Updating Your Technology - How often is too often?

[RO(b)OB]

Apparently Generation Y has been conditioned into a cycle of purchase/dispose of/ upgrade, or so said my much loved R.E teacher of last year. The naive RO(b)OB of 2008 had never really thought about such a concept, that marketers were intentionally producing products with a high potency to defect soon after the expiration of warranty. However the idea made sense, and so too did the suggestion that Generation Y has become decreasingly skeptical of such short-spanned products and increasingly trigger-happy with the purchasing of the cleverly timed 'new-models'. I suppose any fan of the Nintendo handhelds have a history of such a process.

Anywho.

The idea behind this thread was to raise the question - how often do you upgrade your technology (ie. TVs, Phones, Computers, Consoles/Handhelds)?

And more importantly, I'd like to ask the peeps of A-N, particularly those who have completed or are studying Year 12, for a smidge of advice. I've had my laptop for three years now, since the beginning of Year 9 to this very day of Year 12...and it's beginning to poop on me. My 6 key has come loose, my x and z keys sometimes feel as if they'd like to go the same way, and even my space bar is becoming a disobedient little bitch (sometimes). Is 3 years too soon to upgrade? Would it be wise to upgrade now so I'll have access to a brand-spanking new Vista compatible laptop for all my Year 12 needs? Or maybe the foreign but exciting realm of Mac-ness that many would reccomend?

Or maybe I'd be wiser to wait (a hopefully short period of time) for that successor to Vista I heard about many weeks ago?

What's the best way to go?

[TryMe]

Got the money, buy another lappy. Three years isn't that long but considering the condition of your laptop, get one if you have the cash.

I would stick with what you know since you are doing year 12, you probably don't want added stress.

[TSPhoenix]

Computer, 5-year cycle I guess. 1999, 2005, and another this/next year.

Rereads... oh you wanted an opinion. Well you appear to need a new laptop, and I'll say you get what you pay for. But the real question is how much you actually need. Laptops like most things not only get better in technical specification as you pay more, but you get better build quality and better service. My Dad is on his 4th laptop, the previous all cost over $2500 and he got good warranty and support, and they were generally pretty sturdy. The new laptop while much better specced than any of the others, was only $1000 and is build cheaply, the lid doesn't feel sturdy and I doubt it'll last long. Its wasn't even worth buying an extended warranty for. No matter how powerful your $1000 OEM laptop is, its going to be built to last 3 years tops. That said this isn't really a problem as you'll probably upgrade again in 3 years.

[Hux]

I upgrade my phone every two years when my contract runs out, well, its actually every 21 months but yeh. I have also bought the last 4gen nintendo consoles on launch day. my computer not so much as i really only use it for net, word etc so about every 4-5yrs. i have a good sound system and will soon upgrade my telly, so thats like every 4-5yrs two i suppose.

[piem@n]

i replace stuff when it breaks. I don't like spending money on new stuff unless its a far better upgrade.

3 years for a laptop is alright, i guess. Isn't like 3 years the equivalent of like 10 years or something in tech years(or did i just make that up)?

[Gookanheimer]

Replace? Upgrade? Practically never. Still got every console I've ever owned, none of them get disposed nor do their extras. My phone? At the moment it's a 6100 my dad found at some point, because my 8250 that I'd been carrying around since 04 or so finally got a dead mic. Though I may be downgrading again if I can get my hands on the last working 8250 we have, this phone irritates the hell out of me. Computer... eh, pretty well-known now that I'm still running win98 on here. Machine itself has had a few upgrades along the way that I had nothing to do with, apart from getting a new graphics card so that I could use it with a new monitor dad picked up last year or something.

So yeah, for me there's no such thing as short-span products. I pretty much expect them to last as long as possible, and do my best to see they do it :P

[piem@n]

damn gook, your awesome.

[Jader7777]

There's lots of variables to updating your technology. For example I got this laptop about a year ago, and small issues I've had with it I've ironed out. Also with missing keys and the such you can just send it in for repairs, it'll cost but It's much better than having to buy a whole new computer.

Another question is if you can sell your old technology or if it's just outdated. My laptop is still worth about $1400 when I bought it for $1750. So technically I could sell it and buy up- but with Vista still the OS standard and my inherent fear of Macs I'm going to just sit back and wait for Windows 7 before I go crazy.

[Kabal]

This computer my family got about 4 years ago. Our last computer before then we got in '98.

Only upgrade if it's broke or faulty. Or still Windows 98.

[Gookanheimer]

Nevar!

[Smoko]

I won't upgrade unless I'm getting something substantial from it, otherwise it just seems wasteful since everything still works just fine. Besides, the longer you wait the more exciting and beneficial the upgrade will be. I'd seriously hate to be Gookanheimer's pants when he gets a computer that can run recent games at max settings.

[Pandora]

Is there such a thing as upgrading/dating too often?

I dunno what state you're in, but if you're in NSW bar the ACT then Year 12 is the most important year and so it's important to get off to a good start because every assessment/assignment and exam counts toward your final mark. You don't want to lose precious marks over a technological failure or poor presentation. I would suggest using the latest technology in everything needed for school, not only will it come in handy for Year 12 you will also need it throughout your tertiary education as well.
As for the 'successor to Vista'- if it were coming out in the next few weeks then sure, you could probably wait that long, or if you think the technology you use isn't a factor in your school work then you can probably wait longer. By the sounds of it, you definitely need a new computer/laptop a.s.a.p though.

As for me, I go through technology pretty fast... I've had a new laptop pretty much every year since about Year 8 because I keep breaking them in various ways. In fact my current laptop needs a new screen. I'm the same with phones. I put it down to the quality of the technology and the design though. However I've had much success with my iPod/s. We recently upgraded all of our televisions too, the last ones would have been more than a few years old. So, while I don't care if I have the latest model unless the newer model has a new and useful function, I usually am stuck with the newer model given my propensity to break things. I have a new desktop computer now too, so here's hoping it lasts me through uni. *fingers crossed*

[Smoko]

Originally Posted by Pandora

Is there such a thing as upgrading/dating too often?

Yes. The iPod is a great example of why. Just take a look at the timeline of their full sized models. The amount of upgrades they've had compared to the new features added is incredibly slim. Anyone who upgraded more than three or so times is a fool. Then there's the people that buy a new computer every couple of years since their current one is slow or crashes a lot. There's nothing wrong with the computer and it could serve the user for many more years, all it needs is better maintenance.

The amount of money people waste on technology is amazing.

Originally Posted by Pandora

You don't want to lose precious marks over a technological failure or poor presentation. I would suggest using the latest technology in everything needed for school, not only will it come in handy for Year 12 you will also need it throughout your tertiary education as well.

Unless you're doing some form of high quality media class, 10-15 year old hardware can do the same job as today's hardware. The only difference is how fast you could do it.

Originally Posted by Pandora

As for the 'successor to Vista'- if it were coming out in the next few weeks then sure, you could probably wait that long, or if you think the technology you use isn't a factor in your school work then you can probably wait longer. By the sounds of it, you definitely need a new computer/laptop a.s.a.p though.

Windows 7 could be totally skipped and you wouldn't notice much of a difference and the same goes for Vista. But I'd say unless RO(b)OB can't stand the quirks his laptop has at the moment he should wait a few more months and see how the release schedule of Windows 7 is going. It's looking to be better than Vista, so unless it's incredibly vital it would be silly to waste money on a Vista license

[Pandora]

Originally Posted by Smoko

Yes. The iPod is a great example of why. Just take a look at the timeline of their full sized models. The amount of upgrades they've had compared to the new features added is incredibly slim. Anyone who upgraded more than three or so times is a fool. Then there's the people that buy a new computer every couple of years since their current one is slow or crashes a lot. There's nothing wrong with the computer and it could serve the user for many more years, all it needs is better maintenance.

The amount of money people waste on technology is amazing.

The answer was no you cannot updgrade "too much". Would it be a waste of money in a lot of circumstances? Yes. Not the same thing. The line where something becomes "too much" is when the added amount causes direct harm or affect to the recipient or receiving device.

You have said nothing that I did not already know in your entire post.

Originally Posted by Smoko

Unless you're doing some form of high quality media class, 10-15 year old hardware can do the same job as today's hardware. The only difference is how fast you could do it.

As I said:

Originally Posted by Pandora

if you think the technology you use isn't a factor in your school work then you can probably wait longer.

Originally Posted by Smoko

Windows 7 could be totally skipped and you wouldn't notice much of a difference and the same goes for Vista. But I'd say unless RO(b)OB can't stand the quirks his laptop has at the moment he should wait a few more months and see how the release schedule of Windows 7 is going. It's looking to be better than Vista, so unless it's incredibly vital it would be silly to waste money on a Vista license

Address your post to RO(b)OB not to me.

[CheetaH09]

If you are using your laptop often 3 years is pretty much the most you will get out of them, If it isn't used often you can keep it longer but after your extended warranty has run out, (if you get it) Then it could become too expensive to fix, and you have to get a new one anyway. Desktops mmmmmm it all depends on what you do with your desktop i know people who have had the same desktop for 6 years, But they only do email and word documents and surf the net so it is still going strong, If you play games and do video editing or anything strenuous to the cpu and that 4 - 5 years at most before you start running into serious issues, So it all depends on what you do with it and how much you use them both.

Phones on the other hand when your contract runs out and if you have the money upgrade, Phones are consumable products if it breaks and its out of warranty buy a new one.

Consoles, if you mean game consoles you don't replace then you just buy a new one and keep the old for the game console library that you have most likely been collecting since you were young.

TV, When they break really or if you find that everything is too small and require a bigger tv :P

But it all really comes down to what you feel is a good time, If you have a laptop and feel you need to upgrade within 3 years, Then you probably should, If you have the money that is. You could always give it to a sibling or someone as a christmas or birthday present hahaha