Friday, August 22, 2008

Tips for Buying Small Business Computers



Hardware Recommendations for Purchasing/Upgrading to a PC Desktop © David R. Wetzel

Considerations and hardware recommendations for purchasing or upgrading to a new desktop PC computer are provided, along with 2008 small business tax advantages.

A PC desktop computer has several advantages, making it more practical for home-based businesses. The advantage of a desktop focuses on its capabilities and features which other alternatives, such as a laptop, are not able to handle for comparable prices. When searching for a new PC desktop computer for a home-based business, there are some important features which need consideration.


Small Business PC Computer Considerations
Features which need consideration when purchasing a PC computer for a home-based business include:


1. The Vista Home Premium edition - Service Pack 1 is the operating system of choice for most home-based businesses. The Home Basic edition does not provide enough features to fully support a home-based business.



2. For most computer operations a 250 GB hard drive is the minimum. For example: MS Office 2007 requires 362 MB of space, Adobe Acrobat requires 619 MB, MS Office Small Business requires 426 MB, and others use a large amount of hard drive space.

3. A home based PC computer needs as much RAM as possible, so installed programs run at optimum speed.


4. A slow computer slows down productivity. This is especially noticeable when switching back and forth between multiple websites and computer based programs.

5. When considering a PC computer, select the “show more details” tab in the Vista Welcome Center on the computer. Check to see if the performance level is “3.5” or greater, avoid if lower. If you do not know how to check this, ask the salesperson to show you.

Recommended PC Computer Hardware Configurations

a) The following are minimum requirements, along with recommendations to enhance performance for a PC desktop computer:

b) Intel Core 2 Dual Processor with at least 1 GB speed – 2 GB or faster is recommended.

c) 1 GB of RAM – 2 GBs of RAM or more is recommended for optimum program speed.

d) Monitor 17 to 19 inches – 20 inch or greater LCD flat screen monitor is recommended for optimum viewing of multiple projects.

e) Hard Drive at least 250 GB – 500 GB or larger is recommended.

f) DVD/CD Dual Layer Optical Reader and Writer – recommended for multimedia work.

g) Video Card – ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 or NVIDIA GeForce GO 7800 GTX are recommended for maximum high definition for multimedia work.

h) Multimedia Capability – recommended for a small business involved in multimedia projects.

i) Upgradeable – capability to upgrade RAM, Video Graphics cards, and more is recommended.

j) External Hard Drive – 100 GB or greater is recommended to back up all work.

k) Laser Printer – more economical in the long run when compared to an inkjet printer for a home business.

l) Two Speakers – music or multimedia home based businesses will need more capability.

m) Green Technology – look for EPEAT or Energy Star 4.0 for energy efficient computers.

Small Business Tax Advantages
This is the year to purchase a new PC computer for a home-based business or upgrade to a better model. The 2008 Economic Stimulus package offers excellent tax benefits for small businesses which purchase new computer equipment. For more information about these tax advantages visit Small Business Tax Breaks for 2008. Also visit Mac Desktop Computers: Selecting the Best Model for the best Mac computers.

The copyright of the article Tips for Buying Small Business Computers in PC Hardware is owned by David R. Wetzel. Permission to republish Tips for Buying Small Business Computers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Source:http://smallhomebusiness.suite101.com/article.cfm/home_business_computers

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