ways of our friend whether they do or not. I am not tied to any console that mommy bought for me, nor restricted in my social skills to only my circle of friends.

What the hell are you smoking???

They're not trapped. They choose not to purchase a gaming rig/laptop because it has no relevance to their life. I don't have a PC that can play anything high end from the last 5 years. Of all my friends only about 4 have PCs that can play high-end games, and they are all software engineers, not your average Joe consumer.

In my eyes, there's nothing wrong with hooking up a PC for living room play with friends, but honestly, why bother unless it's a permanent fixture in your living room. I have no time to plug/unplug things just to play a game. That's why a console that sits on my entertainment unit that serves as my gaming machine, access to netflix, and DVD player is a great solution for a lot of people. Myself included.

I am smoking reality

Sorry, the smoking comment was specifically related to your ranting about children's mommies, which was really weird, not that laptops can't serve all those needs. My post wasn't clear.

Although other than internet radio (that I know of) all of the things you've listed are supported by consoles, and I don't personally listen to radio, internet or otherwise. The real reason I buy consoles is for console specific games anyways, so the PC argument is moot for people like me.

but most of my friends have only laptops with only one or two USB ports and no blue teeth.

I've played a bunch of times with guys using a laptop connected to the big HD screen and controllers attached with a USB tree that has about 5 sockets for USB which plugs into one USB port.

Literally everything is vastly superior to consoles this way! We can now play thousands of computer games not available to consoles, as well as the biggest names in video gaming such as Crysis, Battlefield... you name it, we can play it. Multiplayer is far better when blue tooth headsets are used than with console, both in terms of graphics quality and performance.

My biggest complaint with PC gaming (and I'm a PC-only gamer, 'cept for Nintendo handhelds) is the great lack of cooperative games. What games are you playing?

Some games you have to jump through a ridiculous number of hoops to play coop. Most games that are split-screen on consoles don't have that option on the PC ports.

Even to use a controller with games, you have to run software (easy to use software, but you still have to find it and install it and know to use it) to make your controllers pretend they are XBox 360 USB controllers.

I could list the coop PC games I own - there's only about fifteen that I own that can be run split-screen/shared-screen/hotseat. There's only about five that I actually enjoy and are worth playing (and re-playing). There might be an additional ten out there that I'm missing.

Most of them are indie or small studios.

All the triple-A games that are multiplayer split-screen? Online or LAN play only, on PCs.