When you choose your next business hardware and this may include laptops, workstations and phones. There are so many different elements that you need to consider, with your chosen hardware being one of your most important investments.
From desktop computers, to printers and tablets, narrowing down your hardware options can be a tad overwhelming to say the least.
Making the wrong choices can lead to a loss of productivity, increased stress, reduce morale and potentially cost the business significant amounts of money.
Fortunately, if you are at a little bit of a loss when it comes to what hardware to pick for your business, the below guide is exactly what you need.
All you need to do is keep reading and in less than 3 minutes you will know exactly how to choose the right hardware for your IT needs.
Make a must-have list
When it comes to choosing hardware for your business, it can be all too easy to get carried away with the latest technological innovations or how it looks, and forget to establish what your business actually needs to operate on a daily basis.
Avoid this by making a list of the features you actually need from your hardware and another one detailing features you would like but are not essential.
Establish a budget
Leading on nicely from the past point, once you have decided upon which hardware you can’t do without, now is the time to work out what you can realistically afford. When setting your budget, you need to be firm with yourself but also remember to plan for additional expenses such as software, staff training and technical IT support.
It can also be a good idea during this step to try and find ways that you can cut costs without scrimping on quality such as looking to buy laptops in bulk if you have a large team.
Talk to your team
Although you may think that only you know exactly what your business needs in terms of computer hardware, you may be surprised at how helpful the advice of your employees can be, especially if they have worked within your industry for a while and don’t forget, we all have personal laptops at home.
Ask each employee about how hardware can help them in their daily activities and also about any benefits and drawbacks of previous hardware that they have used.
Seek professional advice
With so many options, specification and manufacturers out there, finding the right device can be extremely daunting, its always recommended to seek the advice of a professional IT expert or salesperson who can help you make informed decisions based on your needs and budget. You should also ask about any ongoing costs that may be involved, such as subscriptions, and what type of warranty is included with each hardware option.
Don’t forget storage
When buying a new device you need to consider whether you will need a large amount of storage on the local machine or whether the data will be stored in the cloud. This will impact the size of hard disk you need.
If you are unsure how much data your business uses, speak with an IT Managed Services company who will be able to analyse how much data each person is creating and where this data is stored.
Separately, if you are running high demand applications like video editing software, the device you choose will need a large amount of RAM to support these kinds of applications. Its always best to take the recommended specifications document provided with this kind of software.