Her Five Tips for Buying the Best Computer for a Small Business
Toni and I have been using computers for our business for almost 10 years now. In the early days we managed to buy some that worked well and some that were less than ideal for their intended use.
We’ve managed to learn from our mistakes and now we have a mental check list that we run through each time we set out to buy a new machine. Recently we sat down and each of us compiled a list of the top five things that are important to us when buying a new computer.
Interestingly the lists were slightly different and so we’ll publish them seperately. Today here is Toni’s list:
- 1. Plenty of memory - the more RAM you have installed the faster your machine will operate (up to a point). If you’re running Windows XP on anything less than 512 MB you’re missing out.
2. Make sure the processor can handle the work you want it to do - but at the same time don’t over-spend on a processor that has more capacity than you need. Don’t stay stuck on Intel either - AMD is just as good (if not better) and can be cheaper.
3. Don’t settle for just one monitor. Dual monitors will increase your productivity more than you could ever imagine. (Three monitors is even better but will be much more expensive)
4. Make sure you get an ergonomic keyboard and mouse. The mouse in particular should fit your hand comfortably - if you have a small hand buy a small mouse and if you have a large hand buy a mouse that allows your hand to spread across it.
5. Make sure you buy a quality keyboard too. Sure you can buy your computer with a cheap $20.00 keyboard but it won’t last so be prepared to buy one that will. We’re great fans of the Microsoft keyboards - they certainly stand up to the hard work we inflict on them.
Tomorrow we’ll be back with my little list. In the meantime we’ll leave you with a photo of Toni’s work desk.
If you look closely you will see that Toni’s keyboard is not a Microsoft one - but my two are 