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It shouldn't be like that though. Yet another anecdote but my Lenovo Thinkpad X1 from 2017 is still a very high quality laptop. Of course it's an ultrabook so

It shouldn't be like that though. Yet another anecdote but my Lenovo Thinkpad X1 from 2017 is still a very high quality laptop. Of course it's an ultrabook so I don't imagine replacing anything on it.

brudgers 4y ago
The laptop market is driven by enterprise not individual consumers. There's little business case for upgradeable laptops due to depreciation schedules and labor costs. The history of upgradeable consumer and small business computers suggests that there's no actual demand. Probably because people who want the latest, want the latest, not a half-measure. There's good margins from FOMO. Logistics swamp margins in fear of FOMO products.
gruez 4y ago
> It shouldn't be like that though. It "shouldn't", but practicality considerations prevent that from happening. Even on desktops where theoretically every component is swappable, if you want to to upgrade your CPU you often have to replace the motherboard (because chipset compatability with the CPU) and maybe the RAM (because the CPU uses a newer DRAM generation). At this point the only thing you're retaining is the chassis, keyboard, and display which makes up a small overall cost of the laptop.
- vladvasiliu 4y ago
  > At this point the only thing you're retaining is the chassis, keyboard, and display which makes up a small overall cost of the laptop. I don't really agree with this take. I've looked a bit around for laptops at the end of 2021, and it was my impression that the difference between cheaper and pricier laptops from a given manufacturer is exactly those bits that don't change that much: nicer screens, cases, speakers, etc. They all come with the same CPUs and take the same RAM and NVMe drives.
- nicolaslem 4y ago
  > If you want to to upgrade your CPU you often have to replace the motherboard. That's true for Intel and their "Tick-Tock" cycle which breaks compatibility every other year. So far AMD's commitment to AM4 has shown that it's possible to upgrade a 5 years old motherboard to the latest CPU. Let's hope their next AM5 socket gets the same longevity.

brudgers 4y ago

The laptop market is driven by enterprise not individual consumers. There's little business case for upgradeable laptops due to depreciation schedules and labor costs. The history of upgradeable consumer and small business computers suggests that there's no actual demand. Probably because people who want the latest, want the latest, not a half-measure. There's good margins from FOMO. Logistics swamp margins in fear of FOMO products.

gruez 4y ago

> It shouldn't be like that though. It "shouldn't", but practicality considerations prevent that from happening. Even on desktops where theoretically every component is swappable, if you want to to upgrade your CPU you often have to replace the motherboard (because chipset compatability with the CPU) and maybe the RAM (because the CPU uses a newer DRAM generation). At this point the only thing you're retaining is the chassis, keyboard, and display which makes up a small overall cost of the laptop.

vladvasiliu 4y ago
> At this point the only thing you're retaining is the chassis, keyboard, and display which makes up a small overall cost of the laptop. I don't really agree with this take. I've looked a bit around for laptops at the end of 2021, and it was my impression that the difference between cheaper and pricier laptops from a given manufacturer is exactly those bits that don't change that much: nicer screens, cases, speakers, etc. They all come with the same CPUs and take the same RAM and NVMe drives.
nicolaslem 4y ago
> If you want to to upgrade your CPU you often have to replace the motherboard. That's true for Intel and their "Tick-Tock" cycle which breaks compatibility every other year. So far AMD's commitment to AM4 has shown that it's possible to upgrade a 5 years old motherboard to the latest CPU. Let's hope their next AM5 socket gets the same longevity.