This week a number of people have been presented with what look like excellent offers from various retailers. It really does pay to shop around because one person was about to purchase a computer from a small retailer/manufacturer who made the price appear excellent, but was using a slower processor. On checking I was able to advise the client that they could purchase a computer with very similar specifications with a brand name for around $150 less as well as save additional money on other items being quoted.
Another person had what they felt was an excellent offer from Costco. A similar computer was available with similar specifications for slightly less from another retailer but the real concern again was the processor. The speed of the processor was quite low but that would not have been obvious to the regular consumer. The unit was a brand new all-in-one desktop with touch screen and yet the performance was similar to that of a three year old computer.
The third was a special offer from Dicksmith which caught my attention. It was a half price ASUS tablet with keyboard unit running Windows 8. At $349 it was very tempting because I'm in the market for a more mobile device which can run Windows 8. However, rather than an impulse buy, I decided to check the processor performance and was staggered how slow the processor was. The speed was a third to a half of my ageing notebook computer and barely double the speed of my four and half year old netbook I no longer use since it is so slow. The price was very tempting at $349, but ultimately the speed of the unit was going to be a concern.
At the moment I'm seeing a lot of low powered devices (in terms of processor performance) being marketed to consumers and many consumer will end up purchasing computers with performance they would have expected from computer 3-5 years ago. Most of the lower cost Windows 8, low power, very portable devices come with quite low performance. As long as you are aware the performance of the device there is no issue. But if you are expecting to purchase a portable computer to replace your ageing desktop, you may just find the desktop is still a faster computer and chances are, that isn't what you expected.
Be careful with retailers. Their only desire appears to be to make a sale. Only you can look after your interests and make sure you get a portable device which meets your needs. Make sure you check out benchmarks for the processor of the device you're looking at before purchasing.
Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.
Another person had what they felt was an excellent offer from Costco. A similar computer was available with similar specifications for slightly less from another retailer but the real concern again was the processor. The speed of the processor was quite low but that would not have been obvious to the regular consumer. The unit was a brand new all-in-one desktop with touch screen and yet the performance was similar to that of a three year old computer.
The third was a special offer from Dicksmith which caught my attention. It was a half price ASUS tablet with keyboard unit running Windows 8. At $349 it was very tempting because I'm in the market for a more mobile device which can run Windows 8. However, rather than an impulse buy, I decided to check the processor performance and was staggered how slow the processor was. The speed was a third to a half of my ageing notebook computer and barely double the speed of my four and half year old netbook I no longer use since it is so slow. The price was very tempting at $349, but ultimately the speed of the unit was going to be a concern.
At the moment I'm seeing a lot of low powered devices (in terms of processor performance) being marketed to consumers and many consumer will end up purchasing computers with performance they would have expected from computer 3-5 years ago. Most of the lower cost Windows 8, low power, very portable devices come with quite low performance. As long as you are aware the performance of the device there is no issue. But if you are expecting to purchase a portable computer to replace your ageing desktop, you may just find the desktop is still a faster computer and chances are, that isn't what you expected.
Be careful with retailers. Their only desire appears to be to make a sale. Only you can look after your interests and make sure you get a portable device which meets your needs. Make sure you check out benchmarks for the processor of the device you're looking at before purchasing.
Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.