A
Arnold Schwarz 'E' negger
"you could probably build a much cheaper platform using
the AMD Sempron processors."
Oh dear.
the AMD Sempron processors."
Oh dear.
Synapse Syndrome said:You'll be glad you got a Athlon64 when 64-bit Windows Longhorn fianlly
arrives.
Computers are basically disposable.
Arnold Schwarz 'E' negger said:Why Longhorn, why not now.
Synapse Syndrome said:No apps. Worse than Linux!
ss.
Arnold Schwarz 'E' negger said:No apps so why when Longhorn is released?
kony said:Absolutely not. It's almost never cheaper. Some options
aren't even available unless you choose the higher-line
system. Instead of trying to make a vague observation, pick
out a specific config. Take Dell for example, after many of
their promos and discounts one can get a basic box for under
$400, with the only cost-effective upgrade being upgrading
from a Celeron to a P4- which is an aside as Dell just
happens to have crazy-low Intel CPU prices, but the courts
are looking into these things now too!
All major firms have surely started working on making 64-bit versions of
their programs and drivers. Longhorn will have that support when it
arrives. XP-64 is just a prototype really.
I'm not sure that's a fair measure to apply to the whole industry as
Dell structures the price of upgrade components to flush the most cash
out of you as they possibly can.
One of the things they do, and I saw a first hand example of this, is
offer a really cheap "bare bones" pc and then charge you inflated
prices, even for Dell, for the nearly essential upgrades.
I was pricing out some of their PC's from a recent $299 special and was
also pricing out some of their higher end PCs and noticed the exact same
RAM upgrade options were more expensive on the $299 machine. ****ing
bastards.
I do agree with you that purchasing is cheaper than upgrading, but not
becasue of the reasons you're citing.
kony said:Hmm. Suppose that nets you a 15% performance increase. Now
add up how much it would cost to replace ALL your
applications. IMO, for most people it will be quite a
while before that makes economic sense, they could gain more
from merely buying the next-step-up CPU and/or upgrading
sooner if the performance is an issue. It may be quite a
while before the typical non-"workstation" needs over 2GB
memory per process too.
Who said anything about the target being 1 or 2 years away?
After 3, 4, or 5 years it WILL BE cheaper to buy a new one than upgrade
the one you have to the current specs.
RAM architectures are changing
every few years so you'll need a new motherboard. You'll need a new
video card to work with your new motherboard too. Right there you've
replaced 90% of of your machine.
If gaming is a factor for you then
this is especially true as gaming requirements are the thing that is
pushing the computer hardware industry.
They days when an EFFECTIVE upgrade meant throwing another stick of RAM
into your machine are over.
And no one said anything about putting the old machine in the landfil.
It will still be useful, just not as useful as it once was. At work
we're still recycling P3, 733mhz machines. They run all the business
type apps we want them to. Hell, I even put a 450mhz machine back into
production not too long ago.
But if you're talking upgrading vs. purchasing in the consumer PC
market, purchasing wins hands down.
You can run 32-bit apps in XP-64, so I would only have thought that the
performance of those apps could only be better in Longhorn.
As far as I can
tell Longhorn is planned to be 64-bit in the most mainstream editions.
(I have a Cyrix II processor about 266mhz, 66mhz bus),
kony said:.... snip ...
We'll see how it does... can't help but think a properly
tuned 2K or XP box will be a better choice until MS has
released a service pack or two. Even then, I'm sure the
Longhorn EULA is going to be a thing of *wonder*.
Synapse said:You can run 32-bit apps in XP-64, so I would only have thought that the
performance of those apps could only be better in Longhorn. As far as I can
tell Longhorn is planned to be 64-bit in the most mainstream editions.
You're not hearing me. In 3-5 years you are going to HAVE TO make a
major upgrade. Adding some RAM and a new video card are not going to
cut it.
You will have to upgrade so many things you will practically be building
another pc.
I curse Dell because they were charging 2 different prices for the same
part, to the same type of customer. Thereby negating the savings you
would recieve on a cheap base unit. I call that a deceptive business
practice. It's common to charge SOHO users more than big commercial
customers, in all industries, but to try to offer a sale and then eat it
up with inflated upgrade prices is just dirty.
And I'm not backwards. Here's the thread:
Donald McTrevor said:
"Thats not true, it is normally cheaper to 'upgrade' at time of
purchase, a look at any price list shows big disounts on such upgrades,
as opposed to buying the items seperately."
Then you said:
"Absolutely not. It's almost never cheaper..."
So when I say I agree that "It's...never cheaper..." I am not backwards.