If you are in Europe (especially the UK), there is almost no excuse for not registering for VAT. As long as you are a 'business' (and this definition includes freelancers), then there is nothing stopping you from doing so.
Once you're VAT registered, you can claim back VAT on allowable purchases (eg servers, hardware, software, etc). You will have to charge VAT on services you provide, but seeing as most businesses you sell to are also VAT registered, it makes little difference to them.
Most countries offer low turnover businesses the option of opting out of VAT (i.e., they don't charge VAT on products and they can't claim it back on supplies), which means that, as small, labour-intensive businesses, most freelancers opt out of VAT.
Most freelancers I know have registered for VAT, even if they don't have to.
In the UK, you have to register if your turnover is more than £73,000, and the benefits for registering even if you're under that threshold are compelling (except if you almost exclusively provide services to non-registered entities)
Once you're VAT registered, you can claim back VAT on allowable purchases (eg servers, hardware, software, etc). You will have to charge VAT on services you provide, but seeing as most businesses you sell to are also VAT registered, it makes little difference to them.