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Just because there is a supercomputer displayed on a computer showroom doesn’t mean you have to buy it.

A computer can last longer but since technology advances quickly and software requires new technology that after four or five years, your new computer is considered outdated.

So what should you?  Upgrade?  Replace? Sell it?  It is not funny if you will still keep your old computer.  You can still use it for testing purposes, word-processing and internet surfing.

If you are deciding whether to upgrade or replace your computer, think again.  There are things that you still need to consider with this kind of decision especially if you have a tight budget for a new computer.

When to upgrade or buy a new computer?

If you decide to upgrade most of the components of your computer because they are outdated and old already, that means that the upgrade price will be almost similar to buying a new computer.

With that, you should just buy a new computer, instead of upgrading most of the components.

Most of the applications today require faster systems.  They require faster processor, memory, great graphic cards and bigger hard disk space.

You can meet these applications’ requirements by upgrading some of your computer’s components but you have to live up with the compromises.  This can mean that you may still experience computer performances issues.

But there is still advantage when you just upgrade some of your computer components.  If your computer is just one year old, you can just upgrade the memory or graphics card to further improve performance.  With that, you can save money.

Which hardware components to upgrade first?

• Memory

Upgrading your computer’s RAM (Random Access Memory) can solve any computer-performance related issues you are encountering.

If your computer is properly configured, it will just be easy to install a new memory module.  You can upgrade to a 1 GB RAM or 2 GB, depending on the capacity of your system.

Make sure that the new RAM’s speed is similar to the old RAM installed on the computer.  For example, your old RAM is DDR2-800.

You should also install a new DDR2-800 RAM.  Why? Because if you install a new DDR2-667 RAM, the system will read the lower value, which is 667.  With that, you will not be able to use the 800 speed.

• Hard drive

If you love downloading and storing softwares, pictures and videos, you will need to have an extra hard disk space.

Storing these kinds of files in the system drive of your computer can be a slow-performance factor.  Either, you move the operating system page file to another drive or store your files on other drives.

Having an extra hard disk space can also be used for data back-up.  This will help you retrieve files in case of a computer crash.

• CDROM or DVDROM drive

Does your computer have a CD-RW or DVD-RW drive?  If not, you can consider buying it so you can make your own CDs.  You can burn important data or movies.  You can also make personalized CDs that you can sell to your friends for extra income.

• Graphics Card or Video Card

Are you an addict gamer or a graphics designer?  Upgrading your computer’s graphic card will enable your computer improve its resolution and speed deliverance.  You can also play more new games that require good resolutions.

• Monitor

Upgrading your monitor is optional.  If you are craving for that 21” widescreen LCD monitor, why not buy it?  LCD monitors consume less power than CRT monitors.

• Processor or Motherboard

If you are thinking to upgrade other computer’s hardware components like processor and motherboard, you should also have considerations.

Make sure that if you will upgrade the processor, it is compatible with your motherboard and vice versa. Otherwise, your system will not work very well.

Usually, upgrading your motherboard requires you to upgrade the processor, memory, and graphics card as well.

Be sure to take down notes what you really need and take into considerations the things that you want to upgrade.

Maybe you are also asking, “Do I have to upgrade the operating system?”  It is better to upgrade the operating system if you have a new computer.

Usually, the latest operating system is bundled with a new computer package.  New operating systems like Windows Vista require new hardware components that your old computer may not have.

Eventually, you may encounter some software that requires new operating systems but it doesn’t really happen until the operating system you are using is two or three years old.

This is because software vendors and developers don’t want to lose you as a customer, and will not create a specific version of their software until everyone has upgraded to the latest operating system.

Good luck to upgrade your computer. Be wise to spend your money.