Equipment, Supplies and Services for Your Business 8

What will all of this cost?

You can buy PC powerful enough for small business needs for under $1,000. Rebates can lower the prices even further. InkJet printers can be purchased for as little as $100, and are sometimes free with the purchase of a new computer. Good laser printers and multifunction devices are several hundred dollars. Monitors (the computer screen) aren't always part of the price, so be sure you know exactly what you are going to get for your money. Watch out for very-low cost computers. They may not be powerful enough for your needs long term, or to get a computer at the advertised price you may be required to subscribe to an online service for several years, adding hundreds of dollars to your actual cost.

What will I need to connect to the Internet?

Most new computers are Internet "ready" when you buy them. Many have a modem included as well as an Ethernet port so you can connect to a local area network or to a cable modem or router. Many laptops have built-in wireless as well.

In addition to having your computer Internet "ready," you'll need to subscribe to a service that gives you access to the Internet. You can do that by subscribing to a large national or international network like America Online or Microsoft Network or by purchasing Internet services from a local dial up service or cable or DSL provider. If you travel for business and want to be able to access the Internet from any place you travel without making long-distance phone calls, your best bet would be to choose a nationally available service. That would let you connect to the internet even if the hotel you are staying in doesn't have it's own Internet access for guests. Another option is to check with your cellular service provider to see if they have an Internet access option that will let you hook up your cell phone to your laptop to access the Internet.

Are there any other gadgets I’d need?

If you get a computer system you should be sure to get a surge protector or an uninterruptible power supply. The surge protector is the least expensive and offers some protection to your equipment against power spikes (too much power) that sometimes come through lines. A power spike can destroy computer circuitry, so a surge protector is well worth getting. If you have a lot of very important data on your system or have very expensive computer equipment, you will probably want to price the uninterruptible power supplies (UPS). What a UPS does, is give you about 15 minutes of current if there's a power outage – that's enough to save what you are working on and shut down your computer manually.

If you get either, however, it is a good idea to unplug the computer in a thunderstorm. Nothing can survive a lightning hit. You should also unhook the modem from the computer during a storm, since telephone lines can carry damaging power surges if hit by lightning.

You will need a practical way of backing up your computer data, too. Although many computers today have a read/write CD-ROM, or DVD drive (or both), backing up to CDs or DVDs can become a chore if you have a lot of data stored on your computer. Thus you may also find you want to purchase a removable hard drive as a backup system.

The nature of your business and your personal preferences for how you work will determine whether you need to purchase other equipment. Palm computing devices, digital cameras, and scanners are useful equipment for some businesses, and fun toys or tax deductions for others. Your best bet in choosing equipment for the first time is to buy just the basics, then once your business is running, make additional purchase decisions based on what equipment you need to work efficiently and meet customer demands.

What other office equipment will I need?

Wrist rests that are designed to help avoid carpal tunnel syndrome, a good ergo-dynamically designed chair, and a work surface that is the right height for you are essential if you will be spending more than an hour or two a day at the computer. The cost of such items is small when you consider the back and wrist injuries they will help you avoid. An adjustable copy holder is useful if you do a lot of typing, too. You will also need at least one file cabinet to hold essential business papers, correspondence, etc. Bookshelves are also useful to have in the office, as is a storage cabinet. Cell phones, beepers, and other telecommunications devices may also be useful.

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