Computer Issues

Well, I knew this day would come. I was just hoping it wouldn't for a few more months.

A few weeks ago, I was just looking at a few low-cost replacement parts for my laptop, like a new bezel and hinges for the monitor. Now, I'm considering getting a new computer altogether.

About a week ago, some mysterious vertical lines started appearing on my screen near the cursor. Then they started appearing all over the screen. Then the computer started hanging when it came out of hibernate. Then it started crashing more frequently.

After a good round of diagnosing, I'm pretty confident it's my graphics card. So now I'm faced trying to decide whether I want to:

• buy a refurbished replacement card for around $150–250 and hope it works,
• buy a new replacement card for around $450–600 but only get a few months' use out of it, or
  
• buy a whole new computer right now for... well, a bit more than that.
  

Each option has its pros and cons and none is terribly desirable. Decisions, decisions!