Stick to a desktop?

[givemushypeasachance]

Hello all! I used to have a Dell desktop system but the hard drive went kaput back in late 2010, so I replaced the tower with a refurbished Acer unit for £300. It was pretty good spec at the time - a Quad Core, 2.2GHz, 4GB RAM, two 640GB hard drives. Recently it has been playing up and it seems to be getting a bit tired - taking longer to load though I've been checking out potential malware/driver conflicts and haven't turned up anything yet. It still runs Vista which is getting pretty dated, I don't game but I do a bit of video editing with CS5 and that regularly crashes or maxes out on memory, and the peripherals like the screen that date back to circa 2007 are definitely showing their age.

I think the time has come to replace the whole system and I instinctively look towards a new desktop since I don't need the portability of a laptop, but the desktop market seems to be shrinking all the time - should I give more thought to a laptop instead? It always used to be if you need power and storage space, go desktop, but are laptops actually more cost effective these days, perhaps with external storage to give that bit of extra space? Would a laptop run something like CS5 without constantly maxing out or overheating? Or if I don't need to lug it around with me, would a desktop still be a cheaper option?

I'm still considering going for a new Dell since I can then pick and choose what I want, but I spotted this offer at Currys which seems like a pretty low price for the spec and I could just pick it up off the shelf, job done. I haven't heard the bestest things about Windows 8 but I guess it's where things are headed so it would make sense to skip 7 and go on to the latest OS. Any other useful tips or thoughts from people more tech-ily minded than me?

Thanks in advance for any pointers!

Windows 8 is a bit different and may get a bit of getting used to, but most new PCs are shipping with it now anyway, so you may not have too much choice. Personally, I quite like it and as you say, that's the direction things are going right now so probably worth making the leap.

If portability is not an issue, then you have the flexibility to go for either a laptop or a desktop depending on where you can get better spec for the money. If you go for a laptop, then you can always splash out on a wireless keyboard and mouse and even an external monitor if you want to keep the comfort of a desktop.

So ultimately, work out your budget and what specs are important to you and then look for whichever machine covers those best.

Your problem is more than likely simply Windows Vista. It really is a shocking operating system. The worst Microsoft ever made.

Your hardware is still pretty good by modern standards. Maybe an upgrade to 8GB of RAM since you are video editing but other than that I wouldn't be in a rush to bin your desktop off.

If I were in your shoes I would check this out Windows 8 Upgrade for £25

Basically until the end of Jan, Microsoft are offering an upgrade to Windows 8 for £25 and it's good for up to 5 PC's.

Upgrading from Vista means you will have to reinstall your apps but you'd have to do that anyway for a new PC so there's no difference.

Thanks for that, niceguy2, had not known about the deal for Windows 8, and can see it as a worthwhile option to buy (even though I know some of the kit I have here is not going to be suitable for upgrading).

niceguy2 - You're mistaken about "it's good for up to 5 PC's". That price is per licence and to quote directly from the FAQ on the MS website, "Each upgrade license applies to only one PC".

Basically the reference to five machines is that the special promo upgrade price has a limit of 5 purchases per person, so if you are a business that needs more than 5 licences you cannot use that promo offer.

Ah ok, thanks for the correction. I misread. Still a good deal. Once i get paid, I'm going for it myself.