As the owner of a IT Connect’s Milwaukee computer repair service center and Waukesha computer service center one of the most common computer repair service questions that we see customers faced with is whether to buy a new computer or have computer repair service work performed on the computer that they already own. When a computer’s hard drive is starting to fail or when a laptop or desktop computer is infected with a virus, trojan horse or other malicious software then whether to replace the computer or buy a computer repair is something that must be carefully considered.
When making the decision to either repair or replace a broken computer it is important to remember why you have the computer in the first place and what makes it valuable to you. In most cases the computer is used to store and access photos, email messages, contacts, documents and other important data that is an important part of daily life. Treating a computer like a television set that you can simply throw away after unboxing a new one is usually not an option given the importance of the data that is on it. This is why it is important to make sure that you have a computer service provider with a good reputation for not losing any of this valuable data. A computer repair or replacement that is performed incorrectly can result in a permanent loss of everything you have often spent years to create and accumulate and to simply discard it all and start over with a new one is simply not an option. The greater portion of computer repair work often involves backing this data up and preserving it prior to performing any work on the computer as well as setting up the email system, moving contacts and other data and reinstalling important programs such as Word, Excel, Outlook and any other necessary programs. If you run a small business then you may also have additional software systems that need to be moved such as Quickbooks or other accounting software that needs to be backed up and reconfigured on either the existing or new computer. If you are an expert in computer repair work then you can most likely back up and restore all of this data yourself. If not, then you will need a reputable computer service center to take care of it for you. Determining the true cost of computer repair work involves subtracting the cost of backing up and moving the data and other programs and then subtracting that from what you are being quoted to repair your computer; since buying a new one will still require this same work to be done before you can start using it. This is the very reason why corporate IT departments employ departments of highly skilled IT workers to manage the companies’ data instead of simply throwing the equipment away and buying new whenever something breaks down. In short the real value of a computer usually lies in what you have on it as opposed to the nuts and bolts.
Buying a new computer still involves the time and expense of moving all of your data and important programs. For this reason it is usually not advisable to go with a cheap computer from a big box retailer since the most expensive computer ends up being the one that breaks down requiring many hours of data backup and restoration in order to prevent the loss of data. When shopping for a new computer it is at least as important to consider the brand and model as the hard drive and memory sizes and CPU speed. Two computers that have the same hard drive and memory sizes and CPU speeds may be built with vastly different quality of components. While a typical home model computer from a big box retailer might appear on the surface to be the same as a computer that is labeled for business use when it comes to RAM, hard disk size and CPU, a business computer is labeled as such since it is built from better quality components that are less likely to break down resulting in a loss of your valuable data. Since a moderate amount of data and programs can take an entire day (or more) to backup and restore it is usually advisable when purchasing a computer to buy a computer that is labeled for business use since business computers are built with better quality components and make it far less likely that you will end up needing to buy a computer repair in the first place. If your computer does break down during the warranty period then the manufacturer covers only the repair itself and does not usually include the backup and restoration of your data and other programs in their warranty repair services.
In conclusion, the decision as to whether to repair or replace your existing computer is a complicated one. If you are not already an expert in computer repair projects then it is advisable to consult the best computer repair service company you can find in your local area. A qualified computer repair service company can help you determine the true cost difference in repairing or replacing your existing computer and will assist you with selecting a quality replacement computer and move all of your data and other programs should you need to replace your old desktop or laptop computer with a new one.
By Jason Roskopf