Car vs. Computer

[fenrizz]

Depends on where you live.

If you live in a city then a PC would be preferable, since getting around would be easy with public transportation and walking.

If you live out of the city then a car would be of much more value, as it provides the freedom to get around.

 

[xDarc]

Plus, a gaming PC wont get you laid while a car is often it's own motel on wheels. I remember what my priorities were when I was 17.

 

[Mycroft Holmes]

I can see not wanting to pay maintenance costs, but I still personally would have taken the car. If however I didn't feel it was worth paying those maintenance costs a 1600$ computer is still pretty dumb, I'm a PC gamer exclusively and there's basically no reason to spend that much money on a PC. You should have gotten a 800-900$ PC and pocketed the rest of the cash. The amount of mileage you are going to get out of that extra 800 is insanely miniscule and only helps to further the myth that PC gaming is somehow super expensive.

Plus, a gaming PC wont get you laid

Speak for yourself *puts on sunglasses*

(seriously though, have you never heard of South Korea?)

 

[Mariakko]

Computer, Defiantly computer. I have a car and I don't use it that much at all and public transport and walking ain't so bad.

 

[suitepee7]

in your situation, and my current one (living with girlfriend, i'm still 19, go to uni and live 5 minutes away from it, work weekends and £1.50 bus ride for a return) i would take the computer. cars are a complete drain of money, even more so when you are younger. you cannot work full time if you are in full time education, which means you cant move out, because all your money will be spent on a car. without no-claims discount and a few years after passing your test, there really aren't many other things that could be more of a waste of money...

 

[Twilight_guy]

But a computer can't drive you tot he store to buy groceries, or get you to work, or help you pick up chicks (course a 1000 euro car probably wouldn't help much with that).

 

[Flames66]

Most basic websites don't even have animation, and are run of wordpress which I think is free/at minimal cost.

Exactly, you're not going to get a car from handing out wordpress sites.

A car would give him a steady income, even if its just minimum wage.

Hows owning a car an instant income?

I said he could get a job with it in my OP. A car would increase his ability to get a job.

I am judging by his use of Pounds Sterling in the OP that he is British. In Britain (at least where I live) having a car does not help you get a job. I have a car, £2000 insurance costs yearly and it does not help at all. Almost everything I need to get to is within walking distance so it is just a hindrance alot of the time.

 

[Astoria]

At that amount a PC. A car of that value would probably be unreliable and die on you in a year or two. And if you can't afford to run it there's no point having it. My parents made a deal with me that whatever I saved up for a car they would match so I was able to get a pretty good one but I needed it for my job. It definitely has drained my money but fortunately I've been making more than enough to still enjoy myself.

 

[Scarim Coral]

I choose PC since I do got myself a gaming pc now and I hate to drive (bias I know). I mean I got a driving license but I hate and scare of driving.

Beside if you did went for the car route you I have to pay more from your car like insurance and MOT (or whatever it is from your place) while the only thing you would pay from your PC is upgrading a part or two.

Honestly it's your enjoyment with it that you will get from it (unless you got a job that is far away from your home). I mean sure I would use the car for work but if I did had a car (and a job to pay for fuel) I would drive to the cinema or to the city. However since I really want to play Diablo 3 and Guild Wars 2, I needed a new pc to replace my old one and to play those games.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Shit, you get awesome birthday presents.
I would have gone with the car because, well, it's a car and if your parents are willing to spend that much money on you in the first place, I doubt they would have bought you a shitty one.

 

[TheAmazingHobo]

At £1000 a PC was definitly the right choice.
What kind of shit banger does that kind of money get you anyway ?
You also spared yourself the joy of walking up to an insurance agency and getting laughed at when you say "Hy, I´m a novice driver, I´m a student, I drive a car that´s held together by rubber-band and glue. How much money do I have to give you to insure it ?"

And seeing how you live in a civilized country with a semi-functioning public transport system, having a car won´t increase you chances of getting a job anyway.

So you made the right choice.
Now go play some Skyrim!

 

[Conza]

About 18 months ago it was my 17th birthday, and my older brother had gotten a car for his birthday when he turned 17 so one would assume I would be given the same treatment. Up until this point in my life, I had never had a proper "Gaming PC" (well I did have one, but we got ripped off and it was only like £400) and my friends all had one to some extent.

So I decided that I'd ask my father to get me a Gaming PC instead of a car, to which he was first hesitant but then was like "if that's what you want". So here I am 18 months on with my gaming PC, and I was just reflecting on my decision and have come to the conclusion that I made the right choice. I have had thousands of hours of enjoyment out of it and I haven't had to waste tons of money on car insurance (it's like £1800 for a year of insurance here).

So escapists, which you would prefer: a Gaming PC of approximately £1000 ($1600ish) value, or a car of similar value?

EDIT: I'm currently in full time education so if I was to get a Car, I could only get a part-time job to support the costs of said car.

Shit, I've had it pretty bloody good myself here. I got a car after finishing High School, then learnt to drive in the preceeding 5 months, and had a part time job, which led me to pay for 3rd party insurance on the car (plus petrol, maintenance) and later a $2.5k gaming machine, which I'm using right now to type this post.

The only reason the car might've been better, is that you could've then driven to part time work, to save up to buy a gaming computer later, and at the same time had freedom and pay for the car.

But I did all my driving, really, post HS, so maybe its different when you're studying.

Play ME1? I think that game comes close to how much fun I've had in my car...

 

[Ap07h30515]

Your story gives me hope. I hate cars, and enjoy seeing them explode... in movies and games. Who cares about making the commute to school/work more convenient and having something to pick up your girlfriend with and have sex in and... well.. yeah, they are expensive.

Damn I'm poor...

 

[Vivi22]

Car's are a money pit at the best of times when you buy them brand spanking new. I would not want to pay the costs to maintain and run a car that only cost me $1600 if public transit is a viable option to be honest. Just factoring in gas and insurance makes owning a car pricey. Once you get into regular maintenance (assuming you can't do the work yourself), registration, inspection, parking fees if necessary, it adds up and it adds up fast.

 

[Wieke]

EDIT: I'm currently in full time education so if I was to get a Car, I could only get a part-time job to support the costs of said car.

From what I understand cars are quite expensive to keep. Insurance alone will cost you a handfull especially at your age (but you already mentioned that). And iirc the oil prices have been rising quite a lot recently. If you live in a city a bicycle is just as useful for everyday trips. The only thing a car is useful for in such a situation is for getting to (or out of) the country side. Because the countryside tends to be badly connected to the public transportation networks.

For the reasons mentioned above I would use it to buy a laptop, because I already have a decent gaming pc and my laptop just died. (Not to mention that I am a student and it will be years before I am going to get a job.)

But whether or not you should get a car depends mostly on your current living location and your future plans.

(And now I am wondering if the people who advised you to buy a car live in sparsely populated areas.)

 

[BringBackBuck]

I would definitely have gone for the car, because:
1) Having acces to your own car means you would get to do more driving. Driving is fun and a useful skill
2) You don't have to wait for shitty buses or trains
3) You can't get a blowjob in the back of your computer
4) Roadtrip

 

[Vicarious Reality]

Well we only have one car in my local family, so i would obviously pick the car
My uncle probably has one, but

I have two computers, one old white 400 something MHz backup that my new uncle gave me and this one, which can handle most new programs sufficiently, despite being a decade old