This is the most common question I get.  Customers are almost always disappointed with the answer because they expect computers to last as long as major appliances.  The typical lifespan for a PC is about 5 to 7 years, and laptops are even less, at about 3 to 6 years.  The main driver is software, which continually gets bigger, more complex, and requires faster hardware.  The next factor is hardware, which even for the best brands will start to fail after 7 years.  Most customers are also unaware of the major jump hardware has taken in the past 4 years or so, with multiple processors (2 or 4) becoming the standard nowadays.  Fortunately there are affordable solutions which I detail below.  In general though, a new PC or laptop will cost about $600 to $800, but you should not have to spend more than that.

Steve