Years ago I remember building my first computer with my dad. We kept wondering if we should go with the Pentium Pro, or save a bit of money and get the Pentium with MMX Technology. I didn’t know what MMX Technology was, but it sounded impressive. That said, so did Pro. The seller at Funan Centre in Singapore told us the MMX Pentium offered the more “future proof” platform. It turned out to be a moot point; a year later the ATX platform was introduced, and AGP cards took over from PCI.
It’s funny to think about now, because of all the computers I used from my childhood, that Pentium MMX tower is still the only one I still have that mostly runs with the same hardware it had when I built it in 1998. I suppose that’s “future proofing” of a different kind! But I digress.
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I hadn’t heard the term “future proofing” for a long time, until I saw it pop up in a JaysTwoCents video description. He dumped cold water on the idea, if it was ever viable in the first place. He points to the fact silicon manufacturers are increasingly turning to gating updates on newer hardware; a common practice in software and games.
It’s interesting watching the video and seeing people comment in a modern context. Jay has been around the block a few times himself; as evidenced by the Commodore 64 on his set! But it’s not a new question. The premise of desktop computers with their sockets and slots was they were (a) upgradable and (2) serviceable, which not only helps when something breaks, but it gives you a degree of future expansion.
This is now being flipped on its head by hardware manufacturers, particularly with graphics cards with their specific instruction set improvements. To an extent you need better silicon to be able to run specific new code, but when enterprising people find ways to have these run on the older kit, the charge of “gating” becomes more difficult to deflect. I defer to Jay’s video if you want the details.
The incentives are aligned for companies to force upgrades, and Wall Street will punish them for not thinking short term. “AI” has proven once again that reputation, quality, performance, customer satisfaction, sustainable business models, happiness, joy, existence, and long-term viability are not as important as line go up this quarter. What happens next quarter is next quarter’s problem.
Jay ends his video by saying the only way forward for “future proofing” is to have deep pockets. My advice is to get off the treadmill, and hang at least a generation or two behind. I empathise this sucks if you’re someone who loves playing new games, but that’s how it is. I hear PS5s can be bought second hand for much cheaper now?
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I’m not a gamer; at least, not at the level someone watching these sorts of YouTube channels are. X-Plane and Minecraft with needlessly complex shaders on a 4K monitor are the hardest I push pixels. So why do I even watch this stuff?
There are a few reasons, but the primary one is that gamers mostly represent the last vestiges of the desktop enthusiast market (well, until you get into homelabbing, but that’s server kit). Time was everyone and their dog were building computers because you could tailor them to your specific requirements, save a chunk of change, and have an upgrade path.
Some of this is still true, but the vast majority of new machines today are laptops, and of the desktops that are sold, most are integrated units that probably can’t be upgraded (easily). Meanwhile, the money has shifted from individuals and companies with fleets, to hyperscalers buying billions of dollars of silicon on pure speculation. Unless you’re buying parts at that scale, expect to chase expensive leftovers.
It’s not even just companies squeezing their own customers, it’s a supply chain issue from the silicon foundries to system integrators. OEMs respond to this by adding new features so they can raise their prices and reclaim some of the margin lost to companies like Nvidia, which again leaves their traditional PC building customers worse off.
It’s no wonder manufacture are increasingly moving to serving institutional and corporate customers over individuals. It’s where the money is (well… for now).