Hardware Purchasing Recommendations – Part #1

This is part one of a two-part post with our recommendations for buying “fit for purpose” desktops, laptops and servers for business use (with an emphasis on Small and Medium sized businesses). This part covers desktops and laptops. I’ll post part two (servers) in a day or so.

Desktops and Laptops:

1)     Hardware Specification. When you are looking to purchase a new desktop or laptop you should be thinking along the lines that you are buying a machine that will be fit for purpose for at least 3 years. Therefore, you should build in a degree of room for growth within the specification, as follows:

1. Hard Disk Capacity. Allow enough hard disk space for growth in your file storage needs. Depending on the industry you work in, you can probably expect your storage needs to double (or even triple) each year.
2. Memory (RAM). Purchase enough memory to support your immediate needs and those further down the road. While memory is cheap and can easily be added to most machines, it is often cheaper and simpler to buy a bit extra when you first buy the computer – this also means that you get the benefit of the extra memory from day one.
3. Processor (CPU). Most manufacturers will offer you a range of processors within each PC model. If your day to day work only consists of writing a few documents, spreadsheets, dealing with email and accessing the Internet, then the base processor will easily be sufficient for your needs. However, if you have a bit of room in your budget, then going for the best processor that you can afford will future proof your machine more.

2)     Vendor Choice. Always purchase from tier-1 vendors, such as Dell, HP, Lenovo (formerly IBM), Fujitsu and Toshiba (laptops). While these manufacturers are slightly more expensive than the budget brands you will see offered in places like PC-World, their build quality is better and you will get superior after sales support. If you remind yourself that you are buying a machine to use for 3 years, then spending an extra £100 on the initial purchase only equates to an extra £33 per year.

3)     Payment Options. If you are not cash rich, but would still like to purchase suitable machines for your business, then you should seriously consider leasing the equipment as a means of spreading the cost across lifetime of the machine. Manufacturers like Dell will offer you various leasing packages, as do various asset finance companies. Depending on what else is being purchased at the same time (e.g. software & services) Solutions Shared can also offer your finance options via Microsoft Finance.

4)     Business Models. If you are purchasing direct from a manufacturers website, such as Dell, always do your shopping within the “Small and Medium Business” channel on the website, rather than the “Home and Home Office” channel. This gives you access to more business-focused models and better warranty options (see below).

5)     Warranty. With regard to warranty, we strongly recommend that you always take out a minimum of 3 years Next Business Day (NBD) warranty, rather than the default one year warranty that is offered with most models.  This is your spare parts policy and “get out of jail free” card for when you have a hardware failure (and trust me they do happen to all manufacturers). As well as covering you for hardware failure for 3 years, the NBD warranty is also an on-site warranty, meaning that the engineer will come to you (usually wherever you are) in order to replace the broken hardware item, rather than you having to send your PC back to them and waiting up to 28 days for its return. A 3 year NBD warranty will usually only add between £50 and £80 to the cost of a desktop or laptop, which, over 3 years, only amounts to an extra £16 to £20 per year.

6)     Microsoft Office. When purchasing your desktop or laptop you will be usually given the option of purchasing Microsoft Office at the same time. When you purchase Microsoft Office in this manner you are buying what is called an OEM license for the software. OEM licenses restrict you to only using your purchased software on the machine with which it was purchased. As an alternative you should consider buying a Retail copy of Microsoft Office, as the retail software license allows you to install one copy on your desktop and another on your laptop. A Retail copy will be more expensive, but if you have a desktop and a laptop it works out cheaper. You can also install your retail copy of Microsoft Office on a new PC should you replace the original one; you would not need to re-purchase Microsoft Office again, as you would with an OEM license.