# When to buy a new computer? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 26, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451 "2011-12-26T19:25:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/21 "2011-12-31T15:22:23Z")
> [@Pork\_Rind](#): > > As far as the hard drive swapping goes, I get it now. I have a similar philosophy, but approach it differently. I have two backup drives. One for Time Machine that handles the hourly differential. Time Machine is great for going back and picking up accidentally deleted files, but is a bit cumbersome for full restores as it’s thorough but slow. For the full restore, I have SuperDuper make a full bootable clone twice a day. It’s actually faster to have SuperDuper clone from the backup to laptop #2 than to open both machines and swap, I suspect. Yeah, it would be. But I usually deploy Laptop #2 as a testbed server. So the auxiliary computer’s HD isn’t really empty so much as it’s functionality is expendable if I need it to be my main computer while Laptop #1 is in the shop. I got pretty fast with HD-swapping, although I miss the days of my WallStreet G3 Series laptop where swapping hard drives took about 90 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/22 "2012-01-18T17:05:18Z")
> [@Pork\_Rind](#): > > I’m not sure if this suits your needs, but VMware Fusion now lets you [virtualize 10.5 and 10.6](http://www.tuaw.com/2011/11/18/vmware-fusion-now-virtualizes-standard-builds-of-mac-os-x-10-5-l/) installs within Lion. Could be a best of both worlds situation for you. > > And to continue the hijack, why would you need to swap hard drives between two identical machines? I feel like there’s got to be a better way to do what you’re looking for here. I hear that VMWare [has removed that option as of version 4.1.1](http://hintsforums.macworld.com/showthread.php?t=141491). ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2012, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/23 "2012-01-18T17:26:14Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I hear that VMWare [has removed that option as of version 4.1.1](http://hintsforums.macworld.com/showthread.php?t=141491). Thanks for the update. I guess I won’t be updating my copy for a while. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/24 "2012-01-19T00:46:32Z")
I usually replace my laptop after 3 - 4 years. But my wife’s has a desktop that she bought in 1999 (that years, the government was encouraging Y2K replacements by allowing 100% depreciation in one year). It runs XP and she says she will give it up over her hard cold body. She will not consider any of Vista, Win-7 or the forthcoming Win-8. She replaced the hard drive once and it still does whatever it did when it was new. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/25 "2012-01-19T05:17:56Z")
I was in the same position as you—at least I was three months ago. An iBook with one of the last PPC chips and increasingly feeling left behind. Spurred by an upcoming trip, I snatched up one of the MacBook Air refurbs from the Apple store for $700. Solved all my problems: fast, modern, weighs only 1 kg, a beautiful object from the future. At home it gets a big monitor and regular keyboard, but I can also grab it and put it in my smallest backpack. Hell, it’ll fit in some of my coat pockets. I did grab one while Snow Leopard was still easily available because I’m tied to some software (FreeHand) that won’t run on Lion. I can’t answer the general philosophical question about when to buy a new computer. But if you’re still using a Mac with a PPC chip, the answer is much simpler. Now. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/26 "2012-01-19T18:33:45Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > It runs XP and she says she will give it up over her hard cold body. Any shop can load XP onto a new system, I have done half a dozen in the last year for people who needed XP environments for stuff. Not always easy to find drivers but usually enough for the application in question. ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451/27 "2012-01-19T19:01:00Z")
A couple of [good](http://img52.imageshack.us/img52/9740/visitorengagementfrustr.jpg) [reasons](http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/6856/052406computersmash.gif)… usually when I start having difficult controlling my urges to do something like that is when I get a new one. Have to say converting to Mac definitely saved me mucho brain cells. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-to-buy-a-new-computer/607451.md?page=1)