| If your looking for a good computer system for your | | | | There are many places where you can buy |
| small business your first consideration will probably | | | | refurbished (including off-lease) desktop computers |
| performance as well as price. With today's technology, | | | | today. It is the opinion of this author, however, that you |
| however, the performance levels of today's | | | | should make this consideration only if a couple hundred |
| computers are suitable for most business applications | | | | dollars is that important to your budget. With |
| and I'm not talking about the latest, greatest, | | | | technology being as cheap as it is today, why take the |
| state-of-the-art machines either. You can assume that | | | | chance? Besides that new systems generally come |
| a desktop PC in the $500-$1000 range will be able to | | | | with a 12 month parts and labor warranty. What you |
| handle any business software that you will be using. | | | | buy used today may not be working so well in a few |
| Whether it's bookkeeping or accounts receivable | | | | months. |
| software, such as Quicken, your small business | | | | Best Computer Deals |
| desktop should not be a major expense. | | | | There are plenty of computer superstores and office |
| A Typical Small Business Computer System: | | | | supply stores that sell computer systems and you |
| Here's an example of a good system that won't break | | | | might find some pretty good prices as well. However, |
| the bank - it sells for less than $600.00. | | | | do not overlook purchasing a computer online. Many |
| SYX Venture H420i ITX PC Bundle Intel E5300 Dual | | | | times you'll find better prices and offers that include |
| Core 2.6 GHz, genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium | | | | free shipping as well which makes the purchase more |
| 64 Bit, 2GB DDR2, 500GB Hard Drive, DVDRW, | | | | attractive and the selection is very often astonishing. |
| 19″ LCD Monitor Small Form Factor PC. | | | | Remember, it doesn't take up any floor space to put |
| What does this system summary really mean? | | | | up a website. |
| Dual-Core technology (dual core-just a fancy name for | | | | All in all, you should be able to find the best desktop |
| two microprocessors) | | | | with the performance level you are looking for, and, |
| 500GB SATA II hard drive (that's 500 gigabytes: | | | | with the price you are willing to pay. Do not be afraid |
| 100GB is ok for starters) | | | | to shop on line. It may be one of your best options for |
| 2GB of DDR2-800 memory (DDR2 is a type of | | | | finding the best computer prices on the market. |
| memory used in most newer systems today-it's the 2 | | | | Other Considerations When Buying A Small Business |
| GB memory size that we like) | | | | System |
| Intel E5300 Dual Core 2.6 GHz CPU (Intel brand dual | | | | Expansion capabilities for the future may be very |
| core (two microprocessors) with a very good speed | | | | important to you. There may come a time when you |
| of 2.6 GHz) | | | | want more memory or a bigger hard drive. Perhaps |
| Windows 7 Home Premium 64 software (the newest | | | | your system has started to run a little slower and you |
| version of Microsoft Windows) | | | | want to speed it up. Whatever problems you may |
| Intel DG41 motherboard (not that important unless you | | | | encounter down the road they might be alleviated by |
| want a different motherboard) | | | | hooking up an external device or adding a card to an |
| GMA 4500 integrated graphics (standard graphics | | | | internal expansion slot. Here are a few things to |
| card good for regular applications) | | | | remember when making a new computer purchase. |
| This Bundle Includes: | | | | USB Ports |
| SYX Venture H420i ITX Desktop PC (the CPU) | | | | USB ports are important components that allow you to |
| SYX Venture 19-inch LCD Monitor (and it comes with | | | | connect printers, flash drives, digital camera, MP3 |
| a monitor) | | | | players, mice and keyboards, Usually a CPU will come |
| One advantage to shopping on line is the amount of | | | | with four USB ports but there are some that have |
| information that is available to the buyer. Here's an | | | | eight or more. If you anticipate connecting a lot of |
| example of a spec sheet (the actual specs list is much | | | | external devices make sure to check how many ports |
| longer but I have kept it shorter for the sake of article | | | | come with the system |
| space): A spec sheet is almost always found in an | | | | Optical CD and DVD Drives |
| internet ad. | | | | A CD and DVD if possible. Also desirable would be a |
| Key Features: | | | | CD-RW (re-writable) format and DVD-RW format if |
| Condition: New | | | | affordable in your budget. A recordable DVD drive can |
| Lifestyle: Business | | | | store up to 4.7GB of data which makes it a good |
| Operating Systems: Windows 7 Professional 64-Bit | | | | device to have if you are using graphics or muisic |
| Startup Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP | | | | intensive data. |
| Pro | | | | Some drives can also record data, images, music or |
| Platform: PC | | | | video to CDs and/or DVDs. Actually you want both. |
| Form Factor: mini-ITX | | | | PCI Slots |
| Bays: 1 - 5.25" Slim/Slot Loading Drive Bay | | | | Your system should have two free PCI slots for |
| Internal Bays: 1 - 3.5" Drive Bay | | | | future expansion possibilities, PCI slots will enable you |
| Available 3.5" Drive Bays: 1 - Front Accessible | | | | to use other hardware features like audio cards or |
| Available 5.25" Drive Bays: 0 | | | | network adapters. |
| PCI Slots (Total): 1 Low Profile PCI | | | | AGP Slot |
| PCI Slots (Available): 1 Low Profile PCI | | | | Your graphics card uses a high-speed expansion slot |
| PCI Express X1 Slots (Available): N/A | | | | to display 3D images. (AGP means Accelerated |
| PCI Express X16 Slots (Total): N/A | | | | Graphics Port). What's good about having an AGP slot |
| PCI Express X16 Slots (Available):N/A | | | | is that the graphics card will have it's own RAM that is |
| PS/2 Keyboard Connectors: 1 | | | | uses with the CPU so your system will not slow down. |
| As you can see the information about this system is | | | | Having this slot will be beneficial if you want high |
| extensive and something you might not find at a retail | | | | power graphics in the future. |
| store. Along with a spec sheet you'll also get a pretty | | | | Modem |
| good description of the system as shown below: | | | | Essential for connecting to the internet. An internal |
| The SYX Venture H420i Desktop PC's compact | | | | 56Kbps V.90 modem is standard fare on nearly every |
| design easily fits on any desk in your office. It comes | | | | new PC nowadays |
| loaded with the Windows 7 Professional 64-bit | | | | Hard Drives |
| operating system with a Windows XP Professional | | | | Today the typical computer will come with a hard |
| custom image downgrade for the flexibility your | | | | drive that has at least 40 GB of storage. Our |
| productivity applications require. Handle multiple | | | | recommendation, though, would be in the area of at |
| presentations and reports simultaneously using the Intel | | | | least 100GB to 160GB for small business applications. |
| Pentium Dual-Core E5400 2.7GHz processor and 2GB | | | | A common drive speed is 5400 rpm but a 7200 rpm |
| of DDR2 memory. A Slim DVD±RW Dual Layer | | | | Ultra-ATA/100 drive will perform much better. The |
| optical drive lets you backup data to DVDs and CDs. | | | | Ultra-ATA is what connects the drive to the PC. |
| The Slim DVD±RW Dual Layer optical drive provides | | | | Hopefully breaking down the hardware elements as I |
| speedy downloading and uploading to your company's | | | | have in this article will make your small business |
| server via the 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Ethernet port. | | | | computer purchase a little easier. Thanks for reading |
| Used (refurbished) vs. New | | | | and if you enjoyed the article please leave a comment. |