How long do you keep your devices?

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HavocXphere

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PC
Laptop
Tablet
Phone
etc

Roughly how many years/months elapse between new buys for you?
 
HavocXphere said:
PC
Laptop
Tablet
Phone
etc

Roughly how many years/months elapse between new buys for you?
Click to expand...

That's two different things.

According to heading: until they die and it's not economical to repair. Average is about 6 years. iPad 2 still working, i7 950 died beginning of the year (bought when it came out), had an old Pentium IV from the early 2000's that ran for near 8 years, the i3 first gen got swapped after 4 years. Laptops lasted between 4-6 years, one HDD dead (80GB) after 8 years, another the screen died and another the hinge is broken but still using.

Phones, one is 4 years now, another 3 are 3 years and one one year. They get passed around when upgrades come around.

Still using iPad 3 and iPad Air.
 
PC: Don't own a personal desktop. The work desktop has been going for 6 years now (with the odd component upgraded where necessary).
Laptop: Every five years, on average. In practice, I wouldn't change unless lag becomes unbearable.
Tablet: Once it's broken by iOS updates. First gen iPad air still going strong since 2014. Only upgraded then so I could give my ipad 3 to a family member.
Phone: Three or four years. I watch phones around the R5k price mark and don't mind picking one up any time something I like comes out in that bracket.
 
HavocXphere said:
PC
Laptop
Tablet
Phone
etc

Roughly how many years/months elapse between new buys for you?
Click to expand...

PC - until I can't play any games on it, or it breaks
Laptop - until I can't play any games on it, or it breaks
Tablet - Owned some, but they always seem to gather dust
Phone - i have 6 contracts, you work it out :p I've had quite a couple this year.
 
PC - 5 years or so (CPU, motherboard - RAM and GPU upgraded before then)
Laptop - seems like 4 years (gave away older one and replaced in December last year)
Tablet - only ever had the one - Nexus 7 2013, not planning to upgrade
Phone - about 3 years (not on contract)
 
HavocXphere said:
PC
Laptop
Tablet
Phone
etc

Roughly how many years/months elapse between new buys for you?
Click to expand...

Tablet - had an ipad 2 for about 4 years ...... no plans to replace
Laptop HP M6 is about 4 years old ............ no plans to replace
Laptop Asus ROG - 9 months old ................ new still relatively
Phone Note 4 about 2 years old .......... no plans to replace
 
PC: Haven't owned one in 7 years
Laptop: 6 years, still going strong
Tablet:4 over the last 5 years. On ipad air2 the last year. Should stick with it for a while.
Phone: If they dont break, >2 years. I still have most of my old phones for the last 16 years, some even power up. Except my two samsungs(one from ~2005 and an s4) that had battery issues.
 
Upgrading phones has become a lot less exciting in the past few years, I guess this includes tablets too. The level of perceived technological advancement just seems to have plateaued. Screens can only get so good and processors reach a point where they're fast enough for most everyday tasks, cameras are also hitting limits on what they can achieve in the amount of space available. Some company is going to have to come up with something that we all suddenly can't live without to continue keeping profits up on new devices.
 
PC - Depends. Generally every 3-5 years. i7 2600k OC'd to 4.6 gHz ,16GB ram, 10TB, 250GB SSD, GTX 1070, Dell 4K Screen. Will replace components when it cannot run current games at medium to high. CPU, Ram & mobo are up next year.
Laptop - My laptop generally gives up every 3 years. Either: Hinge, Screen, SSD etc. (Macbook)
Tablet - Child is still using my Nexus 7 :D. Will replace when it breaks.
Phone - Every 2 years or so. Currently have an S6 Edge 32GB.
 
Last edited:
PC - Every couple years. Currently very happy with my i7 4790 and R9 390 based gaming pc.
Laptop - Around 4 years or so. Currently a Macbook Air 2015 that is still going strong. Hardly use it
Tablet - Every couple years. Currently a iPad Air 2 - Use daily and couldnt live without it.
Phone - Every year or sometimes sooner - 3 contracts so the family get my stuff when I upgrade. Just moved from a s6 Edge Plus to a iPhone 7 Plus
 
It's hard to say. Generally, I keep things until they die or components need replacing. So...

PC

My oldest was built in 2007. Gave it to my parents a few years ago. It passed away about 2 years ago. Built up an APU system to replace it. The parts were just too dated, and I didn't feel like the hassle of buying old second hand parts to squeeze more out of it. Partially funded the parents new build by selling the old parts though :P

The PC which eventually replaced that was built out of old parts, which was on loan from a friend, and then I later bought from him. I did splash out on a new GPU and some other things though. Sold that off when I bought the gaming laptop.

Laptop

Bought a Core 2 HP 550 in 2008. Between my parents PC and my one that followed, this was my primary PC. It was "alright" for its time. It's still going. Unfortunately I ruined all chances of having any resale value when I stood on it. Now it sits under my bed, as a download / streaming PC.

Bought my gaming laptop around March this year. I'd like to think that I'm going to keep it until it dies, but I don't think that'll happen. The thought of a 1070 laptop is growing on me.

Cellphones

I bought an HTC One (M8) about 2 and a half years(ish) ago. It's still going. I'll replace it when it dies.

Tablet

I don't own one, but a friend was nice enough to let me use a spare. I've had it for quite some time though. If he needs it back, I doubt I'd buy my own. I don't use it enough to justify the price.
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
Upgrading phones has become a lot less exciting in the past few years, I guess this includes tablets too. The level of perceived technological advancement just seems to have plateaued. Screens can only get so good and processors reach a point where they're fast enough for most everyday tasks, cameras are also hitting limits on what they can achieve in the amount of space available. Some company is going to have to come up with something that we all suddenly can't live without to continue keeping profits up on new devices.
Click to expand...

With you on that....my last upgrade was a year ago and should have really just stuck with the old phone. Anyways, do not think will be upgrading come next year...phone only gets used for whatsapp and surfing when on the move.
 
PC - until lighting/power surge fries it lol. Typically they last about 2 to 3 years give or take.

Laptop - 4 years and going stronge. 13" Sony Vaio i5 SSD etc etc. Did upgrade the ram earlier this year to 8 or 12 gigs i think - typically use this only when travelling abroad

Tablet - dont own one!

Phone - usually about 2 years give or take. Current Xperia Z3compact is about 1 1/2 years old. Works great, battery life is great. Pity the side flap broke off so no longer waterproof.
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
Screens can only get so good
Click to expand...
They push up the resolution. For VR you need 2/4K screens (something Apple still needs to include).
DrJohnZoidberg said:
processors reach a point where they're fast enough for most everyday tasks
Click to expand...
With Windows 10 on arm and also Ubuntu 17.04 with Unity 8 and Google's Andromeda where phones can become a full blown desktop if docked to a bigger screen the more processing power you have the better.
DrJohnZoidberg said:
cameras are also hitting limits on what they can achieve in the amount of space available
Click to expand...
There's still loads more they can do as proved by the Google Pixel (having the best camera ever) like better low lighting pictures and also what Apple is doing on the iPhone 7 plus's dual camera setup and bokeh effect software enhancements.
 
PCs: around 5 years but I never replace with latest gen stuff, tend to keep chassis and upgrade guts.

Laptop: only when it breaks - current one's about 7 years old.

Tablet: never owned or desired one.

Phone: around 1 year, like to update to a bigger screen each year - budgeting around R3K for my next 5.5" before end Jan.
 
After buying my original desktop PC I have never bought another new one, but rather upgraded individual components as required. This means that I have had it from sometime in the 1980s, although the only original parts left would be some of the screws.
 
Trusty old Dell D630 laptop from 2006 - still working and running Win 10 ! (it was upgraded to 4GB of ram)
Samsung Galaxy S3 - late 2012 and on original battery. Modded now to run Cyanogenmod and in use daily.
Tomtom G520 - 2008 and going strong. Sure it shows it's age, but it still works and it has the latest maps too.
Unlike my Garmin 910xt watch which has been replaced twice in the last 2 years :)
 
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