How do you decide...

BryanFazekas

I purchased my desktop in 1996. Yes, 1996! Still got the same PC and it runs great! The nice thing about desktops is they are so modular -- it's easy to replace failed parts.

CD/DVD-burners tend to go fastest (yes, I still keep one in the PC).
Replace the primary HD every 2 to 3 years.
Motherboard, CPU, & RAM get replaced every 4 to 6 years (had 1 MB failure, otherwise when the old one doesn't run the software as well).
Hate onboard video, used to use lower end graphics cards, but bought a good one last year for gaming, and it improved overall system performance. I didn't expect that.
The case has been replaced a few times, and the power supply a few more than that.

Other than replacing a few parts periodically, I have the same PC! :laugh: To answer the OP's question -- I have a laptop and I'll replace it when it dies. It's my secondary unit and doesn't get used as much. I replace parts on my desktop when I have to (due to failure) or when the system is not meeting my needs. So I replace the MB/CPU/RAM every 4 to 6 years. That's my answer on when to replace the laptop -- if it's not meeting your needs, replace it. Don't buy a low end laptop. I buy last year's model. It's typically good enough for last 4 to 6 years, and the price drop from when it was current is significant.

littleGreenDude

:thumbsup: Thank you for the advice. I checked last night and it did have a 500 GB HDD. Ordered a 1 TB SSD. Now I just have to be patient and wait the week for it to arrive. :)

BryanFazekas

Assuming you're running Windows, your PC may need cleaning instead of replacing. I'll start with mundane ideas and move to radical. Windows gets junked up over time and you can do simple things to repair this:

Uninstall all programs that you are not using.
Empty all Temp folders.
Run cleaner utilities that clean up the Registry.
Defrag the HD!!!

A few years back my son complained he needed a new PC. I checked his temp folders -- he had 20,000+ files in his profile/temp. I cleaned out all three temp folders (profile, C, & Windows), then ran Iobit Advanced System Care to clean the junk out, then defragged the HD. The defrag on a 500 MB drive ran 4 hours the first time. [I'm not advocating ASC, but that's what I used at that time.] When done his PC ran like it was new. I had given him instructions on keeping his PC in good shape -- he ignored me (yeah, he was a teenager). In his early 20's now, he's amazed at how much I have learned over the years. :) As I said in a previous post, I replace my HD every 2 to 3 years. Last time, I replaced my SATA with a SSD. WOW! The PC went from fast to greased lightning. I have a stack of old SATA HD I use for large backups, but for my primary I have a 500 MB SSD. Prices have come way down. Another thing is to reinstall Windows from scratch. Yes, it's a PITA to reload all your applications, but when done you have a clean install. Windows gets junked up over time, and no cleaner can fix everything. So when I replace my HD, I do a clean install and start from scratch. Yes, it eats a day ... but I'm happier when done.

Slow Eddie

littleGreenDude wrote:

file / app migration is probably the bigger PITA.

I could not agree with this sentiment more.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup: The DVD drive on my laptop died and I bought an external USB DVD drive. This laptop will have to die totally and completely for me to tackle the app/license migration thing again.

At this point, I expect my computers, and pets to out live me.

rnbergren

When the kids eventually beg enough that they want a new one. So I give them mine and then get a new buttkicker for myself. My eldest is about to get a really nice surface pro 2. I am looking at the HP Spectre x360. Then in a few months(6 or so) my i5 gaming laptop (used for main coding) from ASus (3 years old or so) will go to the youngest and I will get a better one. This is an unusual year for these types of purchases.

To err is human to really mess up you need a computer

Matt McGuire

I tend to replace when the tools/OS are just bogging down the machine. sometimes a wipe/new HD helps but sometimes it don't. I still keep the old machines running to test on. there's an 10+ year old Dell laptop I keep running for testing purposes only. I had an older Dell from around 2002 that I was still testing with but it finally gave up the ghost I a puff of smoke one night. I always figured if my stuff runs good on a 900mhz laptop, that I'm doing something right.

Greg Lovekamp

Different from others that have replied, my PCs tend to look absolutely brand new when I am done with them (no broken screens, dents, dings, etc.). As such, I probably hang onto them longer. I also do not use mine for my working life: my employer supplies the desktop I use daily. Given all of that, I probably hang onto mine longer than most; however, once the new wizbang features and speeds make my machine look sad and pathetic, and when I have the available funds, I upgrade. For reference, my work computer is Windows 10, but my home life is Mac. My 2011 MacBook Pro will not upgrade to the next macOS, so for me, the clock toward a newer model has started. I suspect it will be about two years from now that I will make such a purchase. This posting caused me to think back about what machines I have had since 1980, and amazingly, to me at least, the cycle seems to be pretty steady at about six years! 1980-Atari, 1986-Amiga, 1993-DEC Starion (Windows), 1998-Gateway, 2004-Dell, 2010-iMac, 2014-MacBook Pro (which was more of a form factor change, desktop to laptop, rather than features).

SeattleC

I only upgrade when my old machine becomes unusable, either because it's too slow or because hardware has failed. I used to spend a lot of time thinking about my computer; how many ports did it need, what hardware peripherals might be important for the next few years. I bought desktops because they were easier to add stuff to than laptops were. And then I had a liberating realization. I realized that I never upgraded the peripherals on my PC. I used the same graphics board. I never installed any high speed peripherals that needed access to the backplane. When a new port came along that I wanted, it was something that had appeared out of nowhere, so that I couldn't have predicted it five years previously. Oh sure, I once bought a SCSI hard drive. I got the SCSI card to work (barely), but when the PC crapped out, I discovered that the card wasn't compatible with my PC's replacement. I replace my mice, keyboards, and monitors more frequently than my PCs, and the manufacturers know it, so they use widely available ports. I have VGA-to-PCI and VGA-to-HDMI interface cables galore, but these only cost $15, so when I need a newer or different one, I just buy it. The old ones go into my box-o-cables. I get hardware lust like the rest of you, and buy a new peripheral, like a WACOM tablet or a webcam. These languish in their boxes, or get tried and rejected. Every peripheral I actually want to use is included in the vendor-supplied configuration of my next PC.

matblue25

I also think that’s the answer. I’ve now updated three laptops (wife’s, her friend and a buddy of mine). Made a huge difference in each case. The old HDDs were all 5400rpm. Check your performance with Task Manager some time when you think the laptop is running slow. If it shows 100% disk and low cpu and memory utilization, the SSD is definitely going to help. On the laptops I upgraded, disk usage went from 100% down to 20-30% and cpu became the bottleneck. Basically a 3 to 5 time improvement in performance since the cpu was only running 20-30% before and it’s now 100% (when fully loaded).

Abbas A Ali

I bought a 3rd gen i5 Laptop with 4GB RAM when I started university, that was back in 2011. When I graduated in 2015 I decided to upgrade it, sadly that decision is still pending :sigh: . One of the reasons I keep telling myself is that I don't need the bigger and better system, since I don't work at home (I am one of those 9-5 devs). However in my free time I sometimes fascinate about buying an 8th gen i7 32GB RAM 500SSD and 2TB HDD but then I fall of the bed and wake with a new determination of not buying it! :laugh:

Brady Kelly

I have a several years old Lenovo T-520, with a dual i3 CPU, and 8GB RAM. All I need to stay happy developing on this machine is an SSD and a new battery. Right now if the power goes out I hardly have time to save my work before the battery is flat.

"'Do what thou wilt...' is to bid Stars to shine, Vines to bear grapes, Water to seek its level; man is the only being in Nature that has striven to set himself at odds with himself." —Aleister Crowley

Bruce Patin

The most common performance problem I've come across is waiting on disk errors. Doing a chkdsk/f often fixes it.

Lost User

Windows 10 Creator's Update and XR programming requires a minimum spec machine. [Before you start - Enthusiast Guide | Microsoft Docs](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/mixed-reality/enthusiast-guide/before-you-start)

"(I) am amazed to see myself here rather than there ... now rather than then". ― Blaise Pascal