OVERVIEW

Here at Simply IT, we work hard to build what we call our “Recommended Technology Platform”. We know that using the products listed in this document will give you a great platform to operate your business from (We know this because we “Eat our own dog food” and use ALL of the services below to run our own company).

Our engineers are trained to keep up to date with technology across this core set of products. This is to ensure that we can quickly, efficiently, and expertly assist you with working with those products.

We also maintain a strong network of engineers that we can call on for specific expertise in high level or advanced customization of these core services.

RECOMMENDED TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM

PURCHASING A WORK COMPUTER

We have the capability to provide a quote and supply a suitable workstation based on your intended use. However, you have the option to provide your own workstation if you prefer. Here are some guidelines to consider when contemplating the purchase of a computer for business use:

• Business vs Home Use: Not all computers are created the same. Many computers on the retail market are designed for home use and are not suited for day-to-day business use.
• Operating System: “Windows 10 Home” is a stripped-down version of Windows 10 and lacks several crucial functionalities required for business-use scenarios. If a computer comes pre-installed with Windows 10 Home, it is not suitable for business use, and we suggest selecting a different model. The upgrade path from Win 10 Home to Pro is costly (license upgrade alone costs approximately $200), and is time-consuming (charged hourly), and in some instances, may not be possible or create additional problems. It’s better to begin with the appropriate operating system already installed.
• Warranty: Home use computers are not backed by a business grade warranty and if there was an issue during the warranty period, the computer would generally need to be sent away for repairs / replacement leaving you without a computer for weeks.
• Driver & Firmware Support: Some cheaper brands lack proper support such as driver and BIOS upgrade availability. Our recommended brands come preinstalled with software that will scan the machine, which makes any required updates easier and quicker.

The brands we recommend offer a next day onsite business warranty for their devices. Based on our experience, we select models that provide the best return on investment. Our findings suggest that spending less on a computer increases the likelihood of issues and the need for support, resulting in extra time lost and additional expenses.

We recommend purchasing a business grade computer with these Minimum Specifications:

• Recommended Brands: Dell
• Operating System: Windows 10 Pro
• CPU: Intel i5 or above
• RAM: 16GB RAM or above
• Storage: 512GB SSD or larger
• Warranty: 3-years next business day onsite

These minimum specifications apply for general office use machines. If the computer is required to run special software (such as CAD or Adobe suite) or if the user has increased multitasking requirements the specs might need to be raised accordingly.

WHAT IF MY COMPUTER DOES NOT MEET THE RECOMMENDED SPECS?

That’s OK. We are still happy to work on your machine. However, please be aware that there might be some limitations based on the specifications and tasks might take longer which may result in higher support fees.

As brands outside our recommended ones do not offer the required software support to make upgrades and changes, we will not upgrade your drivers / BIOS / operating system to the latest as in our experience this greatly adds to the time and effort required.

THIRD PARTY VENDORS

While we pride ourselves on our troubleshooting skills and abilities to solve many different types of technical problems, please keep in mind that for 3rd party products outside our Recommended Platform, it may take us some extra time to familiarize ourselves with managing and supporting these products.

If the issues can and should be supported by the 3rd party vendor, then we may help you liaise with the vendor directly to get the problem solved in the most efficient and timely manner for you.

We may still be able to purchase items from other vendors at your request (depending on whether our distributors stock it), however if any unforeseen issues arise in the setup, installation and ongoing use, we may need to invoice you separately for this time.

MANAGED SOFTWARE LIST