Many hobbies are cheap if you choose wisely out of your possible interests; and then go with cheap, good enough options rather than getting swept up in online echo chambers (where nothing less than top tier is acceptable).
That’s only if you are in the subset of PC enjoyers who like state of the art equipment, expensive accessories and expensive recent games.
I consider myself a PC nerd but 5K is more than I spent in the last 10 years on the hobby. I’ve built my main rig for <1K, own a few raspberries and my home server is an old work laptop. It absolutely doesn’t have to be an expensive hobby.
Turns out PC’s are a cheap hobby.
Many hobbies are cheap if you choose wisely out of your possible interests; and then go with cheap, good enough options rather than getting swept up in online echo chambers (where nothing less than top tier is acceptable).
Yeah but they don’t pull the dopamine like the expensive ones do
Motorcycles: Excuse me
Sports cars: Hold my beer
Planes:
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Compared to other “adult hobbies” such as cars even the highest end PC costs peanuts.
A relatively cheap PC with Factorio and you are set. You won’t spend much on food either, so win-win.
5k? I don’t believe it. When in get home I’ll total up my setup and compare notes
EDIT- So I bought some stuff at different prices than you’d get today (cough GPU) so I will list a few prices for.
PC Hardware
Intel i5 10400 - $180
RAM 16GB DDR4 - $40
Mobo - $180
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 (Used on ebay) - $215, New is about $450
AverMedia HD2 Capture Card - $150 (now $99)
PCIE Wifi Adapter (Amazon) - $20
250Gb SSD (system and files, gift) - $80
2Tb HDD (Games, tried to save on budget) - $80
PSU - $120
Total Spent - $985
Total Value - $1300
Peripherals
Total Spent - $787 (927 if free was included)
All in - I’m at about $2k and can run Space Marine 2 and Warzone.
That’s only if you are in the subset of PC enjoyers who like state of the art equipment, expensive accessories and expensive recent games.
I consider myself a PC nerd but 5K is more than I spent in the last 10 years on the hobby. I’ve built my main rig for <1K, own a few raspberries and my home server is an old work laptop. It absolutely doesn’t have to be an expensive hobby.