FACULTY OF INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

COMP 109 - Introduction to Computer Hardware

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 Table of Content

• ABSTRACT ……………………………………………….1
• Introduction………………………………………………2-5
• Data Analysis……………………………………………..6-16
• Conclusion…………………………………………………17-18
• References…………………………………………………19-20
ABSTRACT

Today computer systems are consumer commodities much like appliances and automobiles.
And as with these consumer products, the potential purchaser is faced with a daunting
assortment of brands, models, features, etc. Today the computers are faster, smaller, and more
powerful than ever before, and they don’t cost you an arm and a leg. The price, size, and
internal/external specifications are important considerations and many of these choices may
have a significant impact on the bottom line. Computer purchase decisions should be based on
careful consideration of how both hardware and software will be used to meet your needs.
Faced with so many choices, what should you do? Should you get a Mac or a PC? Laptop or
desktop? Specs-wise, what’s the difference between an AMD and Intel processor? In this
workshop I will suggest a simple strategy to use when planning for the purchase of a computer
system.
Introduction

Whether you're buying a laptop, desktop or tablet computer, it's essential that you take the
time to consider the device's processor, hard drive, memory, graphics card and operating
system before making your purchase. These five components make up the meat and potatoes
of your computer. Ensuring that you buy the right hardware can make the difference between a
computer that works well and lasts a long time and one that does neither.

As computer has huge opportunities for you why should you compromise while buying a
computer. Think you are pro and developer while buying a computer so that you can buy highly
configured computer. If you think you are a newbie you may buy low configured computer and
a day would would surely come which will disappoint you for the configuration you have
bought. So i recommend you to follow these 10 things while buying a computer to experience
the happiness for long time

Buying a new laptop or desktop PC can be quite confusing. Many people find it difficult to
compare prices, features, processor types, etc to find the right choice in accordance with their
requirements. In this post, we will tell you the top 10 things to consider before buying a PC.

Every business needs to routinely purchase computer hardware and software, from the smallest
startup to the largest corporation. There are a lot of elements to take into consideration, but
which should you prioritize when it comes time to make that buy?

The three most important factors to consider when purchasing computer hardware and
software are:
Quality

Price

Service after the sale

Because these three points are all related, they should be considered together to ensure the
best purchase.

Quality

The quality of a product is essentially its goodness or “badness.” You can determine quality by
asking yourself the following questions:

How well does this product meet my specific needs?

Does it have the features and functions I require?

How well is it made?

How long will it last?

Online reviews can help you answer these questions, especially those found on respected sites
such as Newegg, which are authored by real men and women in the tech sphere who actually
use the products they’re reviewing.

The bottom line: Doing your research and reading reviews is an important component of
gauging a product’s quality. If a product has good reviews and comes from a respectable brand,
you may be tempted to pull the trigger on your purchase. However, you also need to
understand how the product will interact with the technology you already have in place. Getting
a second opinion is an absolute must, whether it be from a managed services provider or
another type of IT consultant.

Price
Everyone has a budget, but that doesn’t mean buying cheap is necessarily the way to go. After
all, if you purchase a product that breaks easily or doesn’t fully meet your needs, you’ll end up
needing to replace it, thereby busting your budget.

The bottom line: Keep in mind that the actual cost of a product is only one part of the Total
Cost of Ownership (TCO) – the sum of all costs incurred over the product’s useful life. In
addition to the initial price, quality and service after the sale also impact TCO, reaffirming that
buying based on the lowest available price alone is not a smart move.

Service after the sale

Quality and price are both important factors, but you need to consider them alongside service
after the sale to get the full picture. Here are a few aspects you’d be wise to look into before
purchasing:

Return policy: If the product isn’t satisfactory, how much will it cost to return, including
shipping costs and restocking fees? How much time will your staff waste dealing with a
cumbersome return process? Will your operations be impacted by not having a working product
in place? Since many IT purchase decisions are made to mitigate costly problems, the financial
hits will likely continue until the issue is resolved, so it’s best to avoid returns whenever
possible. Most importantly, make sure you can return your purchase in the first place!
Sometimes, products are final-sale – especially those that are very low-cost (i.e. used goods or
items sold by cut-rate vendors).

Warranty: Warranties apply to the state of the product when you purchased it. If something is
wrong with the product, the vendor will repair or replace it at no charge, as long as the
warranty – or subsequent warranty extension – is in effect. Does the seller you’re interested in
offer a good warranty, or any warranty at all? Check reviews to make sure the company stands
behind its warranty policy and is easy to reach when problems arise.

Service agreement: When you’re dealing with IT hardware and software, you can expect
ongoing improvements to be released and applied in the form of updates and new versions.
These updates are made for a variety of reasons, including boosting general performance,
introducing specific features and addressing recently discovered security vulnerabilities. Service
agreements are essential for IT products that are critical to business functions because
operational losses due to outdated hardware or software can be very costly.

The bottom line: Usually, the more complex an IT purchase is, the more service after the sale
impacts TCO. If you’re not careful, the cost of poor service can easily exceed the initial
investment.

Combining the 3 factors to make a successful purchase

Many companies without experienced IT departments are often tempted to make price the
driving factor in their IT purchase decisions. As a managed services provider with a wealth of
experience in hardware and software, we urge companies to evaluate not just cost, but quality
and service after the sale as well. And remember above all else, the best thing you can do
when purchasing hardware and software is to get a second opinion from a competent IT
provider.
Factors to Consider when buying a computer

Operating System Type.

You must check whether the operating system (OS) is genuine or nulled one. Ask the shop
owner to install Genuine operating system. Also if you are a windows operator, think twice
before purchasing MAC. The operating system in MAC is completely different form Windows OS.
However, you can install Windows too on MAC

Users with minimum requirements may be better off buying a Windows Starter or Home
Premium version e.g. of Windows 7. For users who wish to take advantage of more enhanced
features and require more effective tools such as connecting their PC to a domain are naturally
better off buying a Professional or Ultimate Edition. Having said that the cost of a Windows 7
Ultimate Edition can be as much as 219$.
Monitor Size and Type

LED monitors are the latest trend now because they won’t affect our eyes and it will have
perfect vision up to almost 180 degrees. 18 inch LED monitor is mandatory but I recommend to
buy at least 21 inches LED monitor for better vision and experience. At our office, we personally
use the 27-inch cruved monitor from Samsung.

Some people prefer buying larger laptops for a better display screen, whereas others prefer
smaller and more portable sizes. If you are setting up a server which will be placed in a server
room then size considerations will not matter much as large servers with multiple SCSI drives
are normally quite big. Whereas, for people with weak eye sights a laptop with a larger display
screen might be worth the price.
Peripherals

Peripheral devices such as printers, scanners, etc can significantly increase or reduce your price
for buying a new PC. It might be better off buying a system with a DVD combo drive if you do
not require writing data to DVDs.

Every cabinet will be designed in such a way that it may have at least 2 ports on the front side
and 4-6 ports on the back side. Nowadays Keyboards, Mouses are designed with USB cables. So
that you almost wasted 2 posts now. So check whether ports are enough for your usage. Prefer
Monitor with inbuilt Webcam and speakers. The sound system is also important for
entertainment. Make your system as a source of home theater. Better check whether your
computer is inbuilt with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
Brand

Some brands offer better warranties, whereas others offer software packages that come with
the system. For example, a Dell laptop with the same specifications may be cheaper than a
Sony Vio. The reason is that Sony provides many of its own software with their laptops which
saves the users cost for buying software, e.g. a DVD burning. However, if you already have
many such licensed or freeware software available, then it might be better to go for cheaper
brands. Acer, for instance, is known for its low-cost laptops that provide more enhanced specs
like hard disk space and RAM as compared to its competitors.

The most important thing is the brand of the computer. You may have two choices while buying
a computer, Brander PC or Assembled PC. Difference between them is quite simple. In branded
PC we have to buy the computer as the company released and it may costs higher than the
assembled PC.

In case of assembled PC, we have many options to configure our computer. We can select
different companies to configure in case of assembled PC. For example, our monitor is from
Samsung, Keyboard is from Zenith and so on. This type of configuration is possible only in case
of assembled PC

Service is also very important while buying your computer. A computer may get repairs and you
may have to travel kilometers to solve them. Ask whether home service is available for at least
for one year.
Hard Disk

Hard Disk considerations might not mean much to a lay user, nonetheless, having the right
amount of disk space and disk type might be necessary for the efficient management of regular
tasks for a professional. A common user may merely have to decide between buying a 120GB
or 320 GB hard disk system. An IT professional on the contrary might have to decide between a
SCSI or a SATA drive. As a scuzzy or SCSI(Small Computer System Interface) drive might be
required for Raid configurations.

Hard disk range starts from 40GB but no one is able to handle all their data on 40GB. If you
have a large amount of data to store on your PC, then I recommend using a minimum 500 GB
for general usage. Depending on your needs you may use 1 TB, 2 TB, or even 4 TB hard drives.
Recently we have reviewed Seagate 8TB hard drive and you can read it here.
RAM

It is obvious that for more professional tasks and to run a Xeon Server there will be more RAM
required than for merely using a PC for browsing the internet. Moreover, the RAM type may
matter more than many people might consider. For example, there are not many applications
currently available that can take advantage of DDR3 RAM types, one may be better of saving
some dimes by buying a system with a DDR4 RAM.

RAM is very important while buying a computer. For better use, your computer must be
embedded with 2GB RAM. If you want to use 4 GB RAM, I recommend using 2GB + 2GB RAM
because if any one of them stopped working only 2GB of RAM should be replaced which will
save your money.

i3 processor with 500 GB Hard disk = 4 GB RAM is minimum is recommended

i3 Processor with 1TB (1024 GB) Hard disk = 4GB + 4GB RAM is recommended

i5 or 17 Processor with 500 GB Hard disk = 4GB RAM is minimum and recommended

i5 or 17 Processor with 1TB (1024 GB) Hard disk = Minimum 8GB RAM is recommended and if
your budget permits, go with 2 x 8 GB RAM.
Processor

The Processor is one of the most important parts of a system and can mean the difference
between a system that frequently hangs and the one that runs smoothly. Some people might
think that going for the low-cost single core or Dual Core processors is a good idea but I would
not recommend either of them for anyone who requires using a system for more than basic
usage. Moreover, one might be better off buying a Corei3 system instead of a Core 2 Duo as
the later might be more expensive and less efficient than the former. A Corei3 can cost up to
113$ whereas, a Core2Duo can cost 130$. For more demanding professionals, it might be a
better idea to buy a corei5 (if not a Core i7), as the core i5 uses Turbo Boost technology other
than Hyper Threading.

If you want to run your PC smoothly without any hangs then the processor is very important.
Many people thing Core 2 duo processor is enough for their need and usage. But I recommend
you to choose at least an i3 or i5 processor. If you are a gaming lover or a developer then you
must choose i7 processor for your computer to help it to perform lightning-fast and smoothly
Warranty

Warranty makes up the most important consideration for people when buying a system. Having
one covered with the right kind of hardware warranty is essential and should be unconditional. I
still remember when Sony had to recall several Laptops due to a battery fault because of which
their Laptops caught fire. I’m sure none of us would like to have a Laptop that we can fry
omelets on without the guarantee of replacement.

Internal parts like SMPS, Motherboard, DVD writer, etc should have a warranty for at least 1
years. Some of the brands would provide 3 years complete warranty under certain conditions.
Must check and important step while buying a computer. Hope you will never forget this step.
This single step would add value to your money
Usability

It is important that you first consider the tasks that you will be performing on your PC. If you
wish to buy a computer for simply browsing the internet and using some online services than it
might be better to buy a single core computer which satisfies your minimum requirements. On
the contrary, if you require using it for heavy video editing and professional work, then it might
be better to buy a system that has enhanced multimedia options.
Price

This brings us to our next consideration of price. There might be some very fancy features that
you want in your new PC. However, if you don’t have the cash to pay for let’s say a graphics
card with 1GB memory, then you might be better off choosing suitable alternatives.
Conclusion:

Processor: - The processor should be the fastest available or something within 10% of the
fastest processor. For instance, if the fastest processor available is 3.0GHz, you should purchase
between 2.7GHz and 3.0GHz.

Memory: - The absolute minimum amount of RAM that I recommend is equal to ½ of the total
RAM an average computer will hold. If a computer will hold a maximum of 16GB of RAM, the
minimum you should consider is 8GB of RAM.

Hard Disk: - I recommend the largest hard drive available, with the amount of disk space
required to hold the OS, programs and your data. Hard disk clock speed is also very important
to manipulate your request faster. It is available in 5,400 RPM, 7,200 RPM, and 10,000 RPM.

If money is not a concern, buy a computer with Solid State drives.

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