Update PC Or Buy New?

martindow

I've got a PC which is now ten years old.  It's a Novatech Life NTI106, with Intel Core 4th Gen i5 Processor, 8GB Memory, 1TB Hard Drive and 128GB SSD.

Everything is working fine, but it's running Windows 10 and can't be updated to 11 so I would like to do something about this before next year when MS will be withdrawing support.

Am I best to just buy a new one or would it be possible to keep some parts (bearing in mind its age) and replacing others to create a 'new' computer?

If I do scrap it, would its components or the whole thing have any resale value? 

Heedtheadvice

I guess (!) it depend upon what you use it for and if there are any indictions of failures being imminent.

It is now knocking on a bit, as is mine ( similar spec but more memory) but it is still fine for virtually all I use it for. (The main exception  for mine is audio editing where I have had to get best performance out of one or two devices to prevent audio clicks.) 

Are you happy with performance? Does it run all the software you wish/have?

For the hardware the reliability should be investigated such as drive diagnostics that are easy to be done to give an indication.......and if you have not done so recently, do a backup in case of any failures anyway.

I am being a bit MSE and carrying on with mine as long as possible.

Neil_Jones

martindow said:

I've got a PC which is now ten years old.  It's a Novatech Life NTI106, with Intel Core 4th Gen i5 Processor, 8GB Memory, 1TB Hard Drive and 128GB SSD.

Everything is working fine, but it's running Windows 10 and can't be updated to 11 so I would like to do something about this before next year when MS will be withdrawing support.

Am I best to just buy a new one or would it be possible to keep some parts (bearing in mind its age) and replacing others to create a 'new' computer?

If I do scrap it, would its components or the whole thing have any resale value? 

Does it do everything you want and in a reasonable time?

A lot will have changed in 10 years so the only thing you can reuse will be the drives, possibly the case and maybe the power supply.

GDB2222

To update to W11, you will need a new motherboard, CPU, and RAM. Maybe a new case. You can reuse the power supply but that might be a false economy. So, essentially, you are buying new. 

LightFlare

Using a 10 year old PSU might be an unwise move.

It will have degraded a LOT over that amount of time and probably wouldnt have the power to run anything modern (plus they are relatively cheap new anyway)

Neil_Jones

LightFlare said:

Using a 10 year old PSU might be an unwise move.

It will have degraded a LOT over that amount of time and probably wouldnt have the power to run anything modern (plus they are relatively cheap new anyway)

Depends on the quality of the unit.

My parents computer has a "decent" (i think its a Corsair?) unit in it that I shoved in back in 2005.  And it wasn't cheap, think it was about £95 at the time and it was only a 350w.  Anyway its still in use four computers later and I trust it far more than most cheap and cheerful units.

I've something similar in my own that is a few years newer, but still going, its a 480w something or other.

400ixl

You will basically be left with a re-usable case if you want something Windows 11 compatible. As such, likely to be cheaper to replace.

Vitor

There's so many variables on what might or might not work, unless you are very savvy on tech, I'd go for a new PC and just move across your documents, pics etc. using the 1GB hard disk.

martindow

Thanks all - I expected that it would be almost entirely outdated.  I think I've got my money's worth at £45/ year.

I have software on it to run an on-line shop and I deal with emails and a bit of browsing, but nothing demanding like video editing, etc.

Am I right to be worried about MS withdrawing support for Windows 10 next year or could I safely carry on using it past that date?  Everything is backed up in case it keels over.

When I replace it, what spec is advisable to get something that hopefully would be good for another ten years?

Heedtheadvice

As it is for business use I would play safe ( after support is withdrawn it could be potentially more vulnerable ) and update to  win11 capable machine around the time of the withdrawal.

As mentioned, little worth salvaging ( monitor should be OK if compatible with new machine output ) but the drives could be useful to use as external drives for backups etc.

itwasntme001

My Dad was in a similar situaiton; PC in use for over 10 years for a 2010 PC (Dell Studio XPS 8100), can not have Windows 11 on it and he was perfectly fine using it.

The only upgrades we did to the PC over the years were installing a SSD and WiFi card.

We decided to replace the PC due to Windows 11 next year and also we could re-iuse the WiFi card and SSD on my PC and my sibling's PC.

So we got a Dell 12th gen PC for around £400 from their outlet store, it came without a HHD just a SSD but moved over the HDD from old PC to new.

It has been a great purchase and no need to worry about not being able to upgrade the OS and faster and smoother to use.

I would stick to 12th gen intel or below as 13th and 14th gen intels have major issues, there have been fixed but I would still avoid.  12th gen is over kill anyway for your use and it'll be a lot cheaper.

Everything else on th old PC was not salvageble but re-using 3 components is good enough.  I have bought from Dell outlet previously for me and my sibling and never had issues.  My Dad's PC is running great.