Often a comparison is made about the cost of electricity, a valid comparison. But, there's more.
How much space does this cost?
This is a desktop vs laptop, and or, a location vs location argument.
A desktop case takes around 0.2m2 floor space. Now, for simplicity's sake as San Francisco is often incorrectly assumed to be where most readers of HN live, but given that we're all somewhat versed in SF prices: A 1 bedroom, say 60m2, apartment costs about $3000. So, that desktop case is costing about $10 per month in floor space. That's $120 per year, or $600 for 5 years. Quickly adds up!
You could run the numbers for where you live. While a desktop could be put under a desk and may not initially factor in as an explicit cost, everything is at the opportunity cost. Say, your legs, or a houseplant, neither of which cost anything in electricity or upfront cost.
(Written on an 11 year old X220 with an i3 processor.)
Your post made me laugh out loud. Your rent is a sunk cost, it doesn't increase if you get a PC taking up 0.2m floor space and it's not like your PC is a car needing a dedicated garage for storage. Also, it's not significant large enough that getting rid of the PC means you can suddenly downsize and move out into a cheaper apartment to save money. So the cost in rent space of a PC is just bogus, unless of course, you live in one of those space-ship pods you find in Tokyo hotels.
And in regards to opportunity costs, I'm sure that if you're mildly creative, you can find some dead space under your desk or between your desk and the wall, that can't be used for anything like a plant or your legs, or you can just hang it from the desk so it doesn't take up any floor space. Like, come on, seriously, there are various mini-ITX case sizes and mounting options if you're short on space and have some imagination or willingness google a bit.
Nevertheless, I'm still impressed by the length of your mental gymnastics trying to attach a rent cost to the PC case. Quality satire like this is why I come to HN. Thank you.
How much space does this cost?
This is a desktop vs laptop, and or, a location vs location argument.
A desktop case takes around 0.2m2 floor space. Now, for simplicity's sake as San Francisco is often incorrectly assumed to be where most readers of HN live, but given that we're all somewhat versed in SF prices: A 1 bedroom, say 60m2, apartment costs about $3000. So, that desktop case is costing about $10 per month in floor space. That's $120 per year, or $600 for 5 years. Quickly adds up!
You could run the numbers for where you live. While a desktop could be put under a desk and may not initially factor in as an explicit cost, everything is at the opportunity cost. Say, your legs, or a houseplant, neither of which cost anything in electricity or upfront cost.
(Written on an 11 year old X220 with an i3 processor.)