Does building a computer piecemeal make sense?

[ruckstande]

I need a new computer very badly. I'm still using the one I created back in 2008! I have assembled all of my desired components on PC Part Picker and the total price is around $1500. I have no way of paying for all of this now and It might take me a year or more to save for it. My question to you all is does it make sense to buy the parts I want piecemeal over the next year in the hopes that I will get some extra cash to complete my build or should I attempt to save it all and buy it all at once. Just curious what you would do. Thanks.

 

[USAFRet]

I need a new computer very badly. I'm still using the one I created back in 2008! I have assembled all of my desired components on PC Part Picker and the total price is around $1500. I have no way of paying for all of this now and It might take me a year or more to save for it. My question to you all is does it make sense to buy the parts I want piecemeal over the next year in the hopes that I will get some extra cash to complete my build or should I attempt to save it all and buy it all at once. Just curious what you would do. Thanks.

Buy it all at once.
Buy something today and not use it for a year...whatever compatible new parts you get in a year will instantly be a year out of date.

 

[Chugalug_]

Yup. You always want to buy when you have enough funds for the whole rig.
That way you can get the most competitive prices based on the deals circulating at the time, and the quality of the components.
For example, today an i5 6500 might cost $199, but in a years time when Kaby Lake or even Cannonlake launches, it will be much cheaper, and potentially on an outdated platform.
You will 100% always get a better deal in terms of performance the longer you wait to build.
If someone was going to build a 980ti PC last year for example, they would have paid $650 for the graphics card, but today, you can pay $350 for a 980ti new!
This is an example of how drastic a difference waiting that period of time can have, and I hope that when you save up using these steps, you can end up with a rig you can be proud of.
It's a long, painful wait, trust me i've been there, but it is well worth it.

 

[ruckstande]

I need a new computer very badly. I'm still using the one I created back in 2008! I have assembled all of my desired components on PC Part Picker and the total price is around $1500. I have no way of paying for all of this now and It might take me a year or more to save for it. My question to you all is does it make sense to buy the parts I want piecemeal over the next year in the hopes that I will get some extra cash to complete my build or should I attempt to save it all and buy it all at once. Just curious what you would do. Thanks.

Buy it all at once.
Buy something today and not use it for a year...whatever compatible new parts you get in a year will instantly be a year out of date.

That's the direction I'm leaning. I just wanted some confirmation on that. Thank you.

 

[geofelt]

What do you use your pc for?
What is your partpicker list?
In a year, prices and products will have changed. It makes more sense to wait.

There are some products that do not change much over time so it might be reasonable to pick them up early if there is a really good sale.
Such as... cases, power supplies, monitors, keyboards/mice cpu coolers

What do you have now? Is it reasonable to do some upgrades to what you have?

Another thing you might do is build a bit early and use integrated graphics for a while. You can play many games on integrated while you wait to buy a good discrete graphics card.

 

[ruckstande]

What do you use your pc for?
What is your partpicker list?
In a year, prices and products will have changed. It makes more sense to wait.

There are some products that do not change much over time so it might be reasonable to pick them up early if there is a really good sale.
Such as... cases, power supplies, monitors, keyboards/mice cpu coolers

What do you have now? Is it reasonable to do some upgrades to what you have?

Another thing you might do is build a bit early and use integrated graphics for a while. You can play many games on integrated while you wait to buy a good discrete graphics card.

Is it possible to share this list?

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/ruckstande/saved/#view=yLNBD3

I've been out of the scene for years. Don't shame me! lol