[GTO]

In a bit of a quandary over when to change my laptop.

Earlier, I used to have just one primary (Dell) laptop and Dell offered same day support & repairs. Hence, I used just that laptop and replaced it the minute that the 5-year warranty expired.

Now however, I have two identically-set up laptops. Hence, even if one conks off, the other is identically setup and available for work.

Is it still necessary to replace computers every 5 years? My sister works with a Big 4 firm and in their office, as a rule, laptops are changed every 3 years which I feel is quite a waste. My 4 year old Latitude has more than enough horsepower for my needs (SSD, 16 GB RAM) and I dock it, so the screen + keyboard + mouse are anyway up-to-date and modern. I changed the battery last year & it gives me 7 - 8 hours which is healthy. What I'm trying to say is, there is no hardware requirement to upgrade, unlike a decade ago when old computers used to be slow & underpowered in 5 years. Cost a non-issue, but it's a royal pain setting up a new computer with all your programs & OS settings.

Adding a poll too. We have a similar thread on car ownership. Our automotive passions aside, this thread is at least as relevant since we spend way more time on our computers than behind the wheel.

[toiingg]

My rule is, use your PC / Laptop till the time it suffices your needs, if it does everything you need for it to do, and is trouble free, then continue using it. Don't upgrade just because something new came.

Minimal upgrades (RAM / SSD) can be done as and when needed and till it suits the need. However, if it gets so old, that reliability or its ability to run certain programs is a concern, then we do change to a newer one.

[deehunk]

My Dell Vostro desktop still going strong after 8 years, have given it to my daughter. I recently upgraded to a AMD based desktop for media work.

[amol4184]

The rules change for personal and work laptops. I have a Thinkpad from 2019 and I see no difference in performance from then and now but all I do is edit photos and surf web. I don't have any email/chat client running. No other Office apps too.

On the other hand, the work laptop is also from late 2019 (Dell) with great configuration and I see sluggishness in things I do on it namely running occasional VM, an app for coding and simple text editing. On average I have 5 different applications open all the time on it along with Outlook, MS Teams and a VPN client. And everything has slowed down. Even battery life has taken a hit. All the security measures that we have on it slow it down bit by bit every passing update.

We also receive way, way more updates on this work laptop. I can postpone them for a few days but then after a while, things just stop working unless I install the update. All this takes toll on the laptop. I am sure if it was Thinkpad instead of Dell, it would have suffered the same fate.
Now I am just waiting until the company changes my laptop which isn't too far off in future. It is slightly over 2.5 years since I received it brand new.
As for personal laptop, there is no hurry. If at all, I would replace that one just because of boredom and not because of necessity.

[Eddy]

The only personal laptop that I bought 7 years back works fine till date (usage is very low). Work laptops are changed as per company policies.

Originally Posted by GTO

My sister works with a Big 4 firm and in their office, as a rule, laptops are changed every 3 years which I feel is quite a waste..

Some companies don't like having machines without the OEM warranty. But I agree, it is definitely a waste.

[Axe77]

My office policy is to change laptops every three years. I usually ask them to not take back the old (3 year old) laptop they’re replacing and just leave it with me as a spare which I use at home. Usually the older laptop lasts me comfortably the entirety of the new laptop’s tenure as well (at which point it is returned with the cycle continuing, 3 yo moving to home and new one being kept in office).

I typically use even my iPads for 3 - 4 years so a laptop is definitely usable for 6 years or so easily if you’ve bought into the right RAM etc at the time of purchase.

I’d say as long as its doing the job its supposed to do without freezing, lagging, or hanging, its fine. The fact that anyway you have a two laptop set up means anyway you’re hedged against some temporary downtime.

[EDIT: Re the poll options]
Query whether “As long as it runs” should be a standalone option. That’s what I would tick if it was.

[siddhant]

Voted 6-7 years, which I consider a thumb rule for upgrading so as to maintain good productivity levels for the kind of work I do. Although, if the primary usage is browsing and using a few light weight apps, the laptop can easily last 8-10 years.

One tip to keep your laptop in top shape is to clean the fan and replace thermal paste once every 1.5-2 years. It helps in proper heat dissipation which goes a long way in keeping your laptop healthy.

[kosjam]

Voted : As long as it works (to your needs)

I recently upgraded to a new laptop after 8 years of working with the old one. The trick in my opinion is to buy the best laptop possible (provided you have the budget ofcourse) at the time of the purchase, from a good brand, to ensure you get a good output for a long time. The 8 year old laptop, purchased in 2012 had 16GB ram and a top of the line i7 processor with Nvidia graphics with 3gb onboard dedicated memory. Toshiba. It is probably still chugging along, as I gave it away to an assistant for his daily use.

In addition, taking care of the machine is equally important. In addition to what Siddhant said, one should also avoid mishandling one's machine, spilling drinks, hard drops, loading it with items while on the desk, not using the correct laptop bag which may cause the laptop to bend etc..

[Ferruccio]

My previous employer's policy was till it runs. My Dell laptop was compact, light and 12 years old and worked like a dream. While leaving the company I offered to buy it at the residual value but the red-tape was not worth it. Unless you are hacking into the Pentagon or doing the graphics for Avataar 2, for most day-to-day use, laptops and cellphones last forever with a little TLC. So do cars, BTW.

I love driving a hulking SUV and take more flights a month than most do in a year. So my little bit for the environment is buying good gear and holding on to them till they are practically unusable. This also helps build an eco-system of reliable maintenance walas who have the skills and parts to restore the equipment to "good as new" condition for a small fraction of what new gear costs!

[TT-S]

Voted "8+ years or until it runs".

The performance differential between new gen laptops released every year was significant, before 2010. But that is not the case now, and speed improvements are marginal.

The first things to go bad in a laptop is the frequently used parts like keyboards and rubber linings that rot away after a couple of years. If the laptop is just a desktop replacement (which is not taken anywhere and sits connected to an external monitor/dock all the time), it can have a much longer service life with minimal upgrades like RAM or SSD. This is especially true if the work loads running on the PC is light (web browsing, spreadsheets, word processing, email etc). If the work loads are high and the PC wont be moved out of the house, a Desktop PC will offer better value and will be upgrade-able and will serve for a much longer time.

The reason for big organizations replacing laptops every 2-3 years is simply because:

• They order in bulk, cost per laptop will be much lower and this will be a better option than repairing/replacing parts of individual ones.
• The OEMs offer incentives to upgrade to newer models, further reducing cost

[@og_adi]

Voted for 4-5 years.
For me it depends on the specs of the laptop/PC too. A low and mid range laptop might come with specs which might not suffice for needs in the future. Sure, a few things can be upgraded (like RAM or SSD) but in my opinion, such laptops with inferior CPU performance, display and other features lead to frequent changing. I went overboard this time to buy myself a Dell Inspiron 5410 with 16GB RAM which may be good enough for the near 6-7 years in terms of requirements and can only hope problems don't crop up. Battery life too is another reason, once one weakens over time, replacements don't last long too in my experiences with various laptops and require changing in a couple of years again. My last laptop was a mess and had to be replaced in its third year itself.
OT: Attaching few pics of the 5410.

[narayans80]

I assume this question is for personal use.

I would say, till it falls apart and begs to be replaced.

Desktops are flexible in that way, you can pretty much replace piece by piece. Laptops too should be purchased with forethought on upgradeability. I would say, invest high on purchase and do incremental changes/replacements over time.

My first computer HP ze1230 lasted 10 years (2002-12). Hardware became too obsolete, keys were falling apart. These were days before external keyboards.

My Macbook Pro is on its 10th year, and the Air is on the 8th year. These will lead a full life. The Pro is out of major OS updates, but still works like a charm.

Invest on a docking station or USB-C or USB-A hub and work with external keyboard-mice (these are dirt cheap these days), this way the fixed peripherals last longer. These (laptop keyboard, touchpad) are among the first to fall apart.

BTW same goes to cars and bikes too.

[Gansan]

I voted 8+ years. I don't use laptop, only Pc at home. Always assembled, not branded. A newly assembled Pc lasts me approximately ten years. I had a new one, my third, assembled last month.

[hellmet]

If it works and continues to serve its purpose, I keep it. And that philosophy applies to everything in my life.

I'm pretty handy with fixing and repairing things, and I don't hesitate from taking things apart to do so. My dad's laptop is 12+ years old. I bought an SSD drive and doubled the RAM and it still chugs along. Spent around 2.5K INR vs potentially 35K for new.

Wife, a light user, ran a Vaio for 10years - an SSD and RAM upgrade really helped stretch the laptop's life. She finally switched to an MBA as the Vaio stopped being useful. Her usage of a laptop increased for various reasons, and I no longer wanted her to use a screen with a resolution and technology that old for hours a day.

As long as the device is receiving updates, why replace it? If updates stop and the usage is light, one could easily install ChromeOS Flex or Linux and continue using the machine. Run it into the ground, folks!

[mi2n]

Quite predictably, I voted for the least popular option (2-3 years). I use my desktop to play games, mostly casually. Add to that, I am a fan of life like, beautiful and expansive visuals in games. So, I just have to have all the modern bells and whistles under the hood. To offset the cost though, I always opt for the upper mid-range, value for money hardware which tend to retain atleast half its value after a couple of years. The thing with different generations of PC hardware is that often the new generation mid-ranger significantly outperforms the last gen flagships. So, I find it prudent to put a lot of thought into my IT purchases and upgrades.