Off the Beaten Track - a Desktop Renaissance or Notebook Demise?

Notebooks have become a real drag recently - there's just nothing exciting out there that would really tickle my fancy. My enthusiasm for working with the devices has for the first time in many years hit an all-time low. While I have no reason to abandon notebooks entirely, or cease coverage here on lgpOnTheMove, this major downer IS heavily influencing my thoughts about my next big hardware purchase. A purchase which may just be a build-it-yourself desktop come Christmas 2013.

What would compel me to dump my Toshiba Qosmio X305 in favor of my own-assembled box? The arguments in favor are plenty. Yet as much as I've enjoyed my notebook, it's now time to look for something new. With nothing on the notebook landscape from manufacturers worthy as a replacement for my X305, my focus for a no-nonsense work tool has for the first time shifted back to the desktop.