When you walk into a computer or electronics store, most likely you will be attacked by a computer or electronics salesman who is simply trying to make a quick commission buck off of whatever he or she can sell you. Aside from worrying about the computer salesman's commission, though, what one should be thinking about is how the computers compare to each others, the benefits and downfalls of owning each one, as well as what one actually wants in a computer.
Know the "Specs" of Each One: Perhaps the most important thing to know about each of the laptops that you look at in the computer store is the specifications of each one, or the "specs" as they are usually called. These usually include the type of processor that the laptop has, the speed of the processor, how much RAM it holds, as well as the size of the hard drive. For those who are not too sure what all of that entails, here is how to decipher it:
Type of Processor - This is the brand and type of computer processor that the laptop was built with. For example, AMD Athlon is a very good brand when it comes to computer processors, especially laptops and notebook computers. Another major processor is Intel, who makes the Pentium processors. If buying an older laptop computer it may come with Pentium-2 or 3, but one should be aware that Penitum-4 is actually one of the better processors they have on the market.
The Processing Speed - This "spec" of the laptop is measured in gigahertz (GHz) and means how fast or slow the processor will run on your computer. For those who don't know, the higher the number for the processing speed the better. An average laptop or notebook computer's processor has between 1 and 2 gigahertz. Anything that's below that is considered slow, but anything above that is considered decent and very good!
Random Access Memory - Also known as RAM, this spec of the laptop or notebook basically refers to how many programs are able to run all at once on your computer without causing too much slowdown. The average laptop or notebook computer has about 512 megabytes of RAM. Newer laptop computers, however, sometimes contain much more than that, which is excellent for consumers!
Hard Drive Size - This is perhaps one of the most important things you should learn about your potential laptop. The hard drive size refers to how many programs, applications, and files you are about to store on your computer in totality. For a newer laptop computer, it's not uncommon for a person to see one filled with around eighty to one hundred gigabytes of hard drive space. For many people, that is probably more than enough space to carry around on their notebook computer. Anything above and beyond that number for hard drive space is excellent; anything below about fifty gigabytes is probably not worth buying.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember when going in search of a new computer is to not let the salesman talk you into buying any product. It is definitely alright for one to listen to a laptop salesman about the "specs" of a certain laptop or notebook, but making the final decision should ultimately be made with your needs and wants in a laptop computer.
When most people hear talk about ?buying? versus ?leasing? they usually think of a car purchase or some sort of real estate agreement. However, small business owners have to think about, and decide between, these terms all the time, and relating to almost everything the work with ? buildings, vehicles, equipment for the factory floors and computers for the office.
Considering the amazingly low prices for today's powerful personal computers, one's first instinct may be to buy a computer without even thinking about it. Of course, you know you are going to use the machine for several years (computers stay reasonable current for the first year, then start aging rapidly) and the fact that you own it can be somewhat reassuring. There are several factors, however, that should prompt you to consider leasing a computer or perhaps even renting one, as opposed to making that impulse buy.
One is never enough
Leasing computers can help a company avoid plunking down so much capital up front. Leasing makes sense when there is a need for an especially powerful, customized, expensive unit, or a number of computers for different departments. This decision can turn the computers into an operating expense, an especially helpful thing if the company is just getting started. Another advantage is that, when directly leasing from a vendor or a manufacturer, businesses do not need to obtain loans from banks ? and deal with all the red tape and paperwork that comes with it.
From a financial planning standpoint, leasing makes sense for many businesses, and if the conditions are right, so does renting. Renting computer equipment can be just as good as leasing in the sense that you can always upgrade, fairly painlessly, to the highest quality, greatest power and newest software available. The company renting you the equipment makes their money also assumes the responsibility for repairs and maintenance. Although some leases may differ on service contracts and onsite repairs, if you rent the equipment the owner is still responsible for the technical difficulties occurring throughout the duration of your contract. That is what paying rent is all about. You pay to have predictable functionality and a working asset at all times.
Other factors
If you really want to know what the best course of action is for you business or your personal needs, then do the usual research. There are always plenty of websites that can provide all the facts, crunch all the various numbers and make it worth your while to investigate. Steer clear of the ?rent-to-own? dealers, of course, as the offer of ?no money down and no credit check? is insufficient to overcome the price you pay down the road. With rent-to-own, it is always bigger than you expect.
If you have special enhancements on your one of your present computers ? special internal plug-in cards (PCI), upgraded graphics (AGP) ? and have ?maxed out? your RAM, you may wish to reconsider replacing that particular unit. It may be difficult to find a lease deal that will allow you to upgrade and replace computer components, and your rental dealer will probably not like that idea much. If you do need customizing, it is best to own your own equipment.
Ask the accountant
If you run a medium-sized or larger firm, and have various departments with various needs, you will have to do a study to determine the actual, real-world, real-time needs of the various personnel. Ask your department managers to research the matter, and then be specific about what they need in the PCs for their respective departments. You can then have your accountant look at the various options ? buy, lease, rent ? and calculate what mix of these will work for the company as a whole.
It may be that you need to lease new Macintosh computers for your art department, and on an annual basis to stay up with the ?state of the art.? Secretaries, word processors and accounting personnel can easily run new, powerful Windows software on lower-cost PCs, and not need upgrading for several years at a time. Purchasing low-end computers would seem a workable solution. If you have engineers and others needing some real computational horsepower, of course, you may even need to leave the realm of PCs and step up to a mini-computer from IBM or Hewlett-Packard. (PCs are actually defined as ?microcomputers.?)
The bottom line is different for different companies and their different needs. Often a mix of these methods ? buying, leasing and renting ? is the ultimate result of a careful study. If you have a small company with just a few employees, of course, your decision should be a bit easier to make. The fact is, with prices so low for power so great, computers are one of the less expensive expenses for companies today, and contribute to the business out of all proportion to their small cost. Whatever strategy you come up with, it should be an affordable one.
Both Daniel Millions & Wanda Pan are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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