You don’t need to buy a new computer if your computer is feeling slow. Buying new gadgets contributes to ewaste. You might say, what does it matter, the gadgets been made and the planet polluted already. But if retailers end up with unsold gadgets, manufactures will make less in the future. So instead of buying a new computer, you should consider these simple steps.
1. Reinstalling your operating system
Operating systems build up cruft overtime, consider starting from scratch and pay attention to what you reinstall. Do you really need all those browser addons? Do they spark joy?
2. Changing your habits
Something as simple as closing old tabs, using tab suspender extensions or just having less applications open at once can really help speed up an old computer.
3. Upgrading your storage or ram
Switching from a hard drive to an SSD is the #1 best way to speed up a computer, the difference is incredible, incomparable. And upgrading your ram is a great way to get some extra life out of an old computer if you find that you absolutely need all 50 browser tabs open at once.
4. Buying a used computer
The reality is 5 year old computers are perfectly useable. Even 10 year old computers work fine for Facebook and YouTube. Buying a used computer is a great way to save the environment, and some money. Similarly buying a used or refurbished phone is another great way to save money. Last year’s flagship phone is still a really good phone.
What to look for in a used computer?
Evaluate your needs honestly, if you’re only using the computer for Word and Facebook, you don’t need an expensive computer with a beefy graphics card and 64GB of ram.
RAM
- If you’re not sure about how much ram you need get 8GB. If you can get 16GB for another $50 or $100, it’s worth it. You don’t need more than 16GB.
- Look for ram slots, google the model of the computer you’d like to buy. Buy one with ram slots so you can upgrade the ram down the road if you need it
- RAM is the perfect thing to buy used, it doesn’t decay or break down over time and it’s really obvious if it’s broken
- Quick tip: you can buy cheap used laptop ram from CEX
CPU
The central processing unit (CPU) is the brains of your computer
Anything 4th gen i5 or newer works fine for office, Facebook and even light to medium gaming workloads
- If you have trouble decoding the purposefully obtuse naming schemes Intel uses, check out this handy article
Storage
- If you’re running off a hard drive, buy an SSD, it’ll make everything so much faster
Cheap Desktops
- You can buy a refurbished Dell OptiPlex or HP Prodesk from eBay with a 4 gen i5 for as little as $250
- Very good bang for your buck and easy to upgrade with some extra ram and a GTX 1050 graphics card for a cheap rig perfect for 1080p gaming
- Again check Ozbargain, deals on refurbished PCs happen like 3 times a month
Cheap Laptops
- Companies buy new laptops on 3-5 year cycles, so when they get rid of the old ones, the prices for these laptops are highly deflated by the huge influx of supply
Look for Dell Latitudes and Lenovo Thinkpads on Gumtree and Ebay
These business class laptops are made to be repairable and are very easy to upgrade with some faster storage or more ram (depending on your specific model, google your model for specific details)
- A 5 year old laptop is still very useable, most improvements in laptops have been to do with power efficiency rather than raw processing power, a modern laptop is only a little faster, but will last 10 hours on a battery instead of 5 like the older ones
Cheap Phones
Buying used or refurbished phones is good for the environment and can save you a lot of money, especially if you’re buying older models
Gumtree and Ebay are the best places to look, but again deals on refurbished phones are often posted on Ozbargain
