How Long Do You Want Your Tech To Last?

I expect all electronics to last at least 5 years too, you seem to have the right attitude. Some people think they need the latest and greatest.

Although sometimes you need to try the latest too see how much you realised you liked having it.

If you want a smaller computer and only use it for blu ray and office work then I would advise you build an MATX AMD fusion system in an MATX case. They are pretty cheap to build, use low power and often come with the latest interfaces.

Of course I'd say that I want my tech to last forever, but, of course, it won't. I'm currently running on about a 2.5 year iMac. It works great, and I think I have about another three years of good usage, but I do plan on either replacing it or getting a MacBook Pro model next year...when I have a job.

Think about it; the only reason that you upgrade is because you can't run the latest operating system, Flash eats up more than half of your CPU, editing needs have more demand, your system doesn't have the minimum specs to run Crysis...dare I continue?

Software gets more complex (and sometimes more bloated), so it will take more processing power to be able to run those apps, even though those apps are perfectly fine the way they are today.

You don't really have many choices. You could give in to the large manufacturers that just want your money, or you could "protest" and be left behind in the times. One thing that I know for sure is that Macs will always be more updated than iOS. I bet in about two years Apple will drop support for the iPad 1. At least my Mac can run Lion, and that has about five year maintenance/updates guaranteed.

It might not be a direct answer, but I like my products to last until I'm ready to buy new ones. As you were talking about CRT TV's, I have an old one, but it has a smaller delay that any LCD I have ever used. Because of this, there isn't a reason for me to want to get a new TV, it works fine for me, even if it is outdated compared to most other computers these days.

Computers are a bit harder. Usually buying a new computer right as it comes out will result in paying way too much. I wait until my current computer is too slow for my needs. For example, I have a 15 year old computer, but it runs a very light piece of software and never lags on me. Just because a new processor is faster and it has a ton more RAM, its still going to run my program just as fast. I did however buy a virtual machine server recently, and I will probably end up moving this software there. This will reduce power consumption, save me some room in my house, and also puts everything in one place to manage.

Even if a device does work for you, a newer one might have good enough features to make you upgrade. Other times, the newer device might have new features, but none that interest you.

This is a really tough question to give a specific answer to. It really depends on what you demand out of your tech devices, and what the market has available. If you demands never change, there would never be a reason to upgrade. But I never recommend running outdated software, always keep that as new as possible.

I like my tech to last until it is beyond economic use.

Mobile phones are probably a good example of how reliability has decreased. My first mobile was and analogue Nokia and it still works (well powers on, there are just no networks to support it). Next was a Motorola MR1, still works it I wanted to use it. Following this a number of Nokia phones. Then smartphones starting with HTC Prodigy ... all worked until I sold or traded them in; the only thing that had to be replaced was the battery.

From there I've had 4 or 5 different phones over the last 6 years, none of which have lasted; usually dying within a month of the manufacturers warranty expiring, some 2 or 3 time before.

I appreciate that the phones are becoming more advanced and more technology is packed into them, however this should not be at the expense of reliability.

I guess a good rule of thumb for my is 1year for ever £100 GBP spend on it. If a mobile costs £300, 3 years. If a TV costs £800, 8 years; I think you see where I'm going with this ...

anything dealing with tech from comp parts, phones, dvd players, monitors, etc... i do a thorough review and only buy what i believe will be reliable at 5 years.

I'm 22 and I still have the mobile phone I got as a birthday present during 9th grade. Still works well, except for the headphone jack which was broken after I dropped it too many times.