How long will my laptop last?
Laptop Repair: Laptops are convenient, mobile and handy. You can take them anywhere, and you can use them for work, school or play. But laptops don’t last forever. Just like any other type of electronic, a laptop’s lifespan will vary by type and model. That said, the average lifespan is between three and five years.
Operational Lifespan vs. Useful Lifespan
There are two types of life expectancies when it comes to your laptop support:
- Operational life expectancy
- Useful life expectancy
The operational life expectancy, AKA lifespan, measures how long the laptop will be able to function properly. In contrast, the useful lifespan determines how long the laptop can run advanced programs and meet system specifications. In a technical sense, you could own a laptop that still functions 10 years after buying it. However, it’s probably not very useful as it relates to contemporary applications.
Most programs put high demands on your CPU, RAM, and graphics card in order to function the right way. An older laptop just can’t keep up. But if you’re not necessarily looking for a high-performance laptop, you can get by with your old one well past the five-year average.
Planned Obsolescence
Laptops usually become obsolete much sooner than they should. That’s due to something called planned obsolescence, perpetuated by manufacturers in the computer industry to ensure that your laptop has a finite lifespan and won’t run the software of the future. Software designers design software that uses your computer’s resources, particularly when it comes to video games.
You’ll always need a better CPU or graphics card in order to run the latest software version of the laptop you just purchased a few years ago. While you could upgrade all of those things, including the RAM and hard drive, if you had a desktop computer, you can’t do that for a laptop. The only cure, beyond a few simple repairs, is to invest in a new laptop. If you tend to run heavy applications, your laptop life cycle will be very short, and you may have to get a new one after just a couple years of use.
Battery Replacements
While your laptop itself could last fairly long, it’s your battery that has a relatively short life. As the battery ages, its ability to hold a charge goes drastically down. The average laptop battery lasts between 18 and 24 months, depending on the level of usage. As it gets to the end of its lifespan, it will hold a charge for shorter periods of time.
How Can You Make Your Laptop Last Longer?
Make the most out of your laptop by giving it some TLC. All laptops are susceptible to internal overheating, which is why you should blow dust out of air vents with canned air. This will allow more cool air to flow through them.
Don’t put your laptop on a soft surface, and never put it too close to external sources of heat. You may even want to buy a laptop cooling stand, which provides additional fans on a firm surface to boost air circulation. Get it repaired when necessary, and don’t let the little things go.
Laptop Repair
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