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Thread ID: 67661 2006-04-02 22:53:00 Laptops dying everywhere... personthingy (1670) PC World Chat
Post ID Timestamp Content User
443217 2006-04-02 22:53:00 Yesterday was the funeral for my friends laptop.
It was a warehouse laptop
Earlier this year mine was declared by me to be a write-off
It was a $1300 DSE laptop

Both these machine were just over a year old.

It would seem that laptops are dying like flies at the moment.

I'm now on a desktop machine that is about 5 years old and was thrown out due to obsolescence. It would seem that desktop machines have more durability than laptops. Beside me is my second computer ever, a machine that was built 8ish years ago, and still goes well, although it's quite a slug by todays standards. There's a huge difference between 8 years and still going strong, and just over a years use before its a pile of spare parts.


Have others got storeys of their laptops dying this year? I'm trying to see if it's a general pattern, or just something happening in my own small sample of the world.

I'm wondering if laptops are being made as disposable items? Perhaps the rapid reduction in price should be observed under the context of "you gets what you pay for"?
personthingy (1670)
443218 2006-04-02 23:02:00 When you say they were a Warehouse and DSE laptop, were they actually a Dell and an HP/Compaq? CYaBro (73)
443219 2006-04-02 23:02:00 I have a IBM G40 laptop. In its first year it went through 2 mainboards due a video problem. Its running fine still but retail it was worth about $4000 when it was new.

I know of someone who purchased an Acer laptop from DSE and took the 5 year extended warranty (I think it was 5 years). Anyway given that laptop prives have come down so much, the extended warranty option is something to be considered.
dolby digital (5073)
443220 2006-04-02 23:38:00 When you say they were a Warehouse and DSE laptop, were they actually a Dell and an HP/Compaq?yes, i do believe that the warehouse laptop was a dell.... I'm not 100% sure, but i will ask.

Mine, the DSE one, was an eletegroup laptop. What elete seems to mean is cheap components and obscure hardware that few distros could make proper use of.
personthingy (1670)
443221 2006-04-02 23:42:00 Ahh, buy crap expect crap! bob_doe_nz (92)
443222 2006-04-02 23:43:00 Question about this warranty thing, is it really worth it? as doesnt really mean it will last longer or they cover you for what you might need it for does it?

you may be paying $$ for something that in the end that may die and them not cover it? or is it a whatever goes wrong thing we will fix or replace no questions asked?????

if say it dies in a yr, and they wont fix it, wont you have lost five yrs worth of warranty money?

beetle :confused:
beetle (243)
443223 2006-04-02 23:52:00 laptops are simply not repairable as desktops are therefore a shorter lifespan (can't get parts) .

5 year warranty sounds like a good idea, depending on the price . considering the cost of getting them repaired its proberly a very good idea .
tweak'e (69)
443224 2006-04-03 04:50:00 Desktops tend to sit in one place for a long time . If you carried one as frequently as you do a laptop, with the inevitable drops and bumps, you might find them failing a lot more often .

If you kept a laptop on a desk, never moving it, you might find it lasting a long time . Most laptops do live for much longer than a year . Look at the age of the laptops on Trademe . It depends on the way they are treated .
Graham L (2)
443225 2006-04-03 05:32:00 Now that i found a case that fits nicely in 3 units of 19" rack, my next portable device is NOT going to be a laptop . They just don't seem to be up to the task . My next portable device will travel in a rack with the rest of my toys . The screen will be the only part requiring careful packing .

I just don't see the point of a portable device that's not able to take the inevitable abuse that a portable device will get .

With computers common place, and friends of mine starting to find the joys of Linux, i find a portable HDD for /home/me is enough anyway .
personthingy (1670)
443226 2006-04-03 05:34:00 If you want a notebook that can handle the bumps, drops, dust, water spilt on it etc then pay the big bucks and get a Panasonic Toughbook. :thumbs: CYaBro (73)
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