Three laptops and the cheapest one is the most reliable

Nickle And Dime Comic

I have three laptops and the cheapest one is the most reliable.

Currently using an Asus laptop which is the cheapest one and I haven’t had any hardware issues with it. An almost $2500 PC and a $3000 Mac however have hardware issues that the manufacturer confirmed. What is that saying “You get what you pay for?” It isn’t true in my experience.

Is the Mac unable to function? No, it functions, but it could completely break at any time which is just the risk that I take in using it. The PC MSI is off to get repaired, so hopefully that will fix the computer and I won’t have issues for a long time.  Why am I sharing this? I have made the mistake of spending money to buy quality, but all I got was a song and dance show when something broke and they said it wasn’t their fault.

Nickle And Dime Comic
nickel and dime comic

Now there is certainly something true about spending money and quality. There is a minimum you need to spend to get something that lasts. However, that varies by product and takes extensive research. It is also true that very simple products like a wrench from a quality company will sometimes break. You can’t avoid all problems. The sweet spot however tends to be much cheaper than you think however.

Let’s use an example. I bought many cars from a company that everyone thinks is reliable and I had problems. When I spent money on a car from their luxury division I had the most problems. The most reliable car from them was the cheapest one that I ever bought. Why did I get rid of it? I was tired of driving it after 4 years. Now I am older and wiser and poorer. You don’t have to make the mistake that I did. The more gadgets and things that can go wrong, the more they will and the more expensive they will be to fix.

See also  Air filter to protect you from poor air quality

Another example. I had a relative who fixed furnaces. When you buy a furnace you can buy a standard one, or one that is called High Efficiency. The HE one will cost you less fuel and provide more heat. Sounds like an easy decision right? Not so fast. When it breaks the repair cost can be 10 times the cost of a standard furnace. It requires more labor and knowledge and sometimes the parts are not available because they are custom.  Meanwhile, depending on your energy costs/climate where you live it may take 8/14 years to pay for itself. The colder where you live, the more likely a HE furnace is a good choice. There are calculators online to help you with this decision.

Luxury cars are often cheap when they are used. However, the hidden part is how much repairs cost. It is easy to pay several thousand dollars for parts, and even for standard maintenance. Look before you leap when you buy things.

I’m not telling you how to spend your money, just don’t think that spending more will give you a better ownership experience.