The Right Way

There are many things to consider when shopping for computer parts and related equipment, and unfortunately it’s very easy to pay too much and end up with a disappointing purchase. However, things have really changed in the past decade with the expansion of e-commerce and online documentation. So in this article, I’ll cover the most important things to consider when buying new computer hardware.

Compatibility. Before you begin shopping, you’ll first need to find out what your new hardware must be compatible with. For example, if you’re buying a desktop printer and your computer has USB2 ports, then you need to make sure your printer supports USB2. When buying other hardware like computer memory, the decision can be a lot more complicated. You’ll have to consult the specifications for your current hardware and maybe do some research online. If you’re still unsure, then I recommend talking with someone more knowledgeable (but not a salesperson).

Local Retailers. These are the absolute last places you should consider going to. Although it used to be somewhat reassuring to see the boxed product and know exactly what you were going to get, local retailers have now lost even that advantage. You can get much more information online than what’s printed on the box, and you can also get “real” photos showing everything the product comes with.

With a local retailer, you will always have to pay a substantial mark-up because the store, the employees, and the advertising behind them are all very expensive. Although some retailers claim their staff can help customers make the right purchases, that help is doubtful at best with a huge conflict of interest. The only advantage a local retail store offers is that you can have the product immediately after you’ve paid for it.

Internet Retailers. Thankfully, there are much better retailers online. My favorate is NewEgg.com, and the competition doesn’t even come close. The best thing about NewEgg is their online review system, which provides honest assessments from people who have already bought the product. Say one particular hard drive has 500 reviews and 75% of the reviewers gave it 5/5 stars. You might think at first that there must be something wrong because 25% of the reviewers rated it lower, but this is due to the fact that people are much more likely to write about bad experiences than good ones. Any product with over 75% 5/5 reviews is a good product, though before buying it is always a good idea to read the bad reviews too.

Another thing that’s great about NewEgg is that they will open the box and take detailed pictures of everything that the product comes with. You can see the cables, documentation, and other things that are usually not visible in the pictures on the outside of the box. You can also find many products that are meant to be sold to system builders rather than consumers – giving you more options and lower prices.

Brand Names. Well-known brands are nice in that they give you some assurance of trustworthiness, but they also mean that the manufacturer is a larger corporation – and this means they can be pressured to meet deadlines and ship products with known defects. It sounds bad, but it’s common even with relatively good companies like Seagate and Western Digital. This is another reason to buy online where you can see what people have said about a specific model.

Some of the larger brands with products in many different categories – such as Sony and HP – will re-brand cheaper, generic parts in order to compete in as many markets as possible. There’s not really a way to know which company is really manufacturing the product, but a good rule of thumb is to ask yourself what the brand name is famous for. For example, an HP-branded CDRW drive or flash drive is probably not made by HP, while on the other hand, an HP LaserJet printer is made by HP.

OEM vs Retail. A product’s Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) is the company which manufactured it, and historically, system builders have purchased large quantities from OEMs for resale inside new systems. So when you see “OEM” products for sale on NewEgg, what they mean is that the product is not packaged for display in a retail store. This is a good thing because OEM parts are cheaper, but in some cases the retail version will include extra features and support.

In the case of hard drives, you should always go for the OEM version (which in almost all cases has the same warranty as the retail version). But when it comes to processors, the retail package usually includes a heatsink and fan (an HSF). Unless you already have a compatible HSF, or you’re planning to buy your own, you will want to buy the retail package.

Warranties & RMAs. Even though they show the manufacturer’s good faith, warranties are often not that useful when it comes to computer parts. If you were buying a computer from Dell, then the warranty would be very important because there’s a substantial risk of an expensive, proprietary (i.e, made by Dell only) part failing. However, if you’re buying standard parts (which are much cheaper), then you can simply buy another if it fails. And if you did your research before buying to make sure you were getting a high-quality product, then there’s little chance you’d ever need the warranty anyway. What you would really need is a good return policy from your retailer. A Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) is a request that you can submit to your retailer to return the product. So if you receive a defective or “dead on arrival” (DOA) part, you will have a way to get your money back.

For Windows computers, a good antivirus program is essential, but that doesn’t mean you have to pay for it. Practically everyone has seen the commercials for Norton or McAfee, but those commercials are expensive, and the last thing we want to do is pay for them. There are several excellent antivirus products with free editions, and the companies behind them make their profits by offering “professional” or “corporate” editions which include the same protection with added features and support.

So in this article I’ll cover the available free solutions and their pros and cons. The worst thing to do is leave your Windows computer without any protection at all, because you might never notice if some piece of malware was silently sending out all of your keystrokes or personal files to an attacker. Thankfully most viruses aren’t that malicious, but it’s certainly worth taking a little time to save yourself from hours of frustration later down the road.

Avira AntiVir Personal is the highest-rated, free antivirus solution, and in some tests, it performs better than any other antivirus software (including paid-for products). It installs quickly, and although registration is required, the installer can automatically register for you and doesn’t require you to input any personal information. However, there are adware-like popups which appear during updates. If you choose Avira, I recommend opening the configuration panel after installing, enabling “expert mode,” and changing the update options so that updates are automatically downloaded and installed.

Avast! Antivirus 4.8 Home Edition is a very popular and effective product that is free, although registering is required for a license key which is valid for one year. Although Avast may seem somewhat less offensive than Avira, there is more adware when the license is about to expire. Version 5 will feature a much-needed facelift and is expected to be released this October. It will also have a free edition, but it would be prudent to wait a few months after the official release before installing it.

Comodo Internet Security includes Comodo’s reputable firewall and their relatively new antivirus product. Unfortunately, Comodo’s antivirus has not been rated by organizations such as av-comparatives.org, and independent reviews by other groups, such as PC Magazine, have not been that good. However, Comodo Antivirus is free for both business and personal use, and as far as I know, it’s the only one that is. If you decide to try it, I recommend installing only the antivirus because firewalls aren’t necessary in most cases. Also make sure to avoid installing the toolbar it comes packaged with, and be prepared for warning popups (which are not adware) when you’re making big changes. I also recommend using the ThreatCast feature, which allows you to see other users’ choices when responding to suspicious activity warnings.

Microsoft Security Essentials is a free antivirus solution which replaces Windows Defender (which provides protection from adware only) and Windows Live OneCare. Although it’s still in development, it will no doubt become an important player in the antivirus market. Unlike Microsoft’s last antivirus product, OneCare, which received very poor ratings, beta versions of MSE have so far garnered positive reviews. A public release for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 is expected by the end of 2009, and naturally this antivirus product will be free for business use.