Do you buy more computer than you really need?

[VirtualLarry]

I'll be honest, I've been doing that lately. I still use my E2140 (@ 2.8) dual-core for most day-to-day things, running XP. I bought two Q6600s to build and hopefully OC to 3.6. Well, I built one, and it was enough. I added two HD4850s, and I still don't even use that box. Don't game much at all these days. So I bought way more computer than I needed, probably just for e-peen value. I wanted to be a member of the "3.6 Q6600 club". I later bought two Q9550s at Microcenter, but I never ended up building them.

It crossed my mind to get an i7-920, to be a member of the "4Ghz club", but thankfully I decided to save my money (or rather, spend it on something else).

I told my friend that I was getting a 1090T when they were released, but I had already spent my money on building some AMD quad-core rigs (based on the Microcenter deal). So I didn't do that either.

As much as I want an i7 or a six-core Thuban, they would be strictly for e-peen value, and nothing more.

Anyone else buy more computer than you need?

 

[Terzo]

Probably. I'm not running a particularly up to date computer, but it still suffices for me. Though now that I've gone and switched to a base install of windows with a vmware of linux it would be nice to upgrade the memory and processor (currently x2 4200 and 2 gigs ddr).

Since I don't do any professional work that requires a beefy computer (graphics design, encoding, etc.) I've found that upgrades are something I want rather than need. I find I get more excited by the prospects of efficiency (in space and power) than high clocks. This is why I am eager regarding llano and fusion; if the integrated graphics can run a good amount of games (even if the visuals suffer in return) than I will probably ditch my video card and see if I can find an itx case that doesn't look like ugly.

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

No. I mean no one NEEDS a home computer /slash/ entertainment computer, so need=want really. I don't utilize the full capabilities of my system every day, but when I do it saves time and headache. And that is priceless.

 

[Paperlantern]

No as well. I don't buy computers anymore. My needs are rudimentary at best playing very old games and not needing anything with super horsepower. The last recent computer hardware I bought was 2004 from Microcenter. The most recent full SYSTEM I bought new was in 2003 from Circuit City. Both of those machines have since shit the bed, (one i plan on repairing, i believe its the power supply) but that's beside the point.

I simply have no need for ginormous computing power, my 3.4GHz Hyperthreaded machine with 2GB of DDR2, 250GB SATA HDD and nVidia GeForce 6800 XT 256MB card all running Win7 Enterprise do things just fine for me.

Would I love a new i7 machine with gobs of memory, a sexy video card and huge storage to put 64bit Linux Mint 9 on? Hells yes! Do i need it? No.

 

[CurseTheSky]

Yes.

I do play some games that demand the power I have with all of the settings turned up, but in reality, I could get away with about $500-1000 less spent on components than I have (the case alone was close to $250!) Not to mention, I don't use the SFF portable computer myself, it's just for guests (girlfriend, girlfriend's son, visitors, etc.); it has an HD 5770 that goes mostly to waste because only a few people play demanding games on it.

Computers are one of my hobbies though, so I enjoy it. I find it fun to piece together something that will handle whatever a user throws at it. I could just as easily be blowing the money on cars (ok, guilty of that too...), or movies / parties / dinners. Since it's also my career now, I don't sweat the overkill and the waste of money. The more I experiment with, the more knowledge I have to use when I help other people. For example, before the HD 5770, I hadn't used an ATI card in over 6 years.

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

Yes.

I do play some games that demand the power I have with all of the settings turned up, but in reality, I could get away with about $500-1000 less spent on components than I have (the case alone was close to $250!) Not to mention, I don't use the SFF portable computer myself, it's just for guests (girlfriend, girlfriend's son, visitors, etc.); it has an HD 5770 that goes mostly to waste because only a few people play demanding games on it.

Computers are one of my hobbies though, so I enjoy it. I find it fun to piece together something that will handle whatever a user throws at it. I could just as easily be blowing the money on cars (ok, guilty of that too...), or movies / parties / dinners. Since it's also my career now, I don't sweat the overkill and the waste of money. The more I experiment with, the more knowledge I have to use when I help other people. For example, before the HD 5770, I hadn't used an ATI card in over 6 years.

You don't NEED to play games. But, if you WANT to then you are going to NEED a system that let's you enjoy them, so I say no you don't buy more computer than you NEED to play games, which aren't NEEDED. D: This thread should never have existed. It's one of those topics that no one talks about because it becomes ambiguous and accomplishes nothing.

 

[KeypoX]

No i buy about what i need. Modest cheaper stuff. But im ready for quad or hexa core. Wouldnt need the hexa but i run some vms sometimes and can say i need a quad.

 

[cdmccool]

Nope. Although, I do build a new computer every 6-8 months it seems, I never spend more than $500. My most recent build was less than $400 before rebates, around $365 after.

Athlon II X3 440
Radeon HD 5750
2GB DDR2 800
500GB HDD
400W Silverstone
Biostar MB
Rosewill Case

 

[Zap]

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

Hahahaha - well said

 

[somethingsketchy]

While I was in college, I needed a powerful machine for some of my classes that required programming, VM usage and even some security classes. However now that I have graduated from college, I realize that my current build (i7-860) is a bit too much for my current needs. My gaming "needs" have just about dropped to nothing as I haven't played games in a little over two weeks (since I've graduated).

Perhaps in the future I'll turn the current build into a multipurpose network machine and downgrade to my q6600 build...someday

 

[HumblePie]

Just check my signature for my two computers. The signature speaks for itself.

 

[Terzo]

pink hair

Is pink hair a new fad or something? There's that one thread in ot and now this:hmm:

 

[Fayd]

Is pink hair a new fad or something? There's that one thread in ot and now this:hmm:

nothing wrong with pink.

nothing wrong with blue.

or green.

crazy colored hair is good.... so long as the underlying girl is cute too.



TO the OP:

do i NEED a quad core running at 3 ghz? do i NEED a ridiculously powerful video card?

do i NEED 5 speakers and a 10 inch subwoofer sitting at my desk?

no...

but it's damn nice.

 

[Terzo]

nothing wrong with pink.

nothing wrong with blue.

or green.

crazy colored hair is good.... so long as the underlying girl is cute too.

Maybe that's what is throwing me off...it seems like all these pink hairs are pushing 12 at best.

 

[Fayd]

Maybe that's what is throwing me off...it seems like all these pink hairs are pushing 12 at best.

here...

http://vimeo.com/10321210

kirsten dunst in blue.

 

[ChickenShwarma]

When it comes to entertainment, it's hard to justify the "needs".

For work related upgrades, it's a matter of efficiency. I can get more CAD/rendering work done with faster machines, so it's much easier to justify the upgrades.

My use at home is 50/50, play/work.

 

[Eeqmcsq]

Yeah, I do that too. I spoiled myself with a 4x4GB DDR2 kit earlier this year, even though I have absolutely no need for 16GB of RAM at home. It was fun to run a virtual machine whose hard drive is entirely in RAM.

I'm also into building ITX builds. I built one ITX computer that I had absolutely no use for, which I gave to my friend. I built another one 2 months ago that's still sitting here that I MIGHT turn into a DVR if I can find a TV tuner and software that works in Ubuntu.

 

[dfuze]

I know I overbuild and could easily keep using my 2180 instead of my Q6600. Not to mention the Intel 80GB SSD, would an extra 30 seconds boot time really hurt... (yes!)

 

[Axon]

I could have gotten by with my E8500/XFX 4890 for the next 2-3 years with the games I play...but f**k that. It's also worth noting that I've finally sated my technolust. At recent as two months ago, I was on Newegg or a hot deals forum essentially 4 hours per day (which when you think about it, is kinda nuts), hovering over an SSD or a new GPU and just waiting to pull the trigger. Very embarrassing. However, now I feel okay just waiting until my computer really starts puttering, which may be 2 or more years.

 

[Deleted member 4644]

I have somewhere between 2-5 computers at any given time. Currently at 4.5, will be at 5 soon, once I get the i7 installed.

Do I need it? No. Do I notice a big difference compared to some of my friends who can hardly check their email on their single core laptop with 100gb of malware?

Yes.

Also: Fuck Yea!

 

[SithSolo1]

I do simply because I only build a new system ever 3 to 4 years.

Case in point my current system(Built 11/06) is running an Opty 165, 2GB DDR1, 250GB HD, XP and until recently a 7900GTO. I built it to play WOW and CS.

I'm planning to do my next build this year: 4-6 cores(on a socket that isnt EOL), 8GB ram, SSD, 1-2TB storage, and a 5850 if I can swing it in the budget. WoW is currently the most intensive thing I do.

 

[kalrith]

Sometimes I buy more than I need at the time, but I usually only upgrade every 3-4 years. I plan to keep sporting my Q6600 @ 3.2 GHz for quite some time, and I bought that 2 1/2 years ago.

The real "need" I have is to upgrade my 2900 Pro. It can't even run older games like COD4, Titan Quest, and Oblivion smoothly with all graphics set to high but no AA and no AF.

 

[AlgaeEater]

Anyone else buy more computer than you need?

Yes. I live next to a Fry's Electronics which has deals pretty much every week. Sometimes something is so good to pass up, I have to justify whether or not I want to upgrade my current rig and hold off.

Basically like clockwork, every year (18 months maximum), I end up gutting my PC and upgrading everything minus the PSU. I do game on the PC, so it's not a TOTAL waste, but it's still more than I need most of the time.

I also end up giving away my older parts rather then selling them to family members and (on rare occasion) good friends for free. My girlfriend gets first dibs, then my immediate family, then friends. Anyone near me has a computer that's pretty damn fast, and beyond something they could even remotely care to fully utilize to its potential.

Probably like you, I have two computers I use in tandem with my main rig pretty much idling around doing much ado about nothing than displaying some pretty wallpaper, folding at home or wasting electricity. Those too are more than ample enough by today's standards.

tl;dr I waste money too much on PC parts and rigs. So yes.

 

[ahenkel]

Oh hell yes my computers are more than I need. Hell if I was a car person my car would be the same way.