How durable is a Pentium 3?

Question

its one of my 3pc's and the slowest my otrher 2 are a 2.4ghz p4 and a 3.4ghz p4 but I like this one 2!
It has
A Intel D815efv board
933mhz CPU coppermine 256kb L2 high speed
512mb PC133
128mb Radeon 9600se
DVD burner
100gb
Its about 6 1/2 years old and havent really matinaced it Never changed the theraml grease just added a few things never really cleaned it thourhoughly I play good games on it like Underground etc that it can run and it gets pretty hot but I have never chnaged a fan on reapplied the grease its it has a cpu fan,case fan,Motherboard fan,PSU fan whihc is 500watts if i countinue using ti this way no cleaning etc no reapplying the theraml grease how long will the cpu last how many years?

Answer 1

Pentium III is efficient but when it comes to durability, the issue of preventive maintenance and non-abuse of usage come in. Remember, even machine needs a little cleaning. Practice dusting off your unit every time before you use it and you'll never worry of a major clean-up.

Answer 2

I don't believe anyone could answer how long it will last.

I do however know this, if you don't clean the heatsink, fans, power supply and motherboard the buildup of dust will insulate those items and stop them from dispersing heat generated during use, thus lesson the lifespan through overheating.

Computers should be cleaned regularly, as they almost seem to attact dust, like a magnet does metal.

Answer 3

As long as the cooling fan works (if you have one) and you blow the dust out every few years, it should work well into the next millenium.
Pentium chips are awesome, I am stuck with a Celeron now (3.1 Ghz) but it is still an Intel chip so it's gonna last forever.

Answer 4

Odds are you have thermal tape, not grease, so leave the CPU alone. Make sure the cooling fins are clear, and blow the whole thing out for dust with canned air. It will last, so keep it.