Re: Microsoft to force new Outlook on Windows 10 PCs

On 1/15/25 8:34 PM, Paul wrote:

On Wed, 1/15/2025 3:52 PM, -hh wrote:

...
But do feel free to provide a detailed cost list.
>
Because even the $100 you spent on the video card is subtracted off too, your $850 spent is still higher than $600, but now its only by +30%.

>
 But you have control of your expenses.

And freedom to make mistakes which can cost you more.

It all depends on your objectives and budget.
An upgrade could be $500 or it could be $2000.

If you build your own computers, you can reuse

PSU, computer case (my daily driver case is 25 years old),
keyboard, mouse, and so on. My daily driver case, I think
that's about the fourth motherboard.

Sure, there can be reuse, but with laptops now 80% of the PC market, this use case is increasingly niche.
And in the 'mistakes' lane, over-reliance on recycling old stuff can gimp a system, which undermines the value of the upgrade effort.
Plus some costs aren't all that significant to worry too much about. For example, if one wants to keep the old build running in parallel with the new, then having a case & PSU for each is inexpensive and makes it quite convenient... but that choice reduces the cost savings.

The trick to hitting points like this, is to look
at trailing-edge parts. When the kids are buying DDR5
systems, you buy a DDR4 system. As long as the market
has some legs, a few reduced-cost motherboards will be
issued in a second wave (intended to "mop up" the
old processors), offering a small savings. The RAM can
be cheaper to quite a lot cheaper, than the current generation
RAM (DDR5).

Sure, and the same "state of the shelf" sweet spot applies when shopping for a complete system too.

The enthusiast sites have more info, if you need it.

Of course.  Overall, a challenge with the DIY topic is differences in motivation:  is the DIY because money's tight?  Or is the motivation because tinkering with hardware is an entertaining hobby/pastime?
Both motivations can & do exist, and can get conflated in discussions.
-hh