Interesting take.

I'll add that brand new games now cost 80 USD apiece (thanks Nintendo and Microsoft!) and need about six months of patching to get into semi-usable shape. In contrast, retro PC games usually aren't that expansive, unless you're buying something very rare or NOS. They also come fully patched, and some even have fan fixes for bugs that the developers originally missed.

It can get expensive if the goal is own an old 1990's era machine but you are right - with some exceptions it will still be cheaper than an inflation adjusted new price from back then.

It feels expensive now because a) Some components are at silly prices, b) its old, there is an age where things just cannot be expected to function so there's added risk and c) prices have risen in the last 5+ years a lot, so it is relatively expensive compared to recent times.

I feel that only comparing prices and saying that it costed 10 but now you can get it for 2 so it's cheap, is not enough. Υou need to factor usefulness in and in this regard it becomes subjective and can be both cheap or expensive.

Examples:
Is 2 cheap or expensive for an old computer that will run for a day before going into storage for ever? And what if it gets used often for the forthcoming years to play your favorite games?
For the last piece that was missing from your collection of x? And what if you don't have a collection to complete?
For a piece of hardware that made you drool as a kid, when 2 is your annual income? And what if you earn 2 per hour?
For your first PC? And what if you have no connection to it?

15 years ago stuff was cheap but the challenge then was finding it - people didn't bother listing things that were worth peanuts. Today of course most things are crazy prices but there's a lot more being listed, because of course it's worth the effort now.

Pros and cons I suppose.

Yeah no matter what you do it's far less expensive than it would have been to purchase it all new.

If you want genuine vintage stuff and not the standardized open source clones of everything that will probably become the typical "retro" user's hardware decades from now, you had better get into it now and get everything you're going to want, because it's not getting any less expensive. There is a fixed supply, and demand probably won't go down enough to compensate for the rapidly dwindling supply.

keenmaster486 wrote on 2025-06-09, 21:47:

Yeah no matter what you do it's far less expensive than it would have been to purchase it all new.

If you want genuine vintage stuff and not the standardized open source clones of everything that will probably become the typical "retro" user's hardware decades from now, you had better get into it now and get everything you're going to want, because it's not getting any less expensive. There is a fixed supply, and demand probably won't go down enough to compensate for the rapidly dwindling supply.

I got into Vintage Computing in 2019 after my dad passed away to fill the void. I had a few systems before then, but nothing like now. I have built up most of what I want now and I should not have to worry about it unless something goes south with a vintage system I have. I am pretty well set.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-06-09, 04:39:

Interesting take.

I'll add that brand new games now cost 80 USD apiece (thanks Nintendo and Microsoft!) and need about six months of patching to get into semi-usable shape. In contrast, retro PC games usually aren't that expansive, unless you're buying something very rare or NOS. They also come fully patched, and some even have fan fixes for bugs that the developers originally missed.

Not just games, drivers and apps are also no longer been updated so we know "good" versions and any side affects they may have.

Admittedly I'm not up to date with currant prices but most retro hardware is still cheaper then high end modern hardware.
So I can build a "ultimate 2005 gaming rig " much cheaper then a "ultimate 2025 gaming rig"

I have a couple IIfx machines loaded with expensive upgrade cards. I would never have purchased a IIfx or any Apple in the 90's because I needed a X86 PC for the work I did, but they are fun to play with now and compared to gear I had back then. When I snagged my IIfx machines they were maybe $50 and Nubus cards were dirt cheap, these days a IIfx is $500 in working condition and the cards I have in mine are $50 to $100's each. So, while hardware is much cheaper than when it was new, it can still get very pricey for something you occasionally play with and let sit on the shelf.

As far as Ebay listing of the past, in the early 2000's people were listing everything at garage sale prices just to get rid of the stuff and try eBay out. There was stuff listed back then that were more than what I wanted to pay that got stupid expensive or was just never seen again. Even with all the gear I hoarded I have regrets of things I didn't buy or get more duplicates of but that's life. I really miss the LEM (Low End Mac) email Swap list and all the cool things I snagged there as well.

im not interested in getting hardware for display, ill only accept a freebie in that regard BUT if i have to spend money i better have a purpose and use for that thing

If its only going to collect dust ill pass, no matter if its 2 cents

thats my rule and i stick to it.

I picked up a couple Tandy 1000s from eBay in 1999. These were complete with a monitor and keyboard. These were about $25 each. The shipping was more than the purchase price. Oh how things have changed. I recycled them both when I moved in 2011. I also got rid a few Macs including the IIsi I purchased in 1992. I later regretted doing that, but at least now I have all the Macs and Tandy 1000s I could ever want.

The point is, I am hoarding free Windows 7 era desktops and laptops from near people just in case they will become "special" some day.

Cyberdyne wrote on Yesterday, 03:02:

The point is, I am hoarding free Windows 7 era desktops and laptops from near people just in case they will become "special" some day.

If you have the room this isn't a bad idea. I did the same with S478/LGA775 hardware which is now starting to creep up in price.
And enough people think of Windows 7 as the last "good" windows I'm expecting to see many Windows 7 based retro builds in the future.

My initial spend was about £100 and it’s become sort of self funding now to maintain my main machines with a selection of reselling cleaned and reset machines.