Are You Buying Based on Processor Performance? It’s Time to stop
I feel like a broken record saying this but it still amazes me that many people, even those who are involved in IT, make the most common mistake in thinking that the processor is the key component in ensuring a faster computer or laptop.
For general office use the processor of any computer or laptop hasn’t been the choking point for over 7 years! This is because the speed at which any business range processor purchased in the last 7 years can process the information which is coming off your hard drive is already so much faster than the speed at which the hard drive can transfer the information.
When you’re sitting waiting for your computer to turn on, a file to open or your Outlook to start up having a faster processor will not help with this waiting time at all. It’s like Usain Bolt in the 4 X 100 relay waiting for a tortoise to deliver the Bat. Making Usain Bolt 1 second faster won’t make a difference when he still has to wait an hour for the tortoise. The tortoise is like your hard drive delivering the data to you processor to be decoded.
So, which components are most important? Depending on your budget you may or may not be able to afford some of the best components so we say look at the priority in this order. Start off with a solid-state drive, if you don’t have an SSD there no point talking about how much RAM or what processor you go for as even a 10 your computer with an SSD will be faster than your latest i7 today with a hard drive.
After the SSD look at a half decent processor starting with an i3 and anything above this won’t make your general running faster but will help with processor intensive activities (video editing, converting large files, 3D rendering, running simulations, applying large filters to graphics). After this then look at your RAM; 4 GB is enough for 80% of users but 6GB-8GB can be beneficial to heavier users.
Buying Quality Pays Off
This is another counter-intuitive approach; buying cheap computers does not save you money, in the long-term they cost you much more. The top business ranges from Dell and HP are built to last 10 years while cheaper consumer products will start having problems after 2 or 3 years.
Top business models can be expensive but they can save you significant amounts of money if you go for the lower processor options within these high quality models. These will have all the same components except the expensive processor.
Stop Wasting Money on Hard Drives and RAM You Don’t Need
Do you really need a 1TB hard drive or SDD? Most consumer marketing models are designed to dazzle people with big numbers, but if you’re not storing thousands of pictures or hundreds of movies you’d be better off getting a small drive and investing the budget in a higher quality machine.
Do you really need 8 or 16GB RAM? We often see big RAM numbers as it’s a relatively inexpensive way for a computer or laptop to look good on paper. The reality is you won’t see any benefit from more RAM until you’re running enough programs to use all the RAM you currently have; we’ve run simulation with 22 programs running on 4GB-6GB RAM without any slow-down.
Plan Ahead For Problems
Down time in a business can be very costly, so planning for redundancy and data loss can save you a fortune when something goes wrong. Have a file syncing solution like some sort of cloud storage could prove to be a lifesaver if your computer dies. Having this in place means you’ll be able to access all your files online using another computer without any down time.
It’s also important to have daily back-ups of everything; even if you use file syncing. This will allow you to dig out the back up if your entire systems gets infected by a virus or is encrypted by a virus.
If you’re running an office with staff who need to be productive 9am until 5pm, have a spare desktop or laptop which a user can use in the event of their system becoming unusable. If you’re using the file sync then they’ll be able to access all their data and be back working within minutes rather than waiting days.
Buying Refurbished IT Equipment is a Logical Alternative
From a statistical point of view, buying refurbished desktops and laptops for business use is a no-brainer. For 40% of the cost of a new business machine a refurb machine will have the same reliability and performance as the new machine.
Ensure you choose a reputable refurb company with a thorough quality control process to ensure the equipment you buy looks and performs as good as new. It is also important to check their support service; is it RTB (Return to Base) which means you’ll have to return the item in the event of a problem or do they offer a NBD (Next Business Day) service which means in the event of a problem they’ll send a replacement to be with you the following day.
Let’s Talk, We’d Love to Save You Money
If you’re interested in making big savings on your IT equipment get in touch with us here at Pure IT Refurbished.
We will answer any questions you may have and explore your IT requirements to find out what the best way to save you money is.
