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[JRace]

If you don't need leading-edge tech, then a carefully chosen refurbished unit can be a good deal.

Why pay a premium for a PC which will be obsolete in two years?

[TerryRitchie]

If you don't need leading-edge tech, then a carefully chosen refurbished unit can be a good deal.

Why pay a premium for a PC which will be obsolete in two years?

That's exactly right. I always stay a few generations back and generally purchase that tech either used or new old stock. My current system is more than enough for anything thrown at it today and it even plays games half way decent given the generation of video card I use. About every 5 to 7 years I upgrade the motherboard, CPU, and RAM with older generation parts, but they feel "new" to me.

[SpriggsySpriggs]

Most of the complaints you have about your computing experience seem to always be directly related to your computer's specs. Seems like a simple solution is right there. Also, you could install a DNS filter on your router, provided you have a good one. You could do something like Wireguard with Netshield. Blocks basically all ads, even mobile ones.

There are some really good deals on off-lease corporate refurbs on eBay. I've obtained and used quite a few of these over the years. Here's a quite reasonably priced i7 6700 with 16GB of RAM: https://www.ebay.com/itm/145183990444

As a bonus it's a 6th gen CPU so you can run anything from XP to Win10 or your favorite flavor of Linux (or multi-boot any combination to your heart's content).

Also, check your local municipality. Many times they'll auction off their older computers on sites like GovDeals and you can get many of them dirt cheap. Last year I purchased 22 of Akron Ohio's off-lease Dell systems for $75. I made a killing reselling them on eBay for only $50 each. I preloaded each of them with PopOS. I kept one for myself.

I'm only an hour and a half drive from Akron so I was able to save shipping cost too. $75 for 22 computers. You can get yourself a relatively newer computer and make a bit of side hustle cash with the rest.

I like the idea of buying government computers and reselling them. You've given me an idea for a hobby, Terry. Thank you.

[SMcNeill]

I think there's two main philosophies when buying a PC -- either buy a cheap one with plans to upgrade in just a few years, or buy a top-end one, with plans for it to last for a decade.

I gave about $4000 for my alienware R17 laptop a few years back, but it's still one that will run *anything* I ever want to toss at it.  

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-10980HK CPU @ 2.40GHz  3.10 GHz
Installed RAM 32.0 GB (31.7 GB usable)
System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super  8.0 GB

So 12 cores @3.1 GHZ, 24 processes, 32 GB ram, with an 8GB video card, with a 2TB SSD...    It's not the highest end machine on the market nowadays, but it's still more than capable of playing any game that any developer has out there.  It blazes through work stuff for me, and video rendering times are acceptable, with nary a snag or issue that I'd honestly complain over.

Some folks toss $400 a year into replacing or upgrading their machines.  I tend to just toss $4000 at one time at a machine, and then expect it to last 10 years or more for my needs.  For a while, I get the nice feeling of strutting around and having one of the best toys on the block.  After that, I still end up with something acceptable for years to come, until I finally repeat the process once again.   

[TerryRitchie]

I like the idea of buying government computers and reselling them. You've given me an idea for a hobby, Terry. Thank you.

I've done it a few times when I can find the deals like the one I described. These systems typically have the hard drive pulled and won't be included. But another trick is to search eBay for data centers that are selling off their 3 year old hard drives in quantity for dirt cheap. These are top of the line mechanical drives that will last for years under normal use.

This was my breakdown:

$75 for 22 computers
$35 for 25 WD Black 500GB SATA hard drives
$25 for a large bag of Dell hard drive screws (yeah, they use weird screws that slide into rails to hold the drives in, can be found on eBay cheap).
       (when the municipalities pull the drives they never take the screws off the drives)
$40 gas to travel there and back
$10 approx packing tape
$0  about 1 hour time each system to physically clean each one and install the hard drive and OS (pro tip: install OS on one drive, clone to the rest, in my case it was PopOS)

That's roughly $8 invested into each system. eBay's cut on each sale was about $8 as well. $715 profit on 21 systems all said and done (buyers paid for shipping). Total time from picking them up to selling last one off about 2 weeks. I could have easily sold them for twice as much but I wanted to move them quickly (see understanding wife below).

Another pro tip: Visit furniture and rent-to-own stores for large chunks of free styrofoam. Visit any local store(s) for free boxes.

Oh, also, if married, have a wife that is understanding when one of the rooms in the house becomes a temporary way station for wayward computers.

[JRace]

It's funny how Windows 11's hardware requirements were chosen to encourage the sales of new PCs, but it has had the opposite effect on me....

I have always assembled my own desktop PCs, except that my previous desktop was a Compaq that I found at a good price.  It served me well... until I decided to upgrade the graphics, replacing the onboard graphics hardware with a dedicated GPU...  until I did the math and realized that the Compaq's power supply could not support a half-way decent GPU card.  While it was basically an ATX power supply internally and connector-wise, it was not quite an ATX form factor.  The PS had a non-standard shape in order to fit within the unique shape of the Compaq's case, and no off-the-shelf ATX supply could be shoehorned into that case.

Whelp, I replaced that Compaq with another homebrew PC, swearing to never again buy a pre-assembled name-brand PC.

Until MS inflicted Windows 11 on the world.

Lately I've been feeling cramped by RAM and hard drive limitations, and also a CPU upgrade would be nice, but if I install a new motherboard then I feel that I might as well move from Windows 7 to a more modern version of Windows.

MS seems to have pulled the old online Windows 10 upgrade options; 11 is the only Windows game in town, and I refuse to allow that rancid product to contaminate my machines.  So I've been reconsidering maybe giving a home to a pre-owned PC running Win10.  Maybe.

But brand new?  No.  I can hold my breath well enough to tolerate Win10, but Win11 is a deal breaker.

My other option is to finally ditch Windows.  I've only ever needed Windows to play a few specific games (which tend to be older and may be runnable under Wine (or ReactOS in a VM)) and to run some work-related software for a profession that I am no longer a part of.  I've had various flavors of Linux running on VMs for years, and may soon make Linux my daily driver.

[TerryRitchie]

It's funny how Windows 11's hardware requirements were chosen to encourage the sales of new PCs, but it has had the opposite effect on me....

I have always assembled my own desktop PCs, except that my previous desktop was a Compaq that I found at a good price.  It served me well... until I decided to upgrade the graphics, replacing the onboard graphics hardware with a dedicated GPU...  until I did the math and realized that the Compaq's power supply could not support a half-way decent GPU card.  While it was basically an ATX power supply internally and connector-wise, it was not quite an ATX form factor.  The PS had a non-standard shape in order to fit within the unique shape of the Compaq's case, and no off-the-shelf ATX supply could be shoehorned into that case.

Whelp, I replaced that Compaq with another homebrew PC, swearing to never again buy a pre-assembled name-brand PC.

Until MS inflicted Windows 11 on the world.

Lately I've been feeling cramped by RAM and hard drive limitations, and also a CPU upgrade would be nice, but if I install a new motherboard then I feel that I might as well move from Windows 7 to a more modern version of Windows.

MS seems to have pulled the old online Windows 10 upgrade options; 11 is the only Windows game in town, and I refuse to allow that rancid product to contaminate my machines.  So I've been reconsidering maybe giving a home to a pre-owned PC running Win10.  Maybe.

But brand new?  No.  I can hold my breath well enough to tolerate Win10, but Win11 is a deal breaker.

My other option is to finally ditch Windows.  I've only ever needed Windows to play a few specific games (which tend to be older and may be runnable under Wine (or ReactOS in a VM)) and to run some work-related software for a profession that I am no longer a part of.  I've had various flavors of Linux running on VMs for years, and may soon make Linux my daily driver.

I would suggest upgrading your current PC instead of going with a relatively newer off-lease system. With the off-lease name brand systems you are always going to be somewhat restrained by proprietary parts like you found in your Compaq. Most of the off-lease business class PCs only contain 250 to 350 watt power supplies, so you'll be in the same boat again when using your dedicated GPU.

Upgrade your current system and then dual boot Windows 10 and your favorite version of Linux. Use Linux as your daily driver and use Windows to play the games that Wine or Proton still doesn't support. You can still get Windows 10: https://www.ebay.com/itm/266156234625

I have a system on my work bench that dual boots between Windows 7 and PopOS. Heck, if you really want to , you can triple boot between Windows 7, 10, and Linux if you want.

[Kernelpanic]

@JRace - New computers hardly cost anything these days; no comparison to earlier times. If necessary, pay it off in two or three installments.

Assembling a computer yourself was perhaps an alternative more than 25 years ago, maybe (from a German point of view). In addition, when assembling a computer yourself, there are a some things that you cannot take into account yourself because you lack the options: The coordination of the individual components with each other. Just go by the technical data, that doesn't work - only by accident.

Buy a new one: New & Refurbished

[JRace]

I would suggest upgrading your current PC instead of going with a relatively newer off-lease system. With the off-lease name brand systems you are always going to be somewhat restrained by proprietary parts like you found in your Compaq. Most of the off-lease business class PCs only contain 250 to 350 watt power supplies, so you'll be in the same boat again when using your dedicated GPU.

Upgrade your current system and then dual boot Windows 10 and your favorite version of Linux. Use Linux as your daily driver and use Windows to play the games that Wine or Proton still doesn't support. You can still get Windows 10: https://www.ebay.com/itm/266156234625

I have a system on my work bench that dual boots between Windows 7 and PopOS. Heck, if you really want to , you can triple boot between Windows 7, 10, and Linux if you want.

I've been going back and forth in my mind, considering the implications of a manufactured PC, leaning toward using it as a stopgap until I finally go whole-hog on building a new one.

@JRace - New computers hardly cost anything these days; no comparison to earlier times. If necessary, pay it off in two or three installments.
Assembling a computer yourself was perhaps an alternative more than 25 years ago, maybe (from a German point of view). In addition, when assembling a computer yourself, there are a some things that you cannot take into account yourself because you lack the options: The coordination of the individual components with each other. Just go by the technical data, that doesn't work - only by accident.
Buy a new one: New & Refurbished

It's not about the cost of a new PC, it's about the operating system.  New PCs ship with Window 11, which is unacceptable to me.

Regarding the pros & cons of building a PC, I've always liked having control over what goes into the new machine.


Most likely I'll just upgrade the RAM & HD on my current desktop and stick with Win7 for a little longer, until I relegate Windows to a VM or ditch it entirely.

[Kernelpanic]

Regarding the pros & cons of building a PC, I've always liked having control over what goes into the new machine.

Windows 10 Professional is available today for an apple and an egg.

From a test report on how a company puts together a computer (from memory): One sometimes test hundreds of different components to see how they fit together in the overall system, and then choose the composition where components and price fit.

One also could take the best components from everything and tune them together, but how many would (can) buy such a "platinum computer"?

But in the end it's your decision.