Was this a bad time to buy a computer?

I was looking at the stuff coming out soon, and expresscard 2.0 and usb 3.0 are coming out (asus cancelled their first usb 3.0 motherboard as of yet) but with usb 3.0/expresscard 2.0, our dreams of a fast ssd insertable would quickly come to fruition. I was wondering how long it'd take, and if it'd be better to wait like a year?

 

those features are not important to me, you have to ask yourself is it worth waiting? technology moves so fast, you'll end up waiting forever. unless there is something very specific you need, dont wait

 

Well, I already bought a 14z, but it seems like wireless and usb (and now expresscard) technologies usually take quite awhile to come out, and then be supported. But I guess I nabbed the led backlighting, which I was happy about.

 

Agree with afhstingray, if you wait for the next big thing to be released, you'd never buy a notebook.

 

Hardware wise... I would say just proceed to go for any models you like, further hesitation will just push your real urgency of needing a tool for your daily work. Hardware technology advance at a rate of almost every month, today it might be SSD, next month might be the Screen type, the month after might be the CPU etc... There's no end.

But it is a different scenario on O.S. Once installed, this operating system which make your hardware work together, will stay all the way till your desire to change. And this change will usually takes a longer time, usually 3yrs or even longer with just minor frequent updates that make your system stable, as well as your comfort in using this operating system you have chosen. Hence, stability is a major issue.

If you're going to get a Windows powered system right now, i would say wait till the last quarter of the year, as the Vista to Win7 free upgrade option is still filled with unresolved issues.

 

not only would this take quite a while to come out, but it would take a while to become cheap. if you do really want this tech then you'll have to be prepared to spring the extra $$$ for it when it does release. Then there's the fact (not probability, fact) that there will be newer, faster technology on the horizon when you move to make a purchase on that. Buy it when you need it - don't worry about what's happening six months from now too much because there's always something happening six months from now.

 

How much faster is USB3.0 going to be over eSATA or FireWire?

 

When you want to buy a computer you can either wait for the next big thing ($$$ + wait time) or buy whats currently sold ($$ + no wait time) or buy older stuff ($). I like to go with whats currently available. That way you don't spend so much money, you get pretty decent performance and don't have to wait months. By not spending so much money, it also helps upgrading earlier than if you spend a huge chunk of money.

 

depends though, if there is something really worth waiting for. for example, i delayed my purchase by a month cos i knew the new dell precision series was coming out

but yea, if u can wait more than a month or two, it means you dont really need to buy a notebook NOW. and its always best to wait till the last minute when you really need it

 

I'd disagree about waiting till the last minute - optimally you'd buy it as soon as possible at the lowest price. Over longer periods of time that means taking advantage of falling prices, normally for a time frame of two/three months +. Over shorter periods, it means taking advantage of sales, within a timeframe of a month or two. So, if I was looking for something for next month and I saw a sale, I'd pull the trigger immediately.

 

definitely, i suppose our definition of last minute differs, i meant wait till the month or 2 months where you'll need to get it.

so yea, agree completely wit your post, thats what i was trying to say

 

haha, good question. I always wondered about this. Thanks to my confusion, i have already spent 1 month researching what to buy. Started with a strong conviction to buy macbook pro, and then seeing thinkpad etc .. i finally came to studio 15, just because it has 1080p and 900p monitors. But alas, today when i was again filling up my cart, i saw that the deal from yesterday is not there So now i am back to waiting, i think i am spending all my time in this .. its too tiring and its time companies rationalize this, it is crazy. The more the knowledge, the more the confusion. Anyways i think the more you wait the more options you get and the more cheaper the technology gets, but this way you will wait infinitely. OLED and USB3 are going to rule but it would take about 5 years for them for sure, till they mature and all issues fixed (atleast some with OLED burn in etc and costs).
So go ahead and buy, otherwise you will just spend most of your time looking around and you will never be able to buy. I can see my pain

 

Early adopters pay a premium for an inferior product - i.e. anybody who bought the PS3 just after they updated the lineup with different hard drives is probably regretting their decision. But, arguably, they make back some of that difference between showing off, and actual use of the product. So it depends on how much the specific feature is worth to you.

 

A parable: a family friend put off replacing her ancient (but still working) 13-inch Sony TV until HDTV came out.

She died in 1993, years away from HDTV being on the market (let alone common), still watching a 13-inch TV.