Average life of a computer?

TheInquisitor

I was just wondering what people think the average life of a computer is? I bought an alienware top of the range computer 5-6 years ago. Never had any trouble at all in fact it was really a great computer until recently. I think its in its final death throws. It turns off now and then when i run too many games and programs at once etc and takes ages to start. About 2 years ago we wiped the whole computer and started from scratch again because we had filled most of the 120 gb the computer has. Right now about 100gb or is used up. I was thinkin of just getting a new hard drive though. The screen, sound equitement etc is perfect. why waste good stuff in a recession eh...

Spear

TheInquisitor wrote: »

I was just wondering what people think the average life of a computer is? I bought an alienware top of the range computer 5-6 years ago. Never had any trouble at all in fact it was really a great computer until recently. I think its in its final death throws. It turns off now and then when i run too many games and programs at once etc and takes ages to start. About 2 years ago we wiped the whole computer and started from scratch again because we had filled most of the 120 gb the computer has. Right now about 100gb or is used up. I was thinkin of just getting a new hard drive though. The screen, sound equitement etc is perfect. why waste good stuff in a recession eh...

Have you cleaned the dust out of the fans and PSU? It could just be overheating. Alternately just try reseating all the connections.

TheInquisitor

Spear wrote: »

Have you cleaned the dust out of the fans and PSU? It could just be overheating. Alternately just try reseating all the connections.

Yes ive cleaned it out several times. All the fans , all the sides, every piece of dust i could find but thats not really having an effect anymore. I might actually try reseating all the connections. Might help a bit. Thanks

ronkmonster

what are the specs of the computer.

6 years is a long enough time in the computer upgrade cycle.

multi-core processors, dd2/3 ram, pci-express just some examples of things you probably do not have.

also 64bit for over 4gb ram.

Cuddlesworth

For laptops using Windows, 2 to 4 years max depending on initial specs.

Lifespan of a desktop should be not be a issue assuming people budget for a minor amount every year for upgrades.

For linux, lifespan is not really a issue.


For actual hardware, I would say anything past 6 years without breaking is going really well.

P. Breathnach

ronkmonster wrote: »

what are the specs of the computer.

6 years is a long enough time in the computer upgrade cycle.

multi-core processors, dd2/3 ram, pci-express just some examples of things you probably do not have.

also 64bit for over 4gb ram.

It doesn't really matter what the specification of a computer is provided it is sufficient for the software used. We (and I include myself) tend to be seduced by developments in hardware and operating systems, and by resource-hungry new applications. I suspect that the average user upgrades to a new system every 3 years. That's about my average. Many of us don't need to. I know I usually don't; I'm indulging myself.

I think TheInquisitor is right to consider if it is worth continuing to use the system he (or she) has.

uberpixie

TheInquisitor wrote: »

I was just wondering what people think the average life of a computer is? I bought an alienware top of the range computer 5-6 years ago. Never had any trouble at all in fact it was really a great computer until recently. I think its in its final death throws. It turns off now and then when i run too many games and programs at once etc and takes ages to start. About 2 years ago we wiped the whole computer and started from scratch again because we had filled most of the 120 gb the computer has. Right now about 100gb or is used up. I was thinkin of just getting a new hard drive though. The screen, sound equitement etc is perfect. why waste good stuff in a recession eh...

Hardware will work until it dies. (5-10 years depending on part,luck etc..)
Windows will need the odd reinstall/clear out to keep it ticking over but thats normal.

The only issue you will ever run into with old hardware is lack of support for some new devices.

Once you can get parts, you can easily keep a pc ticking over a good 10 years. repalcing the odd part that dies,once a part dies that you cannot replace easily or cheaply thats when its time to bin it.

The only reason I upgrade is to play games: I do a full upgrade every 2.5-3 years with the odd minor upgrade inbetween to keep the pc playing games at a reasonable level.

For office work/web browsing there isn't really a huge need to upgrade that often at all, unless you need to use newier software that is unsupport on the old machine or needs a new fast pc to run properly.

BrokenArrows

my first pc was top of the line when i bought it.

a blindingly massive 450mhz single core cpu. lolz
a crazy 64mb ram and guess what, thats right a whole 6GB harddrive and 8mb GPU.

lol. anyway that computer lasted 8 years. there were multiple upgrades along the way. ram, HD, cd/dvd drives

it finally got thrown in the bin but it was still working fine. just took up too much space.

i also had a good dell laptop. also top of the line at the time. lasted me 5 years and i sold it to my sister and its still going strong. I did have to replace the graphics card on it about year 4 after it burned out.

Overheal

Save yourself some money for the moment, and do a cleanup/dusting of all your hardware, and format the hard-drive, reinstall windows, and start afresh. Remember to also keep your system running smoothly with defrag and ccleaner.

My first PC purchase lasted 4 years; had tons of problems, but I was too young and naive to do things like reformat (I was afraid to) but these days its still trucking, but it was eventually replaced by a laptop for college. I havent even seen the old box in a year - it sits in an empty house in Clare atm. But theres no reason it shouldnt still be in full working order.

itexpert

I would say buy a cheap machine off dell for 400, use and abuse for 1year and then get a new one.

Every PC/ Laptop now a daz developes some kind of fault within months, what is happening to these manufacturers?