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Typing this on an 8 years old Macbook Air. My heart says I want a new one, my head says not until it dies. How old is yours?
About 10 maybe 12 years.
4 year old windows PC. Built for gaming, i5 4590k CPU, GTX1060 3gb GPU, single 1080p monitor. Still giving good performance on the games I play, but always tempted to get a new machine. No point in upgrading, the CPU and motherboard would become bottlenecks.
the case is from the last century, it's that prosthetic beige
9yr old iMac - will be 10yrs in a couple of months. Still running fine.
8 months Desktop, 4 months laptop.
We've got a 3 year old desktop at home for my Son to "do homework on" Frotnite mostly.
Just had a replace this year, previous Dell Laptop was 8 years old, had a good but very hard life and retired rather than clean out the cooling fans.
8 years. Dell Windows desktop. I'm thinking I might treat it to a SSD and a re-build as it now has 8 years of clutter on it.
Changed from a Surface Pro 2 to a Matebook X Pro two weeks ago.
I'm running a 2012 MacMini, and a 2011 Macbook Pro at home.
Also have a 18 month old Dell laptop which is mostly for MrsDubs.
Won't be replacing the Macbook until it can't run Zwift in the garage. MacMini seems like it will keep going forever, so probably won't replace that for a while either.
Changed from a Surface Pro 2 to a Matebook X Pro two weeks ago.
I wonder if Beijing is enjoying your posts on STW 😉
2 x 6year old Mac Minis with 16GB ram and 500GB SSD plus 2TB harddrives. I could get away with less RAM now with the SSD.
Both more than capable of all the art/photo/newspaper stuff I need.
Editing 4K video is no fun but I almost never do that.
When I replace them it will be with another Mac Mini.
At home I have a 2010 MBP, still working fine-ish. Battery life is 2 hours rather than original 8 and track pad is a bit dodgy, but no real reason to replace it.
trigger's broom
I don't buy *a* computer. I just change or upgrade bits every so often. The important bit is probably about 2 years old. The oldest bit could be nearly a decade old.
My macbook didn't last anywhere near that. Died around warranty replacement time, and was obsoleted within 4 years, because it wasn't shiny enough to use in Starbucks afaict.
3.333333 years old approx.
PC laptop is 5 years old(HP Pavillion p189sa), this mac(27in 2011) is 8 years old now, phone(moto g4) is about 3 years old.
Stuck SSDs in the comps and upped RAM in mac to 20gig.
Battery is completely goosed on the laptop mind, it's only runs off mains.
Long as they all keep running, this set up will last me another good few years yet.
10 years, but I've doubled the CPU power, doubled the Ram, tripled the GPU power and storage and moved to an SSD for boot.
Really, desktops FTW
10 years, but I’ve doubled the CPU power, doubled the Ram, tripled the GPU power and storage and moved to an SSD for boot.
Really, desktops FTW
Triggers broom.
Running a 2012 Dell. Added SSD. Works really well for all the usual browsing, office stuff etc.
Built mine 8 years ago! I've only added SSD's x2 and Raptor drives x2 for on fly video processing of 1080p/PIP/effects. Oh I bought a cheap RX580 last month as I'm using a 4k screen now, my previous GTX670 did not support 4k. Buying a new GoPro this year, so I think it will need some upgrades for 4k editing, hoping it's only RAM and GFX card.
So new, I've not finished putting it together yet. Unfortunately, I'm beginning to wish I'd not bothered, as it's struggling to do what I bought it for. Opps!
3.5 year old imac. Works fine, if I had the luxury of plenty of work on I might have updated it this year but as things are it'll do for a while yet.
About 7 years now. Works fine for most stuff, though can be a bit slow for photo/video editing.
I am planning on replacing/upgrading it soon, mainly so I can give it to my dad. He is using my previous hand-me-down, which is getting a bit unreliable.
I replaced my 2011 MBP last year, but didn't really need to. I wanted something lighter. This new one should see me out I think.
Dell Studio 1735 laptop, August 2008 vintage. Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, cost me £800.
In that time it's had an SSD fitted and a larger spinnydisk in the second bay, and I had to replace the lid in 2015 after one of the hinges disintegrated. It came with Vista, now running Windows 10 quite happily. The only issue I have with it now is that the battery is sodded, which is hardly a surprise when it's been on charge pretty much constantly for a decade.
One of my better purchases, really. I'll be sad when it dies but it owes me nothing.
9yr old iMac – will be 10yrs in a couple of months. Still running fine
Same.
9 year old £250 HP Laptop.
Mid 2012 MacBook Pro. Best model in my view so I'm reluctant to upgrade.
First of the unibody MacBooks so late 2008, upgraded to 8gb ram and 1tb ssd drive, never had a shutdown or failure so no need to replace it anytime soon.
My work laptop (self employed) is a HP Pavilion from about 2008. The battery is long dead but the computer never moves. It has an SSD and a bit more RAM, has always run Linux. No reason to replace for now.
Erm. Not quite sure. It's an Acer laptop, I either bought in 2011 or early 2012, so it's around 7-8 years old.
It's an 17" laptop, i5 with 6Gb of RAM & a 750Gb HDD; cost me £550.
I looked at sticking an SSD in it recently but bought the wrong one, returned it & haven't got round to having another go at it.
So, it is completely as I bought it hardware-wise, although it's now running Win10.
I use it mainly for Zwift, 3-D modelling with Fusion360 & slicing 3-D models ready for printing.
And, to be honest it is starting to struggle. Zwift & Cura (slicing software) are both graphics restricted, so run in a very low-res manner. Fusion 360 is OK, but stumbles at times.
If I could upgrade the graphics processor then i reckon it would be fine but it's got onboard Intel graphics that I guess was never meant to deal with high intensity graphics applications.
Loathe to get rid though, as I don't really have the spare cash to flash on something worth upgrading to - something with a suitable separate graphics card & plenty of RAM.
Oldest part (CPU) is a 2008 QX6850 married to some a 2010 vintage mono, RAM and PSU. The graphics were upgraded to a HD7850OC somewhere around 2013 or early 2014 and an SSD was installed a couple of years ago.
Keep getting CPU fan errors despite it working so suspect the board is getting a bit senile. I'll keep it going till it pops then do a proper upgrade. The RAM can probably go into the all in one thats not currently getting used and the SSD into the laptop if I haven't got rid of it.
I have an even older late 2004 Dell Inspiron 9200 laptop up in the loft still running Windows 10 but it really does struggle. RAM is maxed already and processor swaps would produce marginal results at best, probably better just getting a lighter weight OS. Hard drive is IDE so would need an expensive SSD to fit.
squirrelking
Member
Oldest part (CPU) is a 2008 QX6850 married to some a 2010 vintage mono, RAM and PSU. The graphics were upgraded to a HD7850OC somewhere around 2013 or early 2014 and an SSD was installed a couple of years ago.Keep getting CPU fan errors despite it working so suspect the board is getting a bit senile. I’ll keep it going till it pops then do a proper upgrade. The RAM can probably go into the all in one thats not currently getting used and the SSD into the laptop if I haven’t got rid of it.
I have an even older late 2004 Dell Inspiron 9200 laptop up in the loft still running Windows 10 but it really does struggle. RAM is maxed already and processor swaps would produce marginal results at best, probably better just getting a lighter weight OS. Hard drive is IDE so would need an expensive SSD to fit.
you should just buy a new computer tbh. 😆
My laptop's about 7 years old, it's is a bit wheezy now but is ok for the interweb and retro games. My desktop is a reconditioned one (£100 or so) with loads of RAM (8GB) and an ok graphics card. I bought it to run CAD programs on.
computer(s)
6 month old Dell desktop does everything & goes like shit off a shovel
2016 MPB with moar RAM. it's OK if you don't know what you're doing
Dell somethingorother 'media server' which is rarely used and spends the first 2 hours of any activity updating itself
HP laptop that serves only as a reminder of how bad things could be
Custom gaming rig with many GB which is only better than the new Dell some of the time.
Hard drive is IDE so would need an expensive SSD to fit.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-IDE-SATA-Adapter-Converter/dp/B001H3CW00
I am using my newest which is a small laptop which is 2011,my desktop is 2003 but is in process of being retired.
you should just buy a new computer tbh.
I did, I have a Lenovo laptop with an i3 and it runs like a bag of crap even after a clean install. Might put the SSD in when I get a new desktop build (if I don't sell it before that) but not in any great rush to do so.
@cougar nice suggestion but suspect I may have issues getting something that size into a laptop 😉
@cougar nice suggestion but suspect I may have issues getting something that size into a laptop 😉
Ah. Yes, quite.
Thinking about it, even if you could fit an SSD into an IDE bay it probably wouldn't be a vast upgrade over a HDD. IDE craps out at 133MB/s, I'd have to google specifics but I'd hazard that's probably around the maximum data rate that a modern xATA spinnydisk would be throwing out.
An SSD would have significantly lower latency (and would never need defragging), but actual data throughput isn't going to change much above and beyond any boost you'd hypothetically get if you could replace a 15 year old IDE HDD with a modern mechanical equivalent.
5 year old MacBook Air
Home desktop is a Dell workstation that's 5 years old - but it does have a quad core CPU, 64GB of RAM and a load of SSD storage so still feeling pretty snappy. Might get a better CPU in there this year but otherwise still happy with it.
Laptop I'm using now is a mid 2012 Macbook Air - likewise, still happy with it. It got a new battery a couple of years ago and other than a nicer display, the new ones wouldn't do anything better for me.
7½ years.
It's a Dell Vostro laptop, i5 something or other.
I've put extra ram in it and an SSD and it runs better than when it was new.
It's set up as a desktop now as the battery is no use and the only issue is the fan had always been so loud.
It's run out of space so I was going to buy a new desktop to replace it but I just can't justify getting rid, so it'll probably get a USB HDD plugged in to it.
2008 Mac Pro
There’s nothing to replace an indestructible workstation like that, except perhaps a slightly newer second hand one.
Hurry up and release a proper new Mac Pro, Apple.
For just one person I have too many - 6 PCs and 2 laptops!
Oldest are 2 Dell SC440 servers - not in use anymore but knocking on 15 years old!
Most recent PC is about a year old, and built with help from some very kind peeps on this forum 🙂
2-3 years, but it was only £170. A new SSD sped it up.
The guts in mine are relatively newish, but the case and power supply are about 11 years old.. I bought a fancy lian-li brushed aluminium case which in theory will last forever, and a top of the line 620watt psu that was about a hundred quid at the time, so that should last well too as my PC doesn't push the power supply too hard even at maximum load.
I also repurpose my old hard drives as storage drives since getting an SSD as the main drive, running 4 drives in total
1x 240gb Samsung SSD
1x 620/40(?) gb WD Black edition as main storage
And 2 random 250gb drives as a mirrored back up for docs and music.
About 4 months. Acer Chromebook.
2x MacBook Pros - 2011 and 2012
10 to 12 years old desktop. First generation i5 but with SSD.
Desktop 4 years old, bought shortly after starting a new job, went on Scan and configured something to last me a while:
Quad core i7 4790K (currently not OCd), 16gb ram, SSD + HDD, Nvidia GTX 970 960
Fractal Design Define case - built like a brick shithouse, big + heavy + black, sucks the light out the room, with internal sound damping stuff.
Das Keyboard - cherry keyboard, alu top panel, sweet volume knob, no key markings just because.
27" Acer IPS monitor.
Running Arch Linux with Win 10 in VM.
One of mine, 39 years old 😀
Quite a few older PC/Laptops - SSD's make them so much more usable.
I've got an old 'mini' pc in the garage for music, it's got nothing on it, but because it has a normal HD it takes minutes to boot up (OK less than 120 seconds).
Main laptop is 5 years old - I7 4 series with an Nvidia GTX740m, 16gb ram, 1gb SSD, 1GB HD, OK for games still (although not at the res my son likes) but it's fine when away from home. It still runs lightning fast, but games are starting to out run it.
Main PC is a refurbed Lenovo workstation, 8gb, but it has a Zeon Server processor, and a Quadro graphics card - it's possibly about 7 years old, but we got it for a song a couple of years ago - swapped in an SSD, and the thing is fab for general office work, and internet - blisteringly fast (price new on these was £1500) - more than fine for general work - two screens.
Son has a gaming PC - about 4 years old but I7 4790k, GTX 970, 16gb, 3 large monitors -runs everything in HD, but he is complaining of slight 'stutter' in some brand new games now. He has to fund any upgrades if he wants, as he ploughed a lot of money into it at the time. He is into racing sims, so 3 screens look ace with the G29 steering wheel too. All I can hear now is the rumble of the force feedback and swearing as the race doesn't go too well (he's now 18).
1 x 6 year old HP Pavilion (upgraded SSD) which my daughter uses all the time for 'League of Legends' - still does the job, although the battery is knackered.
2 x I5 4 series ex office PC's - 1 as a media pc for the telly, and 1 in my 'arcade cabinet'. Both have SSD's.
SSD's have made a huge difference, and , unless you game, then there is getting less reasons to upgrade.
Dell Precision, M4800.
It’s about 2 years old.
The IT chap has just put Windows 10 on it, which seems ok.
It runs Inventor quite well.
No idea what size it is inside, has a 7i sticker on it.
2005 Sony laptop it won’t die
Feels like a good excuse for a screenshot!
Although not the oldest machine we have kicking about, my daily works laptop - a Dell Studio is circa 2009 - came with Intel i7, HD 1920x1080 screen, ATI Radeon (SSD & 8Gb have been added since) and I find the performance indistinguishable from my home 2018 Asus Zenbook that cost about the same... Used for development not gaming mind. What happened to Moores Law? Ok the Zenbook is thinner but the only real improvement is the Zenbook gets 8 hours on the battery while the Studio only ever got 60-90 minutes...
2007 Mesh bought at the launch of Vista. Triggers broom though, everything but the motherboard and case upgraded. That said the spec is modest, dual core Intel processor, maxed out at 4gb ram, 1GB graphics card, 3 spinny hard drives, two parallel one serial. Serial drive has XP to run legacy software (Autocad, Silent Hunter III), another drive Ubuntu 16.05LTS which is nice and stable, and the last drive I keep putting modern distros on to see how they run.
The secret to long life is cleaning dust out of them and knowing how to reinstall OSs.
8 year old 17.3" Samsung Laptop i5 2410M with 8Gb of ram
Main drive is now an SSD drive with the original in a caddy in place of the optical drive.
Its still running as sweet as a nut apart from the keyboard that succumbed to spilt coffee so have a USB one plugged in.
Thinking about a new one but its only at the thinking stage 😉
Do have a 2016 gaming PC upstairs that's pretty hi spec and an older 2007 desktop out in the workshop that runs through an older Samsung smart TV
I 'upgraded' my nans pc with a cheap ssd, it was running a duel core s775 chip, so a tenner for a quad core from Cex, and a a few more quid for an extra stick of ddr2 RAM. It was on its knees before but it absolutely flies now, but then it's only used as Web browsing /media machine.
About ten years old? Never been inside the case. Its struggling now tho
My daughter is still using my 10 year old HP HDX18 with SSD. Celeron dual core 1.8GHz I think and 4GB RAM. Runs W10 and Office 365 a treat. Except for the cracked plastic case and missing/worn keys it's like new. Better in fact, since it came with Vista!
Cougar
Subscriber
Dell Studio 1735 laptop, August 2008 vintage. Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, cost me £800
Snap. Although mine is now very, very slow.
Last of the 2010 Mac Minis, optical drive swapped out for a second drive. That drive failed a month ago, sadly, the WD My Book I was using as my Time Machine backup, has been misbehaving, which has meant my iTunes library, which was about 220 Gb, is now only about 100 Gb, that’s all that could be restored.
Thankfully, I’ve kept all of my cd’s, plus the DVD’s full of ripped music a mate has given me, and all of the sampler cd’s from The Word, Uncut and Mojo, so it’s just a long-winded process of re-ripping the cd’s.
Why not put all my music into Apple Music, then just download it all again? I would, if the highest bitrate available was 320Kb, or better still, Lossless, but it’s 256Kb, and I rip everything at 320, I’m not prepared to downgrade the quality further.
Oh, I’ve also got an Apple PowerBook somewhere around 2005, a G4. Haven’t used it for years, it needs a new battery, but otherwise still works fine, looks brand new.
Place I used to work at, their studio was still using a couple of old Mac desktop towers, somewhere areound 2000/2001 vintage, the anthracite/clear ones, as servers, and there was a Bondi blue/clear one from 1999 in storage. One of those was my old dual processor machine I did all my photoshop retouching on, until I got made redundant; it was good to see the machine still being used. My former studio manager and company director managed to keep hold of a couple of the Macs after the business finally went under, he got a job in the studio of the place I got a job at, and carried on using the old Macs for server work.
256Kb AAC is equivalent to 320 in other formats.
Think my 17" Dell laptop is 4 or 5 years old now. Was a reasonable spec (i7 4500U / 16Gb RAM) at the time and still handles my audio/photo/video (admittedly not 4k) processing with relative ease even without an SSD transplant.
Unless something falls over big time, I reckon it will see me another couple of years at least.
Might help I mostly run Linux rather than Windows?
8 year old VAIO. If they still made them, I’d buy a replacement, but they don’t, so I’m keeping it until it dies.
About ten years old? Never been inside the case. Its struggling now tho
its probably chock full of dust...
2008 Mac Pro
There’s nothing to replace an indestructible workstation like that, except perhaps a slightly newer second hand one.
Hurry up and release a proper new Mac Pro, Apple.
I felt like that until I saw the new Mac mini spec.
Desktop about 7 years old. 8g ram 500 g hd. 128ssd. I5. Going turn into server by adding a 2* 4tb for mirrored raid.
Laptop 1 year old. I7 32gb ram. 500gb hybrid hd. Once I have server sorted this will get a 2tb SSD.
Snap. Although mine is now very, very slow.
Two things.
1) SSD and a wipe / reinstall of Windows 10.
2) Is the fan also running full tilt constantly and it's shutting off under heavy load? I had mine in bits many times to clean out the fan over the course of a few months a good while back, but it always looked clear. Then one time I saw a bit of fluff sticking out from between the fan and the external heat sink vent, picked at it carefully with tweezers and extracted a hitherto-unnoticed ball of fluff the size of my thumb.
I have a little Asus X102BA that is over 4 years old now. It wasn't much over £200 when I bought it but it's really slow now
I don't use it much as my internet browsing is mainly via ipad
I could do with speeding it up but I don't know whether it's a poor spec (suspect so given the price) or something else and therefore whether I can upgrade it easily
Keyboard is about 13 years old I think, newest part is about a year.
2015 macbook pro
Just sold my 2011 MacBook Pro as it hadn’t been touched in years. Realised I was using my phone and tablet more than the computer. No longer have one in the house.
18 month old MacBook Pro touchbar. I buy a new one every 3 years as the second hand value is still high and there’s usually a significant performance bump.
Might buy a Mac mini and eGPU very soon as that can take 64gb of ram.
Rarely keep a computer for very long, did have a G5 tower for about 6 years though, was sad to see it go as it so well put together.
Lenovo U310 - bought 2012, added maximum memory in 2013, SSD fitted in 2014. Pretty cheap and works well.
Two windows laptops. One is 7 years old and the other 5. Hardly use them though - pretty much for everything on phone or tablet
Our main home computer is a mid 2007 iMac with a hybrid drive installed, which is still sufficiently sprightly for anything short of large HD video editing. We’ll keep it going until Apple stop doing security updates for it at which time it will be replaced by an iPad or MacBook since the current iMacs are too big for the kitchen counter it lives on. I also have a trigger’s broom PC for games/video editing, the oldest bit is the Lian Li case which I think dates back to 2004.