How Often Do You Replace Your Computer?

Oh Katrina, Hubby just replaced mine a couple of months ago because my Mac was 10 years old! LOL!!! My Mac was super slow and I couldn't add any more memory. I would try to add memory, do it yourself, their price is OUTRAGEOUS!

 

...whenever it breaks down!!!

 

My laptops last a bit longer than my PC b/c they don't get used as much; my current ones I think I've had for about 4 yrs and are still running just fine. My PC is used every day and usually goes in for a cleanup every 2 years and then gets upgraded about every 3-4 yrs. I have my system built for me and my tech will update things as needed rather than replacing the whole computer. The only reason I had a new computer built this year was so we could give my granddaughter my old computer which was updated and still worked like new.

 

Yep, in the last 10-15 years I've had maybe 5-6 laptops (all but 2 were Toshiba....the less I say about them the better). End of 2014 I switched to HP and the only reason im on my 2nd HP is the first one got stolen in April. Generally though as 95% of the time I'm broke I only replace when needed once my extended warranty finishes

 

Short answer: whenever I want to. (This is not said like Veruca Salt. I mean that sometimes I break the machine and sometimes it conks out after a few years. And once, I just hated it.)

Long answer: I'm hard on laptops. I have spilled on 2 of them. So, not their fault. I had a Sony Vaio i loved until it finally pooped out on me. Then, about 3.5 yrs ago I got a Windows 8 and it never turned on. Like, literally blue screen of death right ootb. That got returned next day. And now I can't remember what I did; did I keep my previous laptop or get a different one? I'm gonna have to ask DH! Anyway, about a year ago I got a new Windows 10 laptop and hated it--I don't blame 10, I just didn't like the laptop so DH took it and I got another laptop. Funny enough, it works perfectly for him--the weird stuff (like the keyboard not working, or the wi fi randomly turning off) doesn't happen to him. So if you only look at my 2 most recent laptops, then you could say that I go through a laptop every 6 months, but that's not technically true since DH got the "old" one since his MBP was dead. And my new HP 17" i7 is still going strong. Yea!
In the past 10 years I think I've had 5 or 6 laptops and 1 desktop that fried (hardware problem and I probably should have tried to get my money back but I digress).
But one thing to remember is that we now download a lot of stuff. Our old computers could handle Word and maybe AOL Insant Messenger lol so they lasted longer cuz we didn't really push them. Scrappers like us DL and unzip and UL pics and use PS and otherwise USE our laptops. That's why lots of us little ol' scrappers like the aggressive gamer computers: We need all that RAM and HD space and the awesome graphics cards.

 

About every 3 years or so around here. Not really because I want a new one...but my hubby usually talks me into it. He always tells me there's bigger, better and faster computers out there. He did recently replace my hard drive with a solid state drive. He's always keeping me up to speed. Right now I still have 2 older computers that my kids use for some of their school work...my hubby keeps our computers running in good shape. Now he's trying to talk me into getting a 4k compatible laptop.

 

@Scrapping with Liz you made me smile cuz my DH is the opposite: he's always trying to tell me "can't you wait a little longer before getting a new laptop? Do you HAVE to have a new one????" But maybe it's good that you and I each married our opposite: it keeps both sides in line lol!

And @KatrinaHunt13 I can't answer your question but I have wondered how those really BIG ds files affect my laptop. Like, is it tough for my laptop to DL and hence so quickly "digest" all that info? Cuz if it is, then I'm very happy that I've got this laptop!

 

Not as often now that I'm a MAC. I bought my first MAC in 2009. I upgraded 2 years ago. The old one is still in use, but not by me.

 

I'm on my 2nd iMac and I'll say it will probably be replaced in a year or so. It's a 2011 model and replaced the no longer sold 24inch one which was bought in the 90s? I have replaced the memory in both of them using memory from Crucial. I now have 16gb and that should get me another year or so. I rarely work in LR and Pse at the same time though they may. Just may be open it the same time. I'm also diligent about minimizing the number of net screens open and clearing my history every day or so. I also keep my desktop pretty clean esp after a binge of saving thing to the desktop. I read all of these suggestions at sometime on line. Every bit helps.

 

I hope the 2011 iMac I'm currently using (which I bought new in 2011) lasts for many more years. I decided not to upgrade to the most recent operating system for fear it would make the computer struggle (and there wasn't anything super enticing in the upgrade). I think I've filled it with as much memory as it can take at 16GB. It has had some issues but it's still chugging along okay. Lately it seems like its problem is occasionally forgetting its connection to the wifi, necessitating a restart to remind it.

If it broke irreparably in the near future I might have to go computer-less, let alone replace it with another Mac, so I'm expecting to keep on with this one for several more years. In general we have not been quick to replace anything. My husband still drives a 1998 Honda Civic and I'm driving a 2004 Toyota Sienna van. I think my husband is on his second laptop in a full decade, maybe longer. Before that we had just a a few desktop PCs over the previous decade, but not always one replacing the next. Rather, it was because he had his own computer, I had my own, and then there was the kids' computer (which had been one of ours before we got a new one for one of us).

I know computers are made to NOT last long, we try!

I'm also planning to use my phone for at least three years, even more if there isn't a particularly exciting new feature. First of all, we didn't even jump into the smartphone world until the end of 2013. When our Verizon contract came up for renewal and our first phones were paid for, we decided to replace them. But we made better choices the second time around (for me, primarily, the issue was storage space; I got much more in my second phone than I'd had in my first) and since we're on the pay-off-the-phone-over-2-years plan, I declared I'd use my phone for THREE years, at least! I only have 5 more months of the 2 years, and I've never come close to reaching my storage limit and have had no problems with my iPhone6, so I'm looking forward to another year or a few with it. I don't even like the 7; I like that I can still plug headphones into my phone! In fact, my 13 year old daughter got her first phone in February and didn't even want the latest; she wasn't the 6 too, so she can use wired headphones.

Ramble ramble . . .

 

I think my iMac increased memory is also from Crucial.

Also like Maureen, I've got some habits to attempt avoiding straining my old 2011 computer, like restarting it daily and usually not having both PS and LR open at the same time.

 

My current computer is a desktop PC that my hubby built for me in 2012. It has a 2GB graphics card, 16GB of memory and a SSD hard drive where my OS and programs run. It's still lightning fast. I have the money in my savings account to build a new one, but I'm just going to keep riding the wave until this current computer isn't working for me anymore.
I know desktops aren't portable, but I quit buying laptops because they are so much more expensive and they never last very long for me before they slow down and irritate me. Even when I go on weekend retreats, I pack up my desktop and TWO monitors. I figure if i have a huge block of time to scrap, I want to be as productive as possible.

 

Not often enough LOL!! When I met my hubby back in 2006 he had the eMachine we just replaced last month. He can't remember how long he had it before meeting me, so I'm guessing a year or two prior. He knows just enough to be dangerous when it comes to PC's; he did upgrade the memory a few times and things like that...but after a while there just isn't anything you can do.

We don't do anything too crazy with them; he uses Lightroom for his photos, is now use Photoshop CC b/c we couldn't find the Photoshop CS5 disc; I'm pretty sure we were running Windows 7, now we're on 10. We don't download music or movies or anything like that; we don't let the kids play online games, so that helps keep the viruses and stuff away.

I would love to have a MAC, but they just aren't in the budget right now...one day.