Buying a new computer: what really matters

Originally published in GP magazine .

Written for GP magazine around 2002. This is the version I submitted - the published article may have been edited.

If you are thinking of buying a new computer either for yourself at home or for your practice you may be confused as to the options available. Looking through computer magazines can be bewildering with numerous different suppliers with similar seeming machines all at different prices. If you go into a shop how do you know the salesman isn’t trying to blind you with techno-speak and talk up your purchase? If you are dealing with your usual clinical system supplier are they just trying to get rid of a warehouse full of old stock? Getting the right machine is vital as you don’t want to feel that you have overstretched your budget or bought something that will be obsolete in a few months. A computer is broken down into several important parts; processor, memory, hard disk and graphics card. Each of these can make a difference to the power and price and understanding which of these is important will help you when making your next purchase. Below are some questions that hopefully will make you feel more informed as to your choices. My advice is very general and if you have a specialist use seek further help.

Is the processor the only thing I need choose?

No. It is the heart of the system and is important, though the top of the range are always overly expensive. You are better going for a more reasonably priced processor and spending money on other components.

Do I need an Intel processor?

Again no. The current Intel processors are the Pentium 4 and Celeron processors. The Celeron is a cut-down version. I would avoid it unless all you do is word processing and email. The main rival is made by AMD and is called the Athlon, and is for most uses just as good and slightly cheaper.

Do I need the fastest processor?

No, they usually have a price premium on them. My advice is to go for something three quarters of the fastest available. It will be a much better price and won’t be obsolete overnight.

What type of memory do I choose?

Although there are different types of memory and it is possible to have in-depth discussions about them, my view is that for standard machines it doesn’t matter what type; go for as much of it as you can afford.

So how much memory do I need?

More memory allows the processor to work more efficiently and stops it from having to wait for information to be loaded from disk. As a basic minimum choose 128MB, though 256MB is better. More can help if you are dealing with large graphics files, though little is to be gained above 512MB currently.

How big a hard disk do I need?

My advice is that most users don’t need more than 20GB to 40GB. It is very easy to add a disk at a later stage should you be running out of space.

What type of disk do I choose?

Type is probably more important with disks. Traditionally SCSI disks have been faster and better, though more expensive and difficult to set up. Non-SCSI disks come in different sorts and the latest are almost as good. Most standard desktop machines come with non-SCSI disks. They are rated in two ways: how much data they can transfer and how fast they spin - the higher in each, the better. Some manufacturers just offer a standard and a turbo option when ordering. My advice is don’t skimp on the disk speed. It doesn’t matter which type, just get the best you can afford while balancing the costs of the rest of the system. Luckily they are relatively cheap at the moment and you can save money by going for a fast, reasonably sized disk rather than a huge one.

Do I need a fancy graphics card or sound card?

Not unless you are an avid gamer. Any standard graphics card is fine. Very good ones can be found around £50. If you are a gamer then you will know exactly which card you need. Similarly with sound cards, the standard ones are fine for most uses.

What type of removable disks do I need?

Combo drives are the most popular at the moment. These allow you to read DVDs and CDs and write to both types of CD and are reasonably priced. You can get drives that will write to DVDs. My advice is to avoid them for the moment. There are a variety of formats and it is difficult to know which is best, and they are still very pricey. If you do a lot of copying of CDs then fit a second CD-only drive. With cheap CDs it is no longer necessary to have Zip drives or the like, as you can do all your backing up to CD.

What type of case do I go for?

This depends on what you are going to do in the future and whether you will need to add to or expand your machine. There are some lovely small-footprint machines available but they don’t have much room to expand or add extra drives or cards to.

What type of ports are useful?

All computers come with the basic ports you need, including USB ports. Some even have Firewire ports, which are good for things like video cameras. Some machines have ports on the front, which can be very useful if you are plugging in scanners or cameras etc.

Any other advice?

Don’t spend too much on support packages. Flat LCD monitors are often cheaper if bought at the same time as a computer. Don’t spend lots on extra software, as you can get the Office software as part of the NHS deal.