Core i devalue after SB?

I bought a new HP Envy 14 and would like to sell it on ebay once SB is released and upgrade. I wonder how many hundreds of dollars I'll lose.

Any rough idea from the core 2 duo to core i experience how much I'd lose on the specs below?

All this cost me around $1400 USD, what do you think would be a healthy estimated resale value (USD) in 2011?

• W7 Home Premium 64-bit
• i5 450m
• 8GB DDR3
• 160GB X25-m G2
• 750GB HDD in ODD bay
• 1600x900 radiance display
• Intel Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth
• HD webcam
• backlit keyboard
• 1GB ATI Radeon HD 5650 switchable graphics [HDMI]
• Two 8 Cell Lithium Ion Batteries
• Rest stock

 

Everything loses it's value given enough time, especially where technology is concerned.
Arrandale is a nice platform, though sandy bridge will be a nice upgrade. I'll estimate that if it's in prestine condition, you may be able to pull in $900, possibly $1000 (because you have two batteries). The newer it is the more of your original cost you can recoup.

 

Just to clarify I mean to sell it as soon as SB is released, not Q4 2011 or anything, and yes it will be in pristine condition.

 

Minus the sdd and possibly the video adapter, a machine with those specs can be bought new for approx U$ 650- these days. With a warranty. And a new battery. And a new hard drive. etc, etc, etc.

You'd be better off to pull the sdd and reuse it yourself than to try and use it to pump up the 'value' of your current machine. The Intel G3 and other newer sdds' will be out in a few months.

Sorry, no matter when you sell your machine you are going to lose significant money. Anyone who contemplates buying your machine will know full well that new hardware is available and at what price. And they will pay the price that they want to pay, not what YOU want them to pay.

Computers are **not** an 'investment'. They are an expense that needs to be managed, usually by not spending too much money for more machine than you need in the first place.

 

You lose 1/4 of the value immediately, just like a car. Another 10-15% after year, another 10% on top of that for every new generation of tech that gets released. Your loss is probably on the low end b/c of the SSD, switchable graphics, and second battery, but it's going be at least a 1/3 if it's otherwise in mint condition (so... what roger said)

 

I don't think so. Show me an aluminum designed 14.5" notebook with a 1600x900 80% adobe RGB display for $650... I didn't think so.

 

Problem being, no one really cares about the Envy series. You might, but how many people really, really care? 'Premium' notebooks carry a premium price at initial sale. Used machine buyers will be looking for a significant deal.

As far as your display goes, you are assuming that the current video will remain top of the line in 6 months and that either better or same/cheaper screens won't also be available in 6 months.

This is not a car. It's not a MacBook. It's not a Sony. It's a premium priced HP. With the same internal components as the rest of their product line.

Look at ebay NOW for the prices of 6 month old machines like yours. Not the asking price. The final selling price.

 

I thought I got a pretty good discount on the system new from HP. I am still within the return window and was planning on upgrading the odd bay myself.

Why has this gotten into an argumentative tone? No I'm not claiming this is a great investment, or that the world loves the Envy series. I just asked how much it might go for as soon as SB is released.

I wonder if it'd save money to just get a low end notebook for now from the dell outlet or used, then sell that and upgrade to SB once released. Do you think that would lose less money?

 

Why do you even want to upgrade to SB? IMO the best would be to just use your current laptop for a few years.

 

You know, it's really hard to say. On the one hand, that machine is worth more than $1400 right now (the SSD alone costs no less than $400, 8GB of RAM is not cheap either and very few notebooks have a display that good). On the other hand, you will need to find somebody who is both capable of appreciating these and either unaware of or uninterested in Sandy Bridge and the G3 SSDs coming in February. People here have sold obsolete machines for substantial amounts of money before (check out the NBR Marketplace section of this forum), but I'm not sure how they do it.

Like sgogeta4, I'm also curious why you want to sell this machine in the first place. Sandy Bridge will be better, of course, but unless you have a very specific need for a faster CPU, the improvement does not warrant the hassle of selling the old notebook and buying a new one. There's always something better around the corner, but if you buy a high end machine, you're better off just sticking with it for a while.

 

Brand makes a big difference in how much resell value is upheld. The HP ENVY is certainly a more "expensive" brand name. That's the way most people will see it anyway. I'm with the others here though. $900-$1000 is most likely what you'd get. That notebook is great though. Why would you want to sell it just for SB? I'd just keep it.

 

I'd like better battery life, and just like having the latest, greatest thing. lol

I already know once they release new models with SB I'll be envying them.

I was going to get a mbp but the specs were unappealing for the price. If they get it right next year, I may bite.

 

If you are one of those people who likes having the latest and greatest, worrying about resale value isn't something you can afford to do.

You'll lose a handful of hundreds on selling this, at least, and then hundreds more on the spurious upgrade.

 

SB Will be releasing Next Year Jan 9 right, will we see SB Notebooks by then? i do hope so cause thats the date intel says SB will go retail..

 

Trolling. Just because I like to have the latest things doesn't mean I can't consider the resale value to see what I'm getting into.

 

Wait! You're still within the return Window? Return it now.

Why would you choose to loose up to 1/2 the value (even if SB is available Jan 9, 2011, doesn't mean a computer you would be willing to buy will be available then) for a few months wait?

You must have a system you can use for a third of a year (or so)?

If most people that buy high end systems are anything like me; they will prefer brand new (not used - even in 'pristine' condition). Or, they will consider used - for a 60% discount or so.

 

I'm considering returning. The thing is: this same configuration currently costs $700 more than what I paid for it from HP.com. Do you think it's worth keeping, or will the new SB and G3 SSD notebook outshine any of this?

 

I think that even if you pay 'full price' (... the $700 more) for the identical system except on the SB platform, you will still be further ahead than if you try to sell the current system 4-8 months from now and still have to buy the new SB based system.

My guess is that if anything, the new SB system will be even less than what you paid for yours now (contrary to popular belief, deals are not 'once in a lifetime' because the manufacturers care about giving you a deal - they're just trying to clear warehouse shelf space for the next 'big thing' to stock).


As for the G3, I'm expecting very good things from it (Intel has to step up and take the lead again - there is no reason for them to hold back anymore).

Combined, SB and G3 should be more than worth the wait - and even if they're not, you can still get the identical system you have now at an even greater than $700 savings (when the new SB platform and G3's are out).

Good luck.

 

I think you're right. Thanks for the great advice. I don't need this much computer atm and can get by on a much cheaper notebook until the right SB and G3 SataIII notebook comes along.

 

As long as your computing needs are met with what you currently have (or can get on the 'cheap'), then you should be good to wait this out for a short while.

Hope that your decision proves to be as I predict (I sincerely hope so; as this is exactly what I would do too).

Good luck.

 

Well of course if you don't need it sell it now as depreciation is an ongoing process. And the appreciation of the $$$ in the meantime due to term deposit (e.g.) is also!

But your OP asked about devalue after SB, one post above suggested 10%.

I would say the bigger difference will be in the quadcore mobile products, where the SB quads will be about 40% higher frequency, have igfx where currently is none, and a smaller process (32nm) which is a much greater difference than in the dual-core space where Arrandale sits currently (all 3 SB mobile dualcores aren't much different in clocks from the i7 620M).

But before anything else let's see whether SB will be this hugely massively worthwhile upgrade. (Guess that depends on how much Intel have to do to beat off AMD's offerrings... the only "hugely massively worthwhile" jump in the last decade was netburst => conroe when coincidentally the Athlon was spanking the P4 in the performance space and would have done so even more but for monopolistic and anti-competitive abuses by Intel...)

 

Well, SB is in 3-4 months, Intel refresh is supposedly February 2011. So if you want a new chipset/CPU and SSD tech, then you're probably looking at March 2011 if not a little later.

I owned an Envy 14 for a while. Very nice machine. I was just a bit underwhelmed by the performance and the crappy Samsung SSD they threw in there. Otherwise the construction and screen were excellent.

I'd say March 2011 you might be able to get ~ $1000 for it. I typically sell every 18-24 months and buy new, and I see about 25-30% devalue from 6-9 months after a product is released, and drops considerably after that. I bought my Sager for ~$1600 in August 2009. I might be able to get $800 for it now, mainly because of the Core i series CPU's devalued it more.

 

Hey htwingnut,

I do really like this system. I suppose the loss of money isn't too bad. I just don't really need this system atm and would probably rather wait for SB and G3 SSD/Sata III.

 

It's just the nature of the beast. Your laptop new is probably valued at about $1600, so you never know. The screen is a great selling feature, the SSD is an Intel which has held its own for a long time is still a solid performer. Only now are other SSD's catching up to it. You might be able to get $1200 for it, but it all depends on what the market bears at the time of sale too. SB isn't going to be nearly as significant a change as it was from Core 2 Duo to Arrandale.

Although depends on what's selling at the time. If there's a similar spec'ed machine for $1500 you're not likely to get more than $1000 or so from yours. Either way, that's the way the laptop ball rolls. Buy it and keep it for a couple years, or expect to get hit with the devaluation if you want to keep up with technology.

 

If I bought a refurbished dell for around $500 to get me by, how much do you think that would devalue by the time SB is launched? Would I lose much less reselling it than this HP Envy 14?

 

That's a good question. Chances are the $500 laptop (assuming Core 2 Duo, Intel GMA 4500MHD, 2GB RAM?) probably wouldn't drop more than $200 in value in six months if it's decently spec'ed. But again, I don't know. Since you spent $1400 on your Envy 14, but it's valued now at about $1600 or so new, you might get $1200-$1300 for it in six months. If it were me, I'd keep the Envy 14, enjoy the more powerful laptop and then it will give you longevity if you don't like what you see in six months.

 

Might be highish to expect. Not bad to hope for, but to rely on might be pushing a bit. A $500 refurb might lose at most $100 or so in 6 months, but it really depends on how old and where the price started. Question is, would you get more value out of keeping the Envy? Most people ballpark 250-400 a year for cost of ownership. If, say, SB actually get integrated into laptops in late Q1 or early Q2 (more likely Q2/Q3), will you have gotten enough value out of the Envy to be okay with selling it? A weak refurb might leave you disappointed for months.