“It’s got slow, so I need a new one” is something we hear a lot, and it’s often wrong. Slowness usually has a cheap cause. A laptop that is actually failing is a different problem, so work out which one you’re dealing with first.

When repair makes sense

  • The machine is under about 5 years old
  • It’s a single, clear fault — a dying battery, failing drive or cracked screen
  • An SSD or RAM upgrade would fix the slowness for a fraction of a new laptop

The key word is single. One clear fault on an otherwise sound machine is almost always worth fixing. A battery that no longer holds charge, a drive that’s failing, a screen that’s cracked but a laptop that’s otherwise fine — each is a defined job with a defined price.

When to replace

  • Repair costs approach half the price of a comparable new machine
  • It can’t run Windows 11 and you rely on it daily
  • Multiple things are failing at once, or parts are no longer available

The half-price rule is a good instinct, but apply it with the machine’s remaining life in mind. Spending 40% of a new laptop’s price on a five-year-old machine isn’t the bargain it looks like if the rest of it is also near the end.

The Windows 11 point has become the most common reason to replace. Windows 10 stopped receiving security updates in October 2025, so a machine that can’t upgrade is one that no longer gets security patches. For a laptop you use daily — banking, email, photos — that’s the point at which repair stops making sense regardless of what it costs.

The cheap upgrade most people miss

If an older laptop still has a spinning hard drive, swapping it for an SSD (and topping up the RAM) transforms everyday speed and often buys you another couple of years — for far less than a new device.

A spinning hard drive is the cause in most of the slow laptops we see. The processor and memory are usually fine, and the machine is simply waiting on a mechanical disk. Replacing it with an SSD makes start-up, opening programs and everyday use much faster.

How to tell what you have without opening anything: open Task Manager, go to Performance, and look at the disk entry. It will say either HDD or SSD. If it says HDD and the machine is otherwise sound, an SSD will probably fix the slowness.

Then check the RAM. 4GB is limiting with a modern browser; 8GB is comfortable for everyday use. Many laptops of that era can be topped up cheaply, though some newer thin models have memory soldered in place and can’t be changed.

Things that aren’t worth fixing

Some faults are technically repairable but rarely economic on an older consumer laptop:

Liquid damage. Even after a successful repair, corrosion keeps working. It can fail again months later.

A failed motherboard. The part is most of the cost of the laptop.

Hinges that have cracked the case. By the time hinges break, the plastic around them has usually cracked too, and repairs to it rarely hold.

A very old battery on a very old machine. Fine to replace on its own, but if it’s the third thing to go, replacement is probably the better choice.

Before you decide either way, back up

Whichever way you go, get your files copied off first. If the machine is showing signs of drive failure — clicking, freezing, files that won’t open, long pauses — do this today, before any diagnosis. A drive that’s beginning to fail can go from readable to unreadable quickly, and recovery afterwards costs far more than a backup would have.

Make sure photos are included, because they’re the files people most regret losing. Most other things can be reinstalled or downloaded again.

If you do replace it

People often skip these two steps.

Move everything properly, including browser bookmarks, saved passwords and email — not just the Documents folder. The gaps tend to surface a fortnight later when you need something.

Wipe the old one before it leaves your hands. Deleting files and emptying the recycle bin doesn’t remove them. If you’re selling, donating or recycling it, the drive needs to be properly erased or removed.

Whether it’s a cheap fix or a new laptop, work out what’s actually wrong before you spend anything.