6 Small Business Refurbished Computer Buying Tips

As a small business owner when you're trying to save costs on technology equipment, refurbished computer systems seem to be the natural option. While it's true that buying refurbished PCs may cost you up to fifty percent less than a new PC, you need to be careful to get the best value for money. Whether you supply drugs and intermediates or deal in electronic products, the following tips will help you with buying a refurbished computer system for you business.

1. Assess your computer usage needs – Take a stock of all the different software you want to run on the system. For instance, if you just need to run office suites such as Open Office or Microsoft Office, a two or three year old computer system may suffice. However, if you want to install and run some of the latest operating systems and graphics software, an old computer may not be the best choice. Find out about the minimum and recommended system requirements for the software you want to be running on your PC, in the short as well as longer term.

2. See what all peripherals and software are included in the deal – A refurbished PC in general may not comprise all the necessary components to get you up an running. For instance, hardly any deals may include a monitor, some may not include DVD drives, operating system, network cards, etc. So before you go in for the purchase make sure you've carefully skimmed through the product specifications.

3. See whether the refurbished PC is installed with the same parts as a new one – Sometimes, the refurbishers while remanufacturing the PCs fit them with just any parts available, instead of the ones specified by the manufacturer. So you need to ensure whether the remanufactured PC is fixed with the specified parts as the original or not.

4. Prefer reliable and known retailers for the purchase – There's no dearth of retailers selling refurbished computers through the classified advertisements. However if you aren't yourself quite knowledgeable in assessing computers, you are better off purchasing from well-known, reliable and authorized refurbishers. Often the best bet is to buy directly from the manufacturer or company authorized retailers.

5. Check out the warranty policy – While the warranty of a refurbished PC can't be the same as that of a new one, a three-month warranty is offered in general. You also need to find out how quickly the company will respond to fix and repair, in case any problems crop up after the purchase. Also, don't miss out to check the return policy.

6. Read up reports and reviews about the refurbisher – Gather more information about the retailer by skimming through reviews in technology magazines both on the Internet and in print. You may ask existing customers about their level of satisfaction with the company. Also, read up and compare reports on the fail and return rates for different refurbishers.