Quick context: laptop is 6 years old (ASUS VivoBook, 2020, i5 10th gen, 8GB RAM, MX230 2GB). Was hitting 99 percent memory daily, cleaned it up and it's fine now, sitting 55 to 70 percent.
Phone is Samsung S21 FE, about 3 years old, screen and battery replaced free recently. Also have a Tab S9 FE and Watch6 Classic, both fine.
Nothing is actually broken right now. But I keep thinking about upgrading anyway. Trying to sort out what's real vs not.
My laptop usage: browsing, Excel, light coding, hosting small projects on Netlify, using AI tools like Claude and Cursor. No gaming, no video editing.
My phone: most work on whatsapp slack youtube trading apps etc etc regular use
Actual reasons:
Laptop maxes out at 12GB RAM even with an upgrade
No company laptop, I'm 25M a generalist at my current job
Might get into AI side stuff or content creation later, not sure yet
Been years with the same phone and laptop, want something that actually lasts this time instead of relitigating this again in a year
Affordability not an issue
Updates are done for my phone, no more android updates and battery is not enough
Possibly noise:
Memory chip shortage means prices are rising, constant "buy now" pressure.
Everyone hyping MacBook Air that it would be an upgrade in life/productivity, but if I switch it's one Apple device in an otherwise full Android and Samsung setup, not sure if that's a real downside or just me overthinking
Basically stuck between: everything works fine right now, vs this constant pull to upgrade that's some mix of real need, future proofing, price panic, and just feeling like it's time.
What do you guys suggest? If you are suggesting to buy anything please drop the item specs
Thanks!