Is upgrading an old laptop worth it?

My main computer is a 2011 HP Pavilion dv6 with an i7-2720QM CPU and a Radeon 6770M GPU. The hard drive recently developed bad sector issues so I upgraded it to the 512GB MX100 SSD. The next failing part is the battery: it used to get 4-5 hours of web browsing and now it's more like 1-2. This post is mainly me trying to decide whether I should buy a new battery.

On the one hand, with the SSD the laptop is arguably better than it ever was. It's very snappy for everyday usage and it still does everything I need it to do. I don't play many games these days and the ones that I do play (e.g. Wasteland 2) can run on maximum settings.

On the other hand, the machine is around three and half years old and HP's consumer line is not exactly known for longevity. For example, at one point I one point I heard something rattling around when the fan was on high. I disassembled the laptop and sure enough, there was a small piece of plastic inside the fan. Taking it out fixed the rattling and wherever it came from didn't seem to need it since the computer still works, but sooner or later (probably sooner) something is going to break that is either too expensive or too difficult to fix. Also, while the laptop is adequate to my needs, there are obviously machines out there which are better in every way for a reasonable price.

So, what do people think? Is it worth it to invest more money into such an old laptop?

 

If all it needs at this point is a new battery then absolutely. New batteries are a part of any electronic device and replacing them should be one of the most expected routine there is.

If the warranty is out, then a good third-party battery should suffice (that's what I have in my HDX). Just don't make it too cheap. And make sure it has a decent warranty as well.

 

Agreed about the battery replacement; it's a worthwhile investment if it gets you another 1-2 years' usage out of the notebook.

A contributing factor to notebook failure is when they're picked up at odd angles and so on (like holding it by one corner). This causes the internal circuit boards to flex and eventually crack causing failure. Business class notebooks have stiffer chassis to help prevent this. Be careful carrying your notebook and it should last as long as any other notebook (save for my Toshiba 700CT or Libretto 100CT ).

 

Personally, I can't recommend getting a thrid-party battery for a notebook. I did that with my X61t and the battery didn't even last six months before it went to crap. OEM batteries are expensive, sure, but at least they work as intended.

Anyway, I'd also agree that it's worth upgrading your current laptop over buying a new one. Really, it's only worth getting a new laptop if it's too expensive to fix the current one or otherwise impossible (say, motherboard dies and there aren't any replacements; common with consumer-class machines), or if your requirements suddenly increase and your current hardware isn't fast enough to handle that. I'm pretty much in the same boat with my W520, though there's no question that I'm holding onto this thing and upgrading it until it's impossible to do so (the keyboard alone is a good reason why I should keep it ).

 

I would add that your DV6 model was made at a time HP was producing pretty good product - despite the fact that they were also saying they were going to exit the computer buiness at the time! - and if you follow Charles' suggestions I don't see why you can't get 2+ more years of good use from the laptop, provided it performs well enough to meet your needs.

 

My 2c: Unless you carry it around a lot, or need the battery life, then don't waste money buying it a battery, and save towards your next laptop.

When I used to have my T410 (recently), I kept wanting to splash money on it - buy it an SSD, new battery, higher resolution screen ($$$) etc. Decided that it is pointless buying model-specific upgrades (battery, screen) on such an old laptop, when it could die any day, and the money would be a total waste.

 

Didn't think about that. I'd agree if the laptop is going to act as a desktop most of the time.

 

Agreed in principle. However, it seems to me - although I may very well be wrong - that OP's situation calls for a better battery life than what he's able to achieve right now...and I'd suggest getting a genuine HP battery as a replacement.

Yes and no. Should the machine die, one could always sell the parts and recover most of the cost involved in an upgrade. For more common models a board swap is usually inexpensive and easy to perform.

My $0.02 only...

 

Thank you all. I do make routine use of the battery -- that's probably how it got to its present state in the first place. I'll replace it with an HP spare.

 

Good call. Your computer is hardly "old" especially since you have the SSD. With the new battery, you should easily get another 2 years out of it, barring any catastrophic failures of course.

 

As other have stated, if your computing needs don't exceed the current laptop, and all that is going out is the battery and you need the battery life, go ahead and replace the battery. Spending 120-150 vs 800-900 on a new laptop that you probably don't need is almost a no brainer for me.

 

That's a super snappy notebook. I used to have one. Get a new battery and you have a fast notebook for years.

 

I'll also jump on the replace-the-battery bandwagon. 1-2 hours of life after 3-4 years is a perfectly reasonable rate of depreciation for the original battery, and is sounds like otherwise it's still in pretty good shape.

If you do get a third-party one, I'd recommend going with a name brand 3rd-party one, not a no-name one from eBay. The no-name one will be cheaper, but much less likely to last a long time. Name-brand third party ones generally are fairly decent, and still often a good 1/3 cheaper than OEM. I bought a Rayovac, and it has actually outlasted my original Dell one (though it's down to 1-2 hours now itself). And if you can buy it locally at a store like Micro Center or Batteries Plus, you'll also have a place to return it should it fail abnormally soon.

I've been mildly considering buying a new battery for my 7-year-old laptop at Micro Center myself... although at this point 1-2 hours is still adequate for my needs most of the time.

 

I'd also like to compliment Chaz on the well-written Tecra 7000CT and Libretto 100 CT reviews. The Libretto screen is a bit small for my tastes, though the 166 MHz Pentium with MMX is an excellent choice of CPU, but the Tecra looks like a fine laptop all-around. I'd have commented on the reviews themselves, but alas, it looks like I am unable to do so.

 

It would probably be the oldest necro on NBR if you were able to .

 

Thank you. I can proudly say both are still in 100% working order.

Anyone know where I can buy a new battery for them? NiCd.

We have a thread auto-lock after one year of inactivity, that's why you can't comment.

 

Aww... I had some really neat ideas for http://forum.notebookreview.com/off-topic/726-recycling-computers.html too...

 

Well looks like I was incorrect lol

 

I was thinking of suggesting a new battery for the one with a 13-minute battery life, but considering it was about an hour new, how worthwhile it was seemed questionable. The OP would get a lot more gain in battery life with a new one.

The Libretto review is dated April 1st, 2014, so it's less than one year. I thought maybe it was due to it being in a special April Fool's type forum.

Personally I'm of the opinion that thread necromancy can be appropriate. It is annoying if it's just a "Nice post!" 11 years later, but IMO if there's an unanswered question that someone finds via a search engine 2 years later while searching for an answer, and then figures it out themselves, it's perfectly acceptable for them to necro it and provide the answer for anyone else who comes across it later. It's the DenverCoder9 principle:

 

"you are now reading NBR's The Walking Thread..."

after a couple tries, you can read that in your head with an appropriate voice

 

The laptop you have is pretty modern as is.
CPU-wise, you aren't really gaining a lot with a modern one in terms of performance - arguably, the gains would be minimum on that end.
As for the GPU - that one seems to be a mid-range of that time frame, but as you said, it also seems to be more than adequate for your needs.

If the only thing here needed to be replaced is the battery (seeing how everything else seems to be working fine), I'd go with the battery replacement option instead of buying a new laptop (for that, I'd advise you to wait until the end of 2015 or early 2016, because new technologies will come out by then that should provide a generous 'leap' over what is currently available).

Other than the battery... just keep the machine clean from dust and of course, replace the thermal paste roughly once per year.


If you are asking whether its worth it to upgrade an old laptop in general...
Depends on your needs, the price of components you can put into the older machine to keep it current, etc.

My partner's laptop was over 6 years old.
Had a Intel Celeron of some kind inside and 1GB RAM...
Upgraded his CPU to Intel Core2Duo, RAM to 4GB, and HDD to 320GB.

I also have my own laptop in the signature... exactly 6 years old... managed to upgrade the CPU, RAM and HDD... and I still have the GPU to upgrade (to GT 240M MXM II - offering about 50% increase in graphics performance - enough to keep me 'afloat' until mobile gpu's with HBM from AMD come out - and even then, maybe I might try getting Broadwell, or possibly wait for Skylake - though if Carrizo from AMD turns out a good runner as well, I might just get that instead).

Anyhow - my laptop screen broke down (the backlight went out) and I was advised it might be time to buy a new laptop.
I opted to wait because the laptop is perfectly functional and still modern enough.
I plan to give it to my nephew as a gift once I get a new one next year.

I still see my laptop as viable enough to maintain and upgrade... but then again, I like tinkering with technology like that to see how much one can max out the older hardware.

 

Yeah, screens on laptops are pretty overrated. I don't have the screen attached to mine currently, and it works perfectly well when connected to an external monitor. The WiFi signal's a bit weak since the antennae are in the screen, but other than that and slightly decreased mobility, it's as good as always. So long as your nephew has an external monitor available, that sounds like a good choice and plan.

 

Old laptops can keep up with current laptops. Intel hasn't made groundbreaking leaps in performance since sandy bridge and even Nehalem if OCed heavily can perform well today. Throw in MXM 3.0 B compatibility and you get yourself a winner.

The trick is keeping the costs low. It takes a lot of patience and good strategy/decision making to line up upgrades that are both affordable and worth it financially.

 

I forgot to mention that I replaced the screen.
I like portability with my laptop so I can use it in other locatios in the flat, or take it to work with me.

The only things remaining to upgrade on it would be the GPU as mentioned above... and I have to replace the battery because the current (original) one lost about 60% of its charge in the last 6 years.
Overall, both the battery and gpu will cost about £100 in total.
For me, that's not really cost-prohibitive.