The
country is on the verge of digitalization and the urge for owning a laptop is steadily
increasing among the youth as well as the elite society. Despite the fact that
this is good news, many business people who deal with importing these machines
have shown some signs of customer-exploitation. They focus so much on earning
great profits from the market demand leaving the other side of quality,
reliability and durability.
There
are many aspects that you need to consider before dishing out your money
despite how much you feel the urge of getting a laptop. This is something that
I have seen and experienced. Practically, I remember when I got my first
Pentium 3 dell computer. The ego of owing a computer right in Kenya wouldn't
let me think of factors that ought to be checked. The fellow who sold it to me
knew very well that I was craving to have it as he had quoted an extremely fair
price of 7000/=.
It
was an old but branded dell; however the machine was extremely over used which
made it perform like a chameleon in terms of speed. One click on an icon took
forever to open. It had to be rebooted on allegations that it was infect by
some virus but that only solved the problem partially. It's later that I come
to realize I paid the guy only to dump his trash on me. Nevertheless I did not
take the lesson in. The urge of at least buying another laptop or even a
computer right while in Kenya got me crazy.
I
decided to also do away with the "crap" but I had to find a pure
newbie to sell to. The mother board was replaced so I have some confidence to
sell it away. I knew it could go another one year the new buyer begins to
complain. Then, a close friend of mine started lecturing me on the essence of
being vigilant while buying a lap top in Kenya, "the goods entering as of
today are low quality he insisted" but it only felt on deaf ears.
What
mattered to me is the cash at hand, quality was not a priority. With this said…
another buddy assured me that his cloned ASUS type is perfect and is still new.
Price…? 7000= for the CPU only. That appeared as a lifetime opportunity and no
hesitation was regarded in my brains.
Within
a week the machine was in the four corners of my house. Then troubles erupted
again… Based on what befell my eyes from that day on, I could stop the
tormenting question which repeatedly asked me, “Have you considered the prime
factors of buying a laptop in Kenya? Days passed while still feeling like a
complete failure...
So
what factors should you consider first before buying a laptop computer in
Kenya?
These
are some which can guide you so as to avoid the common regrets that many people
face after giving out their money;
1.
Brand and make
You
don't want to go for a brand which is so new or unpopular in the Kenyan market.
This is because, computers are just like any other machines, they fail, and may
later require some part-replacements. So if you go for a non-popular brand,
chances are that you many end spending more cash in case it breaks down and
needs a part-replacement. Also, ensure that your machine is current and up to
date. Avoid old and over used computers completely!
2. Memory
Consider
the hard disc memory of your laptop computer and ensure that the size gives you
time-value. Literary, a 40 GB laptop will serve you but it has less
time-value... Chances of such a disc running out of memory after one year are
higher that one which has memory of 320 GB, 500 GB or higher.
3. Processing Speed in GHz
This
refers to the processing speed, or how fast the computer takes while executing
a command. It includes booting speed, speed of opening and closing a window,
browsing speed, and even gaming speed among others. Depending on your preference,
you are free to choose between, 1.85 GHz, 2.4 GHz, 2.8 GHz 3.06 GHz, or even dual
core, Core2Duo... and above. Each of this can work on the machine but, as the
sequence appears, so is the expected performance of the computer. The higher
the processing speed the better the machine's performance.
4. Type of processor
There
are many types of processors which include; Celeron, dual-core, core2dual and
the trend goes up depending on the brand. Celeron is an inferior type of
processor, so if you buy a machine with specs of 320 GB, 2 GB ram and 1.85 GHz,
it means your machine is good but has inferior speed. Thus it will be wise to
consider a Dual Core or Core2Dual processor type in your budget of the same
specs.
5. RAM
This
refers to Random Access Memory. It is the available semi-permanent memory of
your computer. It mostly varies in reference to the hard disc and purpose of
the machine. For example if you want to buy a gaming computer in Kenya, you may
have to consider a higher RAM, around 2 GB, 4 GB or 8 GB will fine. But if you
just use your laptop for writing, then 1 GB or 2 GB RAM will be okay.
These
factors comfortably apply to new computers but you can also use them when
acquiring a refurbished or used computer. The idea is, ensure you get quality
for your money. It is not a must that the computer your want to buy should be cheap;
there are reasonable prizes that can give a better laptop in Kenya. You just
need patience to save some extra cash and buy yourself a reliable machine once
and for all.
Labels: computers