Advice for replacing my main computer

[dikliu]

I need your advice for buying my next computer.

I have two computers. One is my main computer, a desktop that I use for my various daily chores - Quickens, MS Office, image editing, etc. That main computer is five years old, and I need to replace it. This is why I am here. My other computer is secondary, and it is a laptop that I use to play music, Netflix, Plex, and to office meetings which are once a week. That laptop isn't used for any heavy-duty chores.

I have read that desktops require upgrading every 4 to 5 years and, with laptops, it is even sooner. What makes financial sense: should I buy another desktop, and keep upgrading the desktop and the laptop as I am doing now? That, or should I buy a middle to high-end laptop and a dock station to use for my main computer and, when it requires upgrading, demotes that laptop to replace my secondary laptop?

 

[hang-the-9]

You don't need to upgrade for basic use unless it's too slow, and even then some cheap upgrades like going to a solid state drive and possibly more RAM, or even a cheap CPU swap in the same family but to a faster model will help. It may help if you list your system specs since we have no idea how fast your current systems are or if you have any issues with them aside from just age.

 

[dikliu]

Thanks. Yes, I have thought about upgrading the hardware. I am uncomfortable with doing my own upgrade and I fear that I might screw up. Also, I don't know where is the bottleneck of the computer. Here is a screenshot of my computer's specs. Thanks.

https/drive.google.com/file/d/0B6FjC70FxDwhcDFsN1JtckQxNXc/view?usp=sharing

 

[hang-the-9]

Thanks. Yes, I have thought about upgrading the hardware. I am uncomfortable with doing my own upgrade and I fear that I might screw up. Also, I don't know where is the bottleneck of the computer. Here is a screenshot of my computer's specs. Thanks.

https/drive.google.com/file/d/0B6FjC70FxDwhcDFsN1JtckQxNXc/view?usp=sharing

While not the best CPU or RAM amount, there is nothing wrong with the system for non-gaming use.

Do you actually have issues with the system? Or just looking to upgrade because of how long you had it? If you don't have a solid state drive, that would be the single best purchase you can make for about $100 to make a big difference in how fast the computer reacts and opens programs. Another would be to make sure your RAM is in dual channel mode, which would be two RAM sticks of the same site in dual channel slots on the motherboard. With 6 GB you probably have a 4GB and a 2 GB stick. A second 4GB stick instead of the 2 will help with speed, and again will be cheaper than a new system.

If you have ever opened a computer up before, there are no worries about sapping in a drive or adding RAM, you are not taking out the motherboard or anything even a bit complex. Get a SATA solid state drive, get a USB enclosure for it, clone your existing drive onto it using Macrium Reflect, swap the drives, you get a much faster system. A local tech probably won't charge too much to do the work if you are worried about it. I'd probably charge maybe $40 for imaging a drive and adding in RAM for the labor. Most of the work is just waiting for the clone to complete, just watching a progress bar.

 

[dikliu]

Yes, that desktop which is my main computer is running slow. This computer takes a bit of time to open larger apps such as MS Office. With a very large app such as PhotoShop, it seems to take forever to open it. These are why I am considering buying a new desktop. Swapping the hard drive as you described seems doable for me. I can try swapping it myself or hire a local technician for the task. My secondary computer is a laptop and it is newer than my desktop. So, another option is to promote that laptop to be my main computer, and then buy a less expensive laptop to use as my secondary computer. Attached is an image of my current laptop, can you take a look if it is powerful enough to replace my desktop for the main computer? Thanks

https/drive.google.com/open?id=0B6FjC70FxDwhZnctQTBEbnhXLVU

this

Thanks. Yes, I have thought about upgrading the hardware. I am uncomfortable with doing my own upgrade and I fear that I might screw up. Also, I don't know where is the bottleneck of the computer. Here is a screenshot of my computer's specs. Thanks.

https/drive.google.com/file/d/0B6FjC70FxDwhcDFsN1JtckQxNXc/view?usp=sharing

While not the best CPU or RAM amount, there is nothing wrong with the system for non-gaming use.

Do you actually have issues with the system? Or just looking to upgrade because of how long you had it? If you don't have a solid state drive, that would be the single best purchase you can make for about $100 to make a big difference in how fast the computer reacts and opens programs. Another would be to make sure your RAM is in dual channel mode, which would be two RAM sticks of the same site in dual channel slots on the motherboard. With 6 GB you probably have a 4GB and a 2 GB stick. A second 4GB stick instead of the 2 will help with speed, and again will be cheaper than a new system.

If you have ever opened a computer up before, there are no worries about sapping in a drive or adding RAM, you are not taking out the motherboard or anything even a bit complex. Get a SATA solid state drive, get a USB enclosure for it, clone your existing drive onto it using Macrium Reflect, swap the drives, you get a much faster system. A local tech probably won't charge too much to do the work if you are worried about it. I'd probably charge maybe $40 for imaging a drive and adding in RAM for the labor. Most of the work is just waiting for the clone to complete, just watching a progress bar.

 

[hang-the-9]

That is a very good CPU for a laptop, although a few years old, it should be faster than your desktop. Your desktop is fine though, just doing a bit of a cleanup on it will make it run better, solid state drive, and maybe a clean Windows setup.