Get More out of Current Hardware to Avoid Sky-High Hardware Prices
Hardware prices are skyrocketing, and there’s no end in sight to the ongoing memory shortage. That memory is in everything you use these days, but even beyond flash memory, everything from rare earth minerals to plastic components to microprocessors is affected.
We’ll get to some of why, but here’s the more important takeaway: now’s a better time than ever to look for ways to extend the life of your existing hardware.
That’s what we’re covering in this week’s post, with a specific focus on what you can do within Windows 11 to get a few more months or maybe even years out of the PCs already populating your business.
Why Are Prices Rising?
The news headlines on any given day tell a big part of the story. The increased demand for AI compute power is causing a huge demand for memory. Those big and heavily capitalized companies are paying a premium for access to the memory getting produced, leaving consumer electronics manufacturers hanging.
As far as everything else, while there are lots of factors, the biggest one is plastic.
Most plastics are in one way or another petroleum-derived products. In other words: Plastic is oil.
So when oil prices jump and oil production is threatened, plastics eventually get more expensive.
But this article isn’t about geopolitical or global economic forces; it’s about your business. So we’ll call that enough detail on the why. Now let’s look at the what.
Extending the Life of Current Hardware Is a Smart Move
Given increasing hardware costs, it makes sense to get as much life out of your current hardware as you can. You’re going to have to upgrade eventually, but no need to make that day arrive sooner than it has to, right?
Tips to Extend the Life of Windows 11 PCs
1. Cut Software Clutter
PCs are notorious for getting loaded up with bloated software you never use. Even if you never open “software clutter” applications, just being on the system could be taking a toll. It uses up storage space, causing the remaining storage space to endure more read/write cycles (each of which ever so slightly degrades your SSD). And many applications tie into background processes in small or subtle ways you never see. If an application is part of Startup, then it runs in the background whether you ever actively open it, draining processing power.
So take a few minutes to do a software inventory: look at installed applications and get rid of any that you know for sure what they are and that you aren’t using. (If you’re not sure, check with your IT provider — some seemingly unimportant things may actually be mission-critical!)
Then open up your Startup menu and get really strict. Anything that doesn’t absolutely have to run at startup, get rid of it.
2. Keep Systems Updated
An out-of-date system is vulnerable to attack, and it could also suffer from performance problems. A memory leak in an app could eat up your RAM and even into swap space, draining your performance and wearing out your RAM and SSD. A bug or performance issue in an app could cause it to burn through processing power in unhealthy ways, too.
3. Manage Storage
When SSDs get full — we’re talking really full — you may start to notice performance slowdowns. In this case it seems like your PC is getting too slow to use, but the real culprit is that it has nowhere to store stuff and do its work. Clearing out old files can help.
Last, inventory your cybersecurity approach and make sure you or your IT provider scans each endpoint device for malware and other digital detritus. Harmful software running in the background can drain those resources and burn through components, slowing down performance and speeding up a device’s failure.
Questions about how to maximize your current hardware or minimize supply chain headaches? We’re here to help. Reach out anytime.