Buying a Computer What to look for What to avoid Where to buy

First Steps 4 What do you want to do with it? 4 What are your needs? 4 What is your budget? 4 What are your wants?

SPEED 4 How fast of a computer do you really need? 4 Look at what CPU it is, how many GHz, and what cache it has 4 Do you need video acceleration? 4 Recommendations

CAPACITY 4 How much RAM? 4 How much Hard Drive? 4 How expandable? 4 Recommendations

RELIABILITY 4 What is the warranty? 4 What is their reputation? 4 What quality are the components? 4 Do they offer technical support? Is it free? 4 On-site service? 4 Is support local?

All-In-One Computers 4 Monitor and CPU all one box 4 Examples: iMac, HP TouchSmart 4 How expandable is it? 4 If the monitor dies, expensive repair 4 Saves a lot of space 4 Fewer wires hanging out

Slim Desktops (half-height) 4 Don’t take up as much space on desk 4 May have fewer expansion slots 4 More components integrated on the board

Full size desktops 4 Lots of room for expansion 4 Sets monitor up high 4 Bulky

Mini-Towers and Towers 4 Saves desktop space if you can put the computer on the floor or inside desk 4 Most expandable 4 Largest cases

Laptops 4 Of course, they are portable 4 Are very expensive for the same power 4 Adding drives, memory, etc. can be expensive.

Integrated vs. Non-integrated 4 The more integrated components, the less expandable. 4 The more integrated components, the more proprietary. 4 The more integrated components, the higher the service costs.

MONITORS 4 Inputs: VGA, DVI, HDMI 4 Widescreen vs. 4:3 4 Native Resolution 4 Brightness and contrast ratio 4 19” is standard for mid-line systems, 17” for budget systems 4 Response time in ms: lower is better 4 Look at the monitor for yourself before you buy. 4 Read Reviews!

Keyboards 4 Size of keys 4 How many keys 4 Programmable? 4 Integrated track pad / track ball 4 Ergonomics

Mice 4 Can have more buttons 4 Can have specialized buttons 4 Differences in quality and control 4 USB vs. Wireless 4 Optical mice

PRINTERS 4 Ink Jets- –Very cheap to buy –Support Color printing –Ink is very expensive 4 Lasers- –Expensive to buy, very much so for color –Toner is cheaper in the long run than ink –Last much longer than ink jets

DRIVES 4 CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW 4 DVD-ROM, DVD+R, DVD-R 4 BluRay? 4 Floppy? 4 Tape Backup?

SLOTS 4 PCI and PCI Express 4 PCMCIA and ExpressCard 4 Memory card slot for camera 4 IDE vs. SATA

SCANNERS 4 You get what you pay for, to some extent. 4 Budget $60-$190 4 Get 1200dpi 4 USB

MODEM 4 No longer really needed unless dial-up is a necessity 4 USB modems available today

NETWORK CAPABILITY 4 Do you need Ethernet? 4 10/100 base-T or Gigabit Ethernet 4 Wireless Networking

USED COMPUTERS 4 Not recommended for first-timers 4 Very risky –Fraud –Repairs –Overpricing 4 Be sure to check prices on the Internet

REFURBISHED COMPUTERS 4 Some have had good experience, I have not 4 Check warranty 4 Check price 4 Remember it’s still a used computer!

Where to Buy? 4 Mail Order Catalog 4 Factory Direct (Internet & phone) 4 Computer Store 4 Department/Discount Store 4 Educator Buys 4 Internet used & refurbished