The average life of your PC
Aysë Stenabaugh
Jesters Computers
(10/2020) No, this isn’t a reference to what your computer does all day although, chances are if it’s a desktop or an all-in-one device it probably doesn’t get out much! Seriously though, we often get the question of how long the average computer lasts, so here’s some insight into what the average lifespan is,
what affects the life of your device and how those things affect PC performance.
As an average, devices last between three to five years but the answer isn’t so cut and dry. In the over 20 years our repair shop has been in business we’ve found that all-in-one computers, laptops, and smaller desktop computers have a higher failure rate which we largely attribute to the lack of airflow and increased heat. In general, we
recommend desktop owners to keep their computers turned on to help keep their devices at a constant temperature because a consistent temperature is better for the components inside the device. Leaving your computer on isn’t necessarily a good idea for smaller devices which can overheat more easily because of cramped space around components.
Laptops and all-in-one devices have limited repair options compared to standard size desktop computers. Only some parts like hard drive and memory can be replaced on those devices. To make matters worse, manufacturers are intentionally making it more difficult to get access to these components at times using parts that are not removable.
Other parts like keyboards, touchpads broken power jacks, and screens can usually be replaced but the cost of labor for the repairs is much greater than repairing/replacing desktop components. Even if your device can be repaired the cost of labor will be higher than the cost of labor for the same repair on a desktop computer.
We are firm believers in keeping good devices up an running rather than throwing them away and replacing them completely. The majority of our clients that experience problems with their devices can be attributed to software issues or hard drive failure. Occasionally we find that the cost of a repair or upgrade isn’t worth it but that
doesn’t happen often. The hard drive in your computer is comparable to the tires on your vehicle. You wouldn’t go out and buy a new vehicle just because you need new tires right? The cost of a hard drive replacement or upgrade is typically a third of the cost of a new computer and even if you purchase a new computer you still have to consider having to re-install
all of your software, transfer your data, install devices like printers and reconfigure them else either transferring important files manually from your old failing devices or incur even more expense paying someone to transfer the data for you.
If your computer is running slowly you might benefit from a hard drive replacement/upgrade or increased memory. The average life of a hard drive is three to five years which is probably why the average is so close to this number despite many devices having the potential to last much longer. Often when hard drives start failing users replace
their devices without ever knowing that they may have had other options that could have saved them money and headaches. If your computer’s hard drive is still functioning properly your old hard drive can be cloned to a new one preventing you from having to re-install any software or re-configure any settings. Replacing your hard drive will provide a performance
boost not only if the hard drive was failing but also because technology has advanced and solid-state hard drives which are becoming the new standard are much faster, more reliable, and have become more affordable in the past few years.
Realistically though, hard drive failure can occur at any time, especially on older drives that still have moving parts (unlike the solid-state hard drives commonly used today). In reality, potential defects increase the failure rate of hard drives during the first 12 months making it not unheard of to have to replace hard drives
prematurely. This is one reason manufacturers provide warranties on their hardware – the life can be unpredictable and many factors go into the rate at which your device will fail. We always recommend that you keep all your important data in TWO places so that if one storage device fails, you have a backup of all your files. Some hard drives will decline in
performance over time when they begin to have issues but others can fail suddenly with no warning signs. One thing you can do to check your hard drive to see if it may have issues is to open file explorer on your computer and to right-click on your c: drive. When the menu appears left click on properties and then on the Tools tab in the window that appears. Now
left-click on the "check" button under error checking. If it takes more than 5-10 minutes to scan your hard drive for errors you likely have some kind of issue with your hard drive. Minor errors can be corrected or bad spots on the hard drive avoided being used by the operating system. Significant errors indicate that the hard drive should be replaced or if you
plan on replacing your device instead, at least backing up all important data if you haven’t already done so.
