Quote from Scataphagos:
.....
My next computer was an IBM 8086... 2 floppies, only $3,000.
The one after that was my first real-time data and graphics... an XT class, 2x 720K floppies and a satellite dish & receiver... $10,000.
.....
There are good money spent, there are bad money spent... I don't know.
In college... 80's dollars... I spent >$2000 buying an Apple II+ from the 2 Steves. Bragging rights, of course. Turning in papers with a dot-matrix print out (instead of hand-scribbled answers on green engineering papers). Impressive. But no extra scores. Darn. Looking back makes you wonder if that's all worth it.
Now, zooming forward 30 years... in today's dollar... I spent >$100 for a small SSD drive. No perceivable advantage. That's bad money spent. Not even bragging rights this time. Just playing.
50" plasma TV... >$10,000. 2002.
Now you can have one for just a bit over $1000.
The "dream machine" that Professor showed. >$10,000.
Maybe 2 years from now all the functions/performance it can achieve will be packaged down into one chip. And takes only a 100W power supply to drive.
I have stayed away from the bleeding edge for decades.