Future-Proof Upgradeable Motherboards - Bad Idea for Budget Gaming PC Owners?

It was all a blasted mistake.

Last Saturday, my PC DVD rewriter finally died. I couldn't believe it. My budget gaming PC's on its last months and the son of a gretchin of a DVD rewriter died! One more component to buy for my obsolete gaming rig! It dawned on me then that maybe this whole idea of "next year I'm going to buy a souped-up system that's going to last me four-five years. This way I'll save a lot of cash" isn't so good after all.

The reason why---and how much I've spent for my obsolete PC after its second year---after the jump.



Last weekend's meltdown (yes, even my stupid ISP went into a digital stupor over the death of my DVD drive) convinced me that people on a budget shouldn't hang on to their budget gaming PCs after their machines' second year.

Here's what I bought after my PC's second year (yes, I know the Nvidia video cards are ancient but I've undergone two relocations in a two-year span and they have not been friendly to my pockets):

BFG 6600 GT OC - 7,500 PhP
Palit 7300 GT - 4,300 PhP (after the BFG died)
2GB RAM upgrade- 6,000 PhP
2 keyboards - 900 PhP
2 DVD Rewriters - 4,600 PhP
---------------------------
23,300 PhP

The morgue (the games are very much alive though! Except for F.E.A.R.'s Alma. Yes, she's very much dead.)

Egad! That's about $485! I can nearly buy another low-end, budget gaming PC with that amount!

This is a lesson for me --- keeping a low-end budget gaming PC well after its second year is a bad idea. Three years should be a stretch.

After your PC's second or third year, you can sell it for 50% off, save for the other 50% of the amount, and then buy a new one again. This way, you won't buy for parts for an obsolete system once its components begin dying from age. If you sell your old one for 10K-12K PhP, I'm sure a lot of people will dive for it (tip: to prevent lethal brushes with the Angel of Conscience, don't overclock your components if you plan to sell it to your relatives).

Of course, do check what the PC gaming industry has to offer you if you're on the second year and want to upgrade. Buying another system on a particular year may or may not be a good idea. Take this year for example. Here in the Philippines, X58 motherboards are VERY expensive. If you're an owner of a budget P35 gaming system, it might not be a good time to upgrade --- buying a P45 motherboard will only bring you minimal gains (unless you're going for a Crossfire setup) and buying an i7 PC system will be too expensive (if you're going for a budget gaming PC). It's better if you wait for prices of the next-generation X58s to go down rather than buy a new rig. (Of course, if you can afford them, knock yourself out and go on a splurge! :D)

Me? I'm abandoning all the fancy dreams I have for a "high-end low-end" gaming PC and buying the cheapest the PC gaming industry has to offer. After two-three years I will---the gods of gaming willing---ditch it and buy a new budget gaming PC.

Trust me, from my luckless experience, this path is cheaper --- not to mention you get a shiny, brand-new relatively kick-ass PC gaming rig!

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