Buying a computer

There are many different types of PC available, and this Guide will assist you through this maze of choices and hopefully give you some idea of the PC that would

suit your work.

Buying a PC for your business

A PC is probably one of the most important assets for a small business. It enables you to manage customers, suppliers and staff and will save you a lot of time

and effort if setup and operated correctly.

There are many different types of PC available, and this guide will assist in guiding you through the maze of choices you will be faced with and hopefully give you

some idea of the PC that would suit your work.

How much will a PC cost me?

The basic choice you will need to make when considering your budget is do you want a desktop PC that remains in your office or a laptop PC that you can carry

around. Desktop PCs are generally less expensive than the equivalent laptop PC.

Desktop PCs can be obtained relatively cheaply:

• A budget PC - this will be useable in most business situations but there will be some compromise made on one or more of:

• Quality - some of the supplied equipment might need replacing early on in the life of the product.

• Performance - most noticeable when: starting the PC up; when starting programs; and when running multiple programs simultaneously.

• Expansibility - although very few PCs actually get upgrad.ed during their lifetime.

We suggest a target price of £400-£500.

• A mid-sized PC - this will have a longer useful life and will be less frustrating for people that have to use it for most of the day. We suggest a target price of

£500-£800.

• Top of the range PCs are desirable if you are working with advanced graphics, video or engineering software. Expect to pay between £1500 - £3000 for a

highly configured desktop PC.

Most desktop PCs also come with a keyboard, screen and mouse. Screens are nearly always flat LCD screens like you see in laptops.

Laptop PCs are generally more expensive than desktop PCs:

• A budget laptop - this will be useable in most business situations but there will inevitably be some compromise made on one or more of:

• Quality - it might not take rough handling as well as a more expensive laptop.

• Performance - most noticeable when: starting the laptop up; starting programs; and  running multiple programs simultaneously.

• Screen quality - the better the screen, the higher the price.

• Battery life - important if you want to be able to use the laptop on battery for more than an hour or so between charges.

• Weight - technology is trying to provide improvements in all the above while trying to keep weight down; inevitably, the best technology is used in the

more expensive PCs.

We suggest a target price of £600-£800.

• A mid-sized laptop - this is likely have a longer useful life and will be more appropriate for people that have to use it for most of the day and on the move. We

suggest a target price of £900-£1,200.

NB. Laptops are not easy to upgrade. That means:

• You need to think through your needs before making a purchase. If you buy a laptop that does not meet your needs in, say, a year's time you might be

forced into replacing it early.

• You should consider buying a laptop that is a higher specification than you need right now so you have more capability available if you need it.

Lack of expansion capability plus exposure to damage while traveling means that laptops have a shorter useful life than desktop PCs. Consider writing off your

investment over, say, two years.

What features to look for?

This Guide is designed to help you make cost-effective decisions when buying equipment.

Processor

A processor is the “brain” of the PC. The better the processor then the faster your PC will work for you.

At the time of writing this task, Intel dual core processors are starting to be used in new PCs. It is likely that budget PCs will use older technology for the time

being.

However for business use, processor performance has relatively little influence on overall performance. Expect your PC to have a processor running at over 2 Ghz

(1.7Ghz for laptops). In practice though, slower speeds will be more than adequate for most purposes.

Note that laptop manufacturers have to trade off processor speed against battery life. If battery life is particularly important to you, you might not want a higher

speed processor.

Main memory

Memory is the thinking space for the PC. The more memory, the more room to think and the faster the PC will perform.

This is one of the major factors affecting overall performance of a PC in business use. It is also one of the obvious places to cut costs in order to produce a budget

PC. Go for as much main memory as you can afford. 512 MB should be your minimum. Expect 1 GB in a mid-sized PC and laptop.

You can usually upgrade laptop main memory by simply plugging in a new module in a hatch in the laptop casing. Normally there are two slots and memory has to

be installed in equal sizes. So, if you have 512MB installed in one slot, you are probably restricted to adding just 512MB more without replacing the existing

memory. Some 512MB budget PCs come with no slots free. You should expect a 1GB mid-sized laptop to have at least one memory slot free.

Disk

These are used to store your files, images and data. The bigger the disk drive, the more you can store on your PC.  Most PCs come with very large disks that

have for more capacity that you would need in normal business use. Look for about 80Gb in a desktop PC and 60Gb in a laptop.

Removable media

Your base requirement should be for a CD/DVD ROM drive – i.e. a drive that can read CD ROMS and DVDs. This drive will allow you to install software onto the

PC. If you have a centralised server to back up your data, it is essential that the drive will also be able to write CDs and DVDs. If you cannot write to CD it is

important you have some other solution to back up your data.

Note that some laptops:

• Provide bays that let you remove CD/DVD drives and replace them with an extra battery. This will be useful if the laptop needs to be used on extended train

or plane journeys.

• Eliminate removable media from the laptop altogether and provide them via a docking station, a device that enhances the capability of a lap top by providing

additional facilities and connections. This can significantly reduce the weight of the laptop if you don’t need these devices while travelling.

Monitors and screens

This is another area where costs can be cut in order to provide a budget price PC. It is arguably the most important component – especially if it is to be used for

extended periods. Unfortunately, written specifications cannot convey the overall quality of a monitor for daily use, which can be very subjective.

If you can, see the monitor you are considering in action. If you intend it to be used for long periods during the day, don’t be tempted to cut corners. You might

have to replace the monitor if it proves to be impractical.