If you’re a small business that’s growing quickly, you may be wondering when is the right time to upgrade to enterprise IT hardware. You might have been getting by with entry-level equipment until now, but find yourself increasingly frustrated by its performance. You could also be asking yourself what makes enterprise hardware different – and why the price tag goes up by so much!
So, what is enterprise IT hardware? Enterprise hardware generally refers to servers, data storage devices, networking equipment, and other hardware involved in a company’s IT infrastructure. Essentially, it is the nervous system that your other devices (such as laptops, desktops and printers) connect to. It is designed to meet the needs of a business in terms of connectivity, reliability, performance, security, availability and scalability. But in order to make a purchase, you’ll need to go to a specialist IT provider, rather than a high street store.
Is the increased outlay for enterprise-grade hardware justifiable? While it’s so easy to be tempted by less expensive consumer-grade or entry-level machines at a time when money is tight, in almost all business-related situations, it’s a false economy.
Here are some compelling reasons to consider investing in your hardware:
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• Built to last – enterprise-grade IT hardware will last longer than mass-produced consumer counterparts, thanks to the higher quality of build and materials.
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• Designed to run 24/7 – while consumer-grade equipment is designed for light use, enterprise-grade can be used all day, every day, without a hitch.
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• Better security. This is a big one. Because enterprise-grade hardware benefits from automated security updates, your own and your customers’ data will be safer. Consumer-grade IT is far more vulnerable to cyber-attacks – something that could cost you time, money and your reputation. The financial implications of a cyber-security breach can even run into millions!
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• Lower long-term costs – yes, you’ll pay more up front, but enterprise-grade hardware is likely to save you money in the long run. This is because the equipment won’t break down as much, can be repaired more easily if it does, and doesn’t need upgraded as often.
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• Better performance - the higher initial cost of enterprise-grade is also justified by consistently better performance, allowing the end user to be more productive.
Simply put, when a business depends on its tech to keep its customers happy, the reliability that comes with using enterprise-grade hardware is worth its weight in gold. If your website is critical to your business success, you won’t want to risk it being down because of a hardware failure.
An enterprise-grade server, for example, will provide you with the scalability you need to support your critical applications as your business grows. It will come with features that improve reliability, such as a cooling mechanism that will prevent overheating and the hardware failure and downtime that can cause. Speaking of downtime, there’s nothing more disruptive to your business than a hard drive when it gives up the ghost and your data is lost. An enterprise-grade drive is always a good investment if your company is likely to grind to a halt if there’s a failure.
So if enterprise-grade IT is starting to sound like the way forward for your business, the good news is that it doesn’t need to break the bank if you buy refurbished.
One of the biggest advantages of purchasing your refurbished enterprise-grade hardware from ETB is that our competitive prices allow you to achieve a higher specification of machine for the same budget. On average, you can expect to reduce spend by around 40-50%, when compared to buying new. You can even sell your old kit to us (conditions apply – more info here), putting more money back in your pocket.
Buying from us has the added bonus of beating current supply chain delays; anything shown as in-stock on our website, is in-stock in our warehouse without any distribution lead-times. In fact, if you’re based in the UK, we can get it to you as soon as tomorrow.
Many of our customers return to us repeatedly because of the positive experience they’ve had buying and using refurbished items – once they realise the benefits, they never look back! If you need some advice on what’s best for your growing business, our team can talk you through the specs you may need based on your current and future growth plans. Check out our website for more information on what refurbished IT equipment we have available.
