My current laptop is on life support. I think I bought it over ten years ago when technology was still of moderate quality. I cut old credit cards into squares to replace keyboard and mouse keys, had the hard drive replaced twice, and the screen has blacked out, so I use an external monitor to see what I’m doing. Two hard drives are attached to it, taking up all of my USB ports. It has also outlived my Alienware, which I’ve replaced the components for over fifteen years. I can still run my video games! It is a hot mess and a technology enthusiast is probably laughing right now, but I had a conversation with a computer guy towing my car a few days ago who said that it’s unprecedented how even his components are outdated in less than two years, and they are too expensive to update and replace. It had us asking ourselves… why are we even doing this? What do we need all of this stuff for? Are the updates improvement or time consuming?
Quite frankly, I still don’t plan on getting rid of my laptop when it still works and laptops with a terabyte of storage and 8G ram now cost a thousand dollars. I used to be adamant about replacing my own hardware until companies started soldering components to the motherboards. I’m a millennial who has lived through so many technological advances, seen computer operating systems advance from Windows 95 to Windows 11, seen vinyl records become tape cassettes to CDs to MP3 to whatever the heck we have today, television sets go from big box frames to flat screen smart TVs. The list goes on. Generations of technology were force fed to us with golden promises of “the future.” The future is here and it is mostly AI and Late Stage Capitalism slop. I’m teched-out to the point where I no longer want to be bothered. I play around with the new stuff just to not get too left behind, but am I going to use it for my simple life? Nah.
I still need a new laptop…
That said, I miss the portability of laptops. I decided to try my luck in the refurbished market. I wish I could go back in time and had done this sooner. I used to flinch at thrifting for refurbished technology because I feared that anything I bought would break down earlier. New technology now, however, has that problem as companies continue to jack up prices for terrible products. I already go antiquing, and have recently got into thrifting for specific needs. I normally search for furniture, fabric, books, china, and vinyl records. Why not try my luck with tech?
Given that newer models are repulsively priced and repulsively unusable, I wanted a laptop from a previous generation that wouldn’t have all of the useless (at least for me) bells and whistles and AI that newer models have for a fraction of the memory.
The purpose of this laptop would be for writing and research only. No games. No streaming. No tasks that require high-performance processing units or graphics cards. At most, it just needs to run Photoshop so I can keep worldbuilding my maps.
I found this baby in like-new condition on Back Market: an HP EliteBook for $300 (almost got one for $260, but someone else bought it first). Perfect for the exclusive use of writing. I nearly bought a typewriter, but however romantic the idea sounds, typewriters aren’t exactly portable and have their own technical foibles. I wanted something I could slip into a booksleeve and reliably carry with me anywhere.
The Laptop Verdict…
My new laptop arrived within a few days… And, I love it. Portable. Fast. Simple. 5 STARS.
I installed it with almost no apps, leaving me with the bulk of my memory. I threw in some cybersecurity software, organized a few files, and BOOM! Updated typewriter.
I’m over capitalism, tariffs, inflation, and subscriptions. I’m over shittier quality that drains the pockets. I just want to sit outside and write my book in peace. I want my stuff to WORK. I may never purchase new computers or laptops ever again, especially in this economy.
