hardware
The last time I seriously upgraded my PC was in 2011, because the PC is over. And in some ways, it truly is – they can slap a ton more CPU cores on a die, for sure, but the overall single core performance increase from a 2011 high end Intel CPU
64-bit
I've been wary of 64-bit on the desktop, as the benefits are usually outweighed by the compatibility problems. I agree that 64-bit operating systems are inevitable in the big scheme of things, but I've struggled to see the relevance of 64-bit for typical desktop and laptop
hardware
I've seen a number of hardware-oriented developers [http://www.iunknown.com/CommentsWithEntry.aspx?entryid={1D2B47DB-E479-472F-9BE9-1D23AA72C73A}] talk about setting up striped RAID arrays on their personal desktops. It does seem like a reasonable idea, given the current strong trend towards "doubling up" on hardware to leverage performance