Laptop lifespan

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  • Data838
    PCHF Member
    • Nov 2021
    • 90

    #1

    Laptop lifespan

    Hi,

    I have a question about the lifespan of a laptop. I have a 4 year old laptop which has some problems and has to be repaired and a new one which is more expensive and more powerful because I bought it specifically for making videos. I’m using the first one for 15-20 hours a day, whereas the new one for about 20 hours per week.

    If I’m using the new one significantly less than the old one, will it last me longer than usual or will it have approx. the same lifespan and there’s really no need to preserve it, therefore it isn’t really worth repairing the old one?

    Thank you in advance.
  • Bruce
    PCHF Moderator
    • Oct 2017
    • 10702

    #2
    no sarcasm intended, but you may as well of asked β€œhow long is a piece of string?”
    way too many variables to consider - usage habits, environment, location, mobility, etc.

    but to give you my thoughts, I reckon somewhere around two years, something goes wrong and the unit is either still under warranty, or it’s a small issue (like needs more memory or more space) and is easily and cheaply fixed. or the unit is still in the β€˜honeymoon’ period and you are happy to spend the money.

    then around the five year mark something happens again, like failed hardware or cracked screen, and it’s at this point where you start asking β€˜is this unit worth it?’, and are you better off spending the money on a replacement?

    sadly, only you can answer that as it’s too subjective.

    does the old unit still serve your needs, are you happy with the battery life, speed and space capacities, is the repair cost affordable, will a new unit make me more productive, and so forth.

    personally, at 4 years old, the unit is on the borderline and you could lean either way! :unsure:

    Comment

    • DirtyHarry
      PCHF Member
      • Oct 2022
      • 13

      #3
      Why not? It will last longer:
      1. If you don’t forget to disconnect charger from 2nd laptop and store it with 70-90% of battery it will leave much more then on 1st laptop
      2. Your cooling system not so dirty, because work less
      3. Your SSD has much less TBW then on first.

      Comment

      • veeg
        PCHF Director
        • Jul 2016
        • 8982

        #4
        Or another way you could explain this.. Laptops were not made to last long to start with.. Why? resell !

        Comment

        • PeterOz
          PCHF Technical Response Team
          • Mar 2021
          • 4191

          #5
          As well as what Bruce and Veeg say.
          Laptops were/and are made for part time work - not 24/7 type work.
          Any part can break down - welcome to electronics
          I have had branded ssd drives fail after 6 months.
          Originally posted by Data838
          I have a 4 year old laptop
          I have a laptop still working and it came out with windows 98 - around 1998
          The main thing besides the quality of parts is also software.
          You now need certian hardware to run the latest software . E.G Widows 11 wants TPM to run
          Will not run on older working laptops that work with older/other operating systems( yes I know it can be by passed for us who know how)
          A good chance you will run out of software that will work with the laptop.
          I had to throw an old mac laptop out because I could not access the internet properly due to web browsers not allowing updates.
          Originally posted by Data838
          If I’m using the new one significantly less than the old one, will it last me longer than usual or will it have approx
          Luck of the draw
          If the parts are going to fail it could be 6 months or 10 years NO ONE can say .
          You have paid for a new laptop USE IT and get the benefit of what you paid for.
          It breaks, you look at how much to repair or replace. Swear a bit then move on.
          What you need to do is plan for the laptop to fail - Not if or when. It will fail
          So rather then trying to make a new peice of equipment last longer USE IT and get the benefits of what it can do for you.
          Originally posted by Data838
          therefore it isn’t really worth repairing the old one?
          Depending on what is wrong with it, learning to repair something that you don’t care about is a great way to learn.
          If you fix it great it works and you have learnt something.
          If you work on it and it does not get reparied then great you have still learnt something about computers.

          As Bruce and others here think. PREPARE for equipment failure.
          BACKUP BACKUP BACKUP.
          And do not use the windows built in backup systems or it will be tears before bedtime.
          And have more then 1 backup and TEST the backups.

          Comment

          • Data838
            PCHF Member
            • Nov 2021
            • 90

            #6
            Thanks to everyone for your suggestions, I will take them into account and see how it goes
            .

            Comment

            • veeg
              PCHF Director
              • Jul 2016
              • 8982

              #7
              Good to hear.. So shall we mark your thread as solved?

              Comment

              • PeterOz
                PCHF Technical Response Team
                • Mar 2021
                • 4191

                #8
                One more thing to think about
                You really need to use the new one now so if it does fall over you are still in the warranty period

                Comment

                • Data838
                  PCHF Member
                  • Nov 2021
                  • 90

                  #9
                  I’ll be using it more now that I got all this information and yes, you can close the thread. Thanks again! ???

                  Comment

                  • Bruce
                    PCHF Moderator
                    • Oct 2017
                    • 10702

                    #10
                    closed as solved

                    Comment

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