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Upgrading every year?
- Thread starter MilkMan4
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Ive thought about trying this, and it probably works best if you can live without a computer for a few weeks a year so that you can sell yours while it is still the "current" model, just before the refresh.
The problem is that you lose a fair bit of money. Its quite similar to cars really, the most economical solution is to buy a new one and use it until its last day of life, then buy another new one.
If you are a student however, you get a pretty decent discount on the laptop and the apple care so the resale value can come close to the total price you paid.
The problem is that you lose a fair bit of money. Its quite similar to cars really, the most economical solution is to buy a new one and use it until its last day of life, then buy another new one.
If you are a student however, you get a pretty decent discount on the laptop and the apple care so the resale value can come close to the total price you paid.
I'm not too concerned about losing that much money. It seems like apple products typically keep a pretty high resale value. I'd be willing to lost a few hundred over a course of two years. And i did not know that the applecare was discounted too! 249 compared to 183 wow thats a difference!
I got my first mac in 2008....a "MACBOOK" 13" which turned out to be the new 13" Macbook Pro.......still have that one, but have since gotten a 2010 15" and then a MBA 2010, and now a 2011.....I don't mind upgrading every year as long as the speed increase is enough....
To expensive to me.
The performance gains are to minimal to justify it. I upgrade every 3 years or so.
With my desktops I sometimes wait 4 to 5 years.
The performance gains are to minimal to justify it. I upgrade every 3 years or so.
With my desktops I sometimes wait 4 to 5 years.
I saw a couple of threads of people disappointed in the 2011 model vs the 2010. They're crazy for upgrading every year.
Wow, I've gone through that same MacBooks!
For me, I will upgrade if I see enough reason to, and if I can get a decent amount back for selling the old model.
Not I... I have a 2010 MBA 13 and I configured it with 4GB because I fully intend on keeping this for several years. My uses consist of a lot of web browsing, some word processing and a bit of email. I also watch HD content from youtube, netflix, as well as my camera and it all plays fine. The Core 2 Duo, while a bit antiquated by todays standards will handle these tasks for me perfectly fine.
I have a MP, MBA and mini that I upgrade every cycle. As long as you do it soon after the new models arrive you don't lose much on depreciation - I think of it as equivalent to a rental fee.
Not necessarily. If you're doing lightweight stuff-nothing particularly CPU or GPU intensive-the difference between the two models may not seem impressive.
The difference isn't as big as coming from a regular hard drive supplied notebook to the 2010 with it's SSD performance.
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I have a 2010 11" MBA which I bought in April as I needed a new light laptop to travel with. Have considered upgrading but would lose about £300 I reckon and don't see that as a good use of my money. It was hard enough justifying buying the thing in the first place.
I'd also have to go through the dilemma on 11"/13" all over again and while the 2011 has TB, my money might be betters spent keeping the existing one and getting an iMac instead.
I have a 2010 11" MBA which I bought in April as I needed a new light laptop to travel with. Have considered upgrading but would lose about £300 I reckon and don't see that as a good use of my money. It was hard enough justifying buying the thing in the first place.
I'd also have to go through the dilemma on 11"/13" all over again and while the 2011 has TB, my money might be betters spent keeping the existing one and getting an iMac instead.
I'm always surprised when I hear people claiming this. Sure, they are probably better than PCs' but seriously, it's not like you get a new one for free. For example, the 2010 13" MBA with 4GB of RAM was $1400 from Apple. Right now, those laptops are going for ~$900 on eBay. That is $500 (~36%) loss in less than a year. To be honest, I can't see what is so "great" about that.
I think people just have the obsession of getting the newest and shiniest nowadays, even though most of them won't notice much difference between the two.
I know many people that would think it was insane to upgrade your computer or phone every year, even if cash was permitting. For many of us here on this board however, computers/phones/electronics are our hobbies! If you have the patience and know-how to keep your gear in great condition and know how to work eBay and Craigslist, each upgrade cycle might only cost a few hundred dollars net at best. And when you think about it - spending maybe $300-$500 a year on your hobby doesn't sound quite so bad (as long as you're not driving yourself into debt or anything like that, but that goes with all discretionary spending).
I just "teach" my wife to fall in love with said gadget.. and then I maneuver to getting a new one and giving her mine! \o/
It rarely works, but it's a great plan.. in theory.
EDIT: It just ended up costing me and iPad and (I fear) a MBA soon.. she's eyeballing me as I type this.
It rarely works, but it's a great plan.. in theory.
EDIT: It just ended up costing me and iPad and (I fear) a MBA soon.. she's eyeballing me as I type this.
Most of us that upgrade on a more frequent cycle look at the "cost of upgrading" more than the depreciation of our current laptop I think. In other words, we sell our current gear in order to fund the new gear, and we see the difference as the upgrade cost. Macs are great for this because they hold their value better than equivalent dells or HPs.
For example, The new 13" 2011 airs can be had for $1210 (macmall) with free shipping and no tax. So if you sell your current MBA for say $950 on craigslist, you really only paid $260 to upgrade from the 2010 to the 2011 model.
I agree that it really is just an obsession with having the latest and greatest. That's what it is for me anyway
, but at least I know I'm crazy.
Shoot, good point! That won't make a difference in how light weight apps will perform, but it is a helluva handy little feature.
I could try to counter with the fact that she doesn't have a backlit keyboard, so she won't miss what she already doesn't have. It may not even impact her actual or intended use scenarios.
But on general principal alone, I'll probably have to concede.
I usually upgrade for every refresh. Just before a new one will be released I sell my old one to get the maximum resale value. I do this instead of buying Apple Care, it usually costs me about $100 more than buying Apple Care would have cost me. But I don't live in the states so it's hard to compare since our prices and resale markets differ.
$100 is next to nothing and for that I get a new computer every year.
$100 is next to nothing and for that I get a new computer every year.
IMO theres no point every year. Its a computer not a toy. The only thing i would upgrade that often would be the graphics card. But i cant on my iMac
it's not a toy, but you would upgrade every year for a new GFX card? If you're not playing games (cause it's not a toy), why would you need a new gfx card every year? Are there productivity apps that are constantly pushing the limits of current graphics cards?
Yes i do play games on it. Steam rocks and is much better than paying $50/£40 for a 360/PS3 game. The sales they have are superb. My iMac is from late 2007 and it runs good still. The Core 2 Duo is enough for everyday use. Its the Radeon 2600 thats holding me back. If i could put one of the newer iMac graphic cards in it then i could get another 2 years out of it.