I started to mine BTC recently with my single 7970, and I'm getting 590MH speed on it. Using some BTC profit calculators that I've found on the internet tell me I could earn ~$300-400 worth of BTC annually. Since I have only one PC that I use for work and gaming I can't have it mining all the time, so I'm considering getting an ASIC. I've been looking for information this whole morning and I haven't found a definitive answer on which ASIC I should buy, or should I buy one at all.
I've read some threads that say that the arms race for mining equipment has gone too far to actually be profitable and trading BTC is a better choice, is this true?
Currently I'm looking at BFL products, namely the 5 GH model since it's really affordable at $270, but reading about the mining difficulty rising contantly I get the feeling that this device will become obsolete pretty soon (right?). The next product that I'm considering is the 50GH model priced at ~$2500, which seems to pay itself back and net a nice profit, at least according to the online calculators.
So here's my bombardment of questions: Should I even consider getting the 5GH device? Does a $2500 ASIC REALLY give me a ROI and profit if I order it today (they seem to be in stock)? Can I still use my GPU occasionally to mine alt-coins to trade the for some BTC? Is it a good ivestment to buy BTC, say $50 each month, will it add up in the end?
Any advice is much appreciated :)