Overclocking a PC can improve its performance and provide insight into its workings, but it also risks damaging expensive parts and voiding warranties. It can save money by delaying the need for new hardware, but involves trial and error and the risk of overheating.
Some benefits of overclocking a personal computer (PC) are increasing its performance and gaining insight into its inner workings. The point of overclocking is pushing the hardware beyond its normal operating performance and reaping all of its benefits. However, overclocking risks permanently damaging important and often expensive parts of your computer, as well as automatically voiding most warranties. Modifying a computer in this way can be risky due to overheating, and most manufacturers will not replace parts damaged by overclocking because the buyer has used the hardware in inadvisable ways.
The most publicized benefit of overclocking a PC is the improvement of its performance beyond its advertised capabilities. Overclocking makes a PC run slightly better than it used to, postponing the need to buy and install new hardware. This can save the owner time and money. Some people describe overclocking as a free upgrade, but this “upgrade” isn’t without risk.
Overclocking a PC can help a person learn more about how computers work. This is especially true if your computer needs a cooling system installed, which involves opening up the case or building a computer from scratch with overclocking in mind. Comparing computer speeds, finding the best overclocking hardware, and other related tasks can help beginners better understand how computers are built and how they work. However, it can involve trial and error, which can be costly when dealing with high-end computer components. Many people invest in cheaper parts, however, because high-end hardware is often designed to run at peak performance, plus the goal of overclocking is usually to avoid buying more expensive equipment.
Pushing hardware beyond its advertised capabilities risks overheating it and surrounding computer parts. This can cause permanent damage or even complete failure of computer components. Many computers need special cooling equipment to prevent this from happening, but even then there is still a risk. When vital computer parts fail, they need to be removed and replaced for the computer to keep running, which can undo the savings from overclocking in the first place.
Another downside to overclocking a PC is that it voids most warranties. With overclocking, a computer user uses computer components in unexpected ways, so the manufacturer is no longer responsible for replacing damaged parts. Not only does this void individual part warranties, but it could also void a warranty that covers the entire computer. So, for example, a manufacturer might refuse to fix a problem unrelated to overclocking if he knows that other parts have been tampered with.
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