Five Reasons To Upgrade Your Laptop
By Mike Agerbo
January 31, 2017
Lifestyle
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For some of us, change is difficult. This is especially true when it comes to upgrading to a new laptop. An upgrade usually means jumping through a few hoops to back up your old system, transfer your files, and set up your new system. With that being said, if you’re still crawling along on a system that’s 5 years old or more, it might be time to consider an upgrade. Here are five reasons why you should think about upgrading your laptop:
Lithium-ion batteries hold a lot of power these days but the don’t last forever, unfortunately. These batteries degrade, holding less of a charge over time. In fact, it’s not unusual to find that an older battery doesn’t hold a charge for more than an hour or two. Although you can often replace your laptop’s battery, it can be expensive and might not be worth it if your system is aging.
With technology advancing as quickly as it is, it’s not unusual for hardware to become outdated quite quickly. In fact, I’ve run into a number of situations where I’ve found that a piece of hardware in an older device is no longer available. For example, I recently tried to replace a video card on a computer at my company and found that the card was no longer available. Although I could probably find one if I really did my homework, it was just a matter of time before we ran into another difficult to replace part. In this case, it made sense to just replace the machine with a newer model rather than go through the hassle of sourcing the video card.
According to Moore’s Law, the computing power of integrated circuits doubles every two years. That means that a computer that’s just two years old is 100 percent slower than a current model. Now, I’m not saying that you should run out and buy a new laptop every year but it’s important to know that a computer that’s four or five years old is going to be significantly less powerful. Depending on what you use your computer for, this might have an impact on your overall experience.
Along with improved computing power, newer hardware tends to be lighter and more portable. These days, it’s not unusual to find ultra-thin laptops that weigh less than 3 pounds. This makes it easier to bring these devices along to meetings and trips.
The latest operating systems are feature-packed and well worth upgrading to. However, they’re often best suited to the latest, most powerful systems and have a tendency to slow down older ones. If the latest features interest you, and they really should, you might want to consider upgrading to a newer laptop.
If it’s time to upgrade your laptop to a newer one, stop by your nearest Staples location and chat with one of the EasyTech experts to find the right system for you.
1. Better Battery Life
Lithium-ion batteries hold a lot of power these days but the don’t last forever, unfortunately. These batteries degrade, holding less of a charge over time. In fact, it’s not unusual to find that an older battery doesn’t hold a charge for more than an hour or two. Although you can often replace your laptop’s battery, it can be expensive and might not be worth it if your system is aging.
2. Limited Support for Outdated Hardware
With technology advancing as quickly as it is, it’s not unusual for hardware to become outdated quite quickly. In fact, I’ve run into a number of situations where I’ve found that a piece of hardware in an older device is no longer available. For example, I recently tried to replace a video card on a computer at my company and found that the card was no longer available. Although I could probably find one if I really did my homework, it was just a matter of time before we ran into another difficult to replace part. In this case, it made sense to just replace the machine with a newer model rather than go through the hassle of sourcing the video card.
3. Computing Power
According to Moore’s Law, the computing power of integrated circuits doubles every two years. That means that a computer that’s just two years old is 100 percent slower than a current model. Now, I’m not saying that you should run out and buy a new laptop every year but it’s important to know that a computer that’s four or five years old is going to be significantly less powerful. Depending on what you use your computer for, this might have an impact on your overall experience.
4. Portability
Along with improved computing power, newer hardware tends to be lighter and more portable. These days, it’s not unusual to find ultra-thin laptops that weigh less than 3 pounds. This makes it easier to bring these devices along to meetings and trips.
5. New Operating Systems
The latest operating systems are feature-packed and well worth upgrading to. However, they’re often best suited to the latest, most powerful systems and have a tendency to slow down older ones. If the latest features interest you, and they really should, you might want to consider upgrading to a newer laptop.
If it’s time to upgrade your laptop to a newer one, stop by your nearest Staples location and chat with one of the EasyTech experts to find the right system for you.